Adam Savage's One Day Builds: Flat File Tool Storage Cabinet!

Adam first built drawers for his drafting tools two years ago, but things have not gone according to plan. To improve his storage habits, he builds a flat file storage cabinet in its place, with wide and deep drawers lined with green felt! The math is going to have to be precise in this one, so let's see how Adam does!
The original Drafting Tools Sorting Drawer build: • Adam Savage's One Day ...
Shot by Adam Savage and edited by Josh Self
Music by Jinglepunks
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Thanks for watching!

[@tested]

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[@cavemanvi]

The edits to hip hop style beats was INCREDIBLE. This editing style is waaaaaay fun thanks for letting editors try something new. It’s really great!

[@StevenKetchum]

I've wanted flat files to store artwork for twenty years, but you can easily spend over a $1k for a set. Seeing this gives me some confidence I could build my own. Thanks Adam!

[@tested]

That's so great to hear! Hope you do build your own!

[@1pcfred]

Sure all it takes is time.

[@kristyl933]

Likewise! Excited to start 😁

[@Zawfee]

Same here!!!

[@iamikejones]

He makes it look easy

[@bongothewonderchimp]

I have always talked to myself out loud in my workshop, accepting it's how I figure shit out, but always secretly fearing it was a sign of some metal instability, and never doing it in front of people at the risk of appearing at best eccentric, or at worst nuts. Thank you Adam...

[@augustcook5537]

My dad used to do it all the time. I asked him once as a child who he was talking to. His response? "Myself, it's the only intelligent conversation I get." I didn't understand it at the time, but i do now. I figure out problems out loud, it helps me work thru the problem.

[@nicolevanderpool1252]

Adam unedited singing and building the flat files I never knew I wanted, this one surely ticked all the boxes.

[@garrynash3580]

I love watching your prop one day builds but always get more inspired when you work on infrastructure. Love it!!!

[@GIBBO4182]

I love the way Adam creates a problem so he’s got something to “fix”! 😂

[@juliettaylorswift]

but did he create the problem or just notice that a problem created itself

[@robinbrowne5419]

Ha ha. True :-)

[@ethantalbot1811]

Apple must have learnt from him

[@HigherPlanes]

That mindset is exceedingly American

[@Aleph-Noll]

love infrastructure builds! they really showcase a lot of skills and problem solving for your shop and work process

[@cernunnoskali]

If you take the extension runners apart, there's a clip. Then install the runners on the cabinet sides, before you put the cabinet together, it's way easier and faster.

[@motobenbh4722]

Wahh.... thanks for pointing that out. I wanna try these things, and you just maybe gave me the key to the door!

[@michaelmolter8828]

I watch Adam’s shop infrastructure playlist in reverse order so every week his shop gets a little more disorganized.

[@adamspecht5150]

I must say I find a strange enjoyment watching someone other than me have "fun" with drawer slides. 🤣

[@Beef4Dinner22]

One trick I have learned over many frustrating times of using them, is to leave way more space between the drawer boxes to give flexibility on placement. If you only leave 1/16" (like Adam seemed to when doing initial measurements), you have to place them perfectly. If you leave 0.5-1" (or more) between them, you have way more flexibility to place them in the cabinet, then you hide the gaps with the drawer front added after the fact. This is typically how mass produced cabinets are done, if you look at the cabinet drawers in a desk or kitchen, you will see much larger gaps between each drawer box.

[@biggsdarklighter4586]

@@Beef4Dinner22 True, but he had a specific height to work with and that much probably would have cost him a drawer. So the extra struggle was worth it!

[@carlz0r]

@@biggsdarklighter4586 Well in this case you would make the 'box' of the drawer a little shorter to provide the extra space. That means you space them apart the same, but you make the walls of each one a tiny bit shorter so they don't have a chance of rubbing from a very tiny mistake. Just another eighth or quarter inch should do it. You're not even losing any storage space this way, because this kind of drawer doesn't really get piled high and must contain objects falling over each other inside, there just has to be enough to a wall to keep anything from accidentally sliding off. Then when you put the fronts of the drawers on, you make those full height for a nice flat appearance on the front of the piece, because the fronts are way easier to do perfectly.

[@dlcolwell120]

I (as a man that has only used the word "love" if we really mean it) love your channel from the Paul Simon lyrics to the projects you do make me feel like I am 8 years old again in the garage with my father while he works on odd projects he has sitting around. Only wish I could be there handing you tools for the full experience. your channel is 1000 times better than your shows for this reason. it takes us back.... to a time when we learned from watching our fathers make things we needed for no other reason than we can make them better ourselves. i will forever be grateful for your channel as my father is getting too old and wore down by life to continue this... but you..., without knowing tap into this nostalgic and frankly very important part of my brain that to be honest just gives me chills and brings tears to my eye. I honestly LOVE what you do and only wish that there were more people out there that have this feeling. Any other Makers agree?

