The video below is by Malcolm McGrath, a cabinet maker in Toronto whose rolling work station we covered a few weeks back. In this segment McGrath shows off the hinged boom he built and attached to the wall of his shop. An electrical cord and air hose run out along the top of the boom and are connected to air tools, power tools, and a work light that hang from the side. This puts tools within easy reach but keeps their cords and hoses out of the way.
His setup reminds me of the boom arm set Festool makes for their dust extractors—though that system is designed to hold one tool and vacuum hose at a time. I used to keep a router suspended from the ceiling of my shop; it was attached to a cord that ran through a pulley and was tied to a counterweight. When I let go of the tool the weight pulled it up and out of the way. It worked for me because I was doing repetitive work at a bench that never moved. McGrath’s setup is more flexible because it holds more tools (which can be swapped out) and the boom can be swung to various locations—or completely out of the way.
This clever accessory cost little more than some planning time, leftover material, and the time it took to throw the boom together. There would no doubt be ways to refine the device over time—and I bet McGrath will since he strikes me as the kind of guy who is always thinking.