[@sixsgma1563]

Technical term for the drawer slides is "full extension", unless otherwise specified, drawer slides are 3/4 extension.

[@infrabread]

Also, all draws come with a spec sheet, giving the placement of the screw holes. This means you can drill the sides before putting everything together.

[@daleaustin3982]

@@infrabreadMounting glides before cabinet assembly=headache prevention. Make a "ladder" template to hold the glides in position then no need to measure each one. 4 or 5 drawers not as much a problem. A room full like for museum storage=major minefield.

[@pizzazombie5209]

Adam, I'll watch a video about anything you make, but your shop infrastructure builds are always the best.

[@brettmillett3851]

After all these years, from Myth Busters to this KZbin channel, I still love Adam’s passion for making things! The fact that he can just build out a project like this in 4 hours is so damned impressive. Love it! 👍

[@JimPriest]

I'd like to see how these drawers look in 3 months :) If they are still well organized or just a mess :)

[@satchguitar84]

I have started watching vids on 1.5x, mostly because it seems that most people slow down their speech patterns, probably for clarity's sake. I dunno, just sounds more normal to me. That said, with these one day builds, I bump it to 2x. Watching your manic energy at double speed is a joy. Thanks for the content!

[@TheBarnShop]

I saw these drawers in a build not that long ago and I thought, What's that? It was a new thing and he said how much he loved those new drawers. I was hoping to see this exact video of how he made them. Thanks Adam for showing this type of builds, they are my favorite.

[@davidpilbeam1895]

I was just thinking wehaven't had a table saw plywood build for a while! Thanks Adam for knowing what we want!

[@benjaminengel3738]

This looks grea!. I've made a few similar cabinets. One thing I added to the drawer boxes to help keep them from sagging over time is adding aluminum channel underneath at the front and back. You never see them, but they help a lot.

[@gerrygoodlow3322]

Thank you Adam!! I'm starting to work on a small bench for my shop area and was noodling on the undertop storage. Lo and behold... you showed me how to make the drawers.

[@TheHeavensEagle]

Your one day builds for holding tool and stock holding boxes inspired me to make a holder for all my aluminum, wood dowels, brass tubing and acrylic rod stock. I don't have a lot of this stock but some cut cardboard boxes just wasn't doing it anymore. Had thought on the design for a while so had a lot of the concept in my head. Started last Saturday morning on the computer and did the basic design using thin plywood and Masonite I had already. Went to the hardware store and bought a 1"x8"x8ft poplar board, a couple of rollers and some screws. Came home, adjusted the dimensions to 7 1/4 (instead of 8) and proceeded to do the cuts, gluing, and assembly. Started about 9am in the morning and was finished by 6:30pm in the evening. Literally had a 1 day build. Thanks for the inspiration! Used the small table saw I inherited from my father for the first time to do most of the cutting including some slots in 3 of the boards for dividers. While I had been around my dad using table saws most of my life, it is always a little scary to use one. I am going to have to make one of those slider items you have on your table saw. Another project for another time.

[@steveevans9991]

Genius. Cathartic. Inspirational.The place I come to unwind and relax, watching a master at work. Thank you Adam. Namaste.

[@sk8ter202]

Thanks adam for all these workshop organization videos. My biggest issues were spending too much time trying to plan it ALL out and then never make progress. Now ive started breaking it down into "stations" where certain tools have a home and all the accessories are right there. I already built a cart for my drill press, bench grinder, and belt sander. Making tool use so much simpler as i dont have to get it out or set them up to use. Next project is a flat file drawer setup to go under my cnc router that hogs up a lot of real estate in my small shop.

[@ThunderMesaStudio]

Love the new editing that shows more of Adam just being Adam. I sing in my shop all the time too!

[@habowtat3576]

I'm a newbie to laminate installation. I've been dabbling in it for two years for work. And I just recently started doing installs. Mostly I do wire shelving and mirrors but lately I've been getting into installing laminate shelving for closets and that usually includes drawers. This was an awesome video and I'm going to try and make one myself. I really want to get good at laminate installation since that's what brings in the most money at our company, and I dig the creativity you can do with it- adding glass and angles etc. Thanks Adam!

[@jasoncutrone]

Keep the build videos coming. I love ‘em.

[@ftownroe]

Great video. My favorite of your shop videos are the shop infrastructure/organization/storage ones because that is where my “crap hole” shop needs the most help.

[@Lukeveltman]

I love how Adam seems to parallel my storage dilemmas 😂 thank you Adam for solving my biggest problem I encountered this morning in my own garage!

[@brian_bielanski]

I appreciate showing the "mistakes". Lots of YT makers just show the good stuff.

[@chrismarshall6373]

The value of this video really isn’t that you can learn much from it…it’s the enthusiasm Adam always has for what he’s excited about. But some explanation of method would sure be helpful here for those who want to turn their own enthusiasm into actually building something like this.

[@timvaillancourt3555]

The handmade cabinets are always so satisfying. Nothing fits like custom. Thanks for the videos

[@daysleeper9646]

Always impress me with cool stuff that makes me wanna make them. Would be nice to have a tool table like that.

[@ellegy22]

I was just thinking of making something similar but in smaler scale to fill an unused space underneath a shelf on my desk. This gave me loads of ideas!

[@scottramos7949]

In 4 hours. WOW!!! That would take me a few days. This is a project I have been thinking about doing for some time. Great job!

[@1pcfred]

Then watch how Adam pulls it off. He knows how to get a job done.

[@arturo5472]

Very nice flat file cabinet you have inspired me to work hard at organizing my workspace it is very self rewarding and helps a lot on efficiency thank you Adam

[@tomhorsley6566]

This just means another build soon to store all the junk you had to move to make room for the drawers :-).

[@sooahnim]

I love seeing the build evolve!

[@NP-zl7dz]

The one day builds recently have been brilliant!

[@tested]

Thanks for the kind comment! We appreciate it and glad you're enjoying them!

[@arrow9193]

This drawer is absolutely stunning Adam. For a 30 minute build you did really well considering the time restraint itself

[@kannmann97]

I love how most of your work is you organizing yourself so that work is easier for future Adam.

[@keats182]

It's nice to know that even after all the hours and money you've spent on your shop, it's still a work in progress. Maybe I'm not crazy for continually modifying things to suit my needs better. Or we're all just a little crazy when it comes to our tools.

[@t.e.1189]

I've been doing finish carpentry professionally and woodworking for 35 yrs. I know this was meant to be functional and to serve a need he had. Another word, it's not fine furniture and that's okay. It solved a problem for him. But what impressed me the most is that he did it in 5 hours. I couldn't believe it, I thought for sure he would end up needing to come back the next day. Great build Adam!

[@indycustommade3568]

I hope you have a good air filtration system in your shop. When you were using the table saw it seemed like the dust particles were hanging in the air. Great project and Take care.

[@dougmiller4567]

Great project and it was great to see you overcoming issues that we all run into building things

[@shadowcat6lives639]

Just wanted to shout out yall as I got inspired to start organzing my shed in the same way. Started drawing up 13 pages of plans and layouts and even started a little bit of the moving and building today. I work on table top figures, craft projects, and a little bit wood working.

[@Devin.McGrath.]

Awesome build! Most drawers are too think and waste space especially for tools like this. One of my favorite storage solutions in my shop is four flat files / map cabinets that I purchased from a second hand office supply store $150 each was quite the bargain! I use them for storing all sorts of small materials and things for building RC airplanes and other projects!

[@foodini]

That's a great album. Haven't heard it in ages. I'll have to pull it out again.... Thanks, Adam!

[@xpfloyd]

I don’t know why exactly, but I absolutely love watching Adams one day builds. I don’t have a shop but the videos are almost therapeutic or something 😂. Love the problem solving process he goes through too.

[@Chris-ut6eq]

i'm happy for you! Relaxing to watch and good job on your drawers!

[@karelhoogendoorn]

Very, very satisfying. The organizer in me is very pleased and calm right now. Thnx!

[@newyorknewyork196]

Adam you are amazing! I will watch you build all day!

[@sombojoe]

This One Day Build would literally take me One Month!

[@treborrrrr]

4 hours for Adam, more like 4 weeks for me :D

[@danielhamilton9472]

Adam does it nice cause he seems to like doing things twice. Very nice build. I will keep this one in mind.

[@Lone-Wolf87]

I just like watching this videos because they are so relaxing to watch. 👍👍👍👍

[@squabok]

I remember watching your tool ziggurat video where you expressed hatred of drawers. It makes me happy to see how you've started to come around to how useful really are.

[@PotentialFireHazard]

When I saw the title I got really excited that Adam would be fixing the way he stores files. I have nightmares about the way he stores files [shudder], all jammed in together like pencils in an overstuffed #1 Dad mug... But this is nice too!

[@homeec119]

Can't tell you how happy i was that an Adam Savage video was the first search result for "flat file woodworking plans" 😄

[@mikeneneas]

Golden buzzer for Adam! 😍

[@WokeUpScreaming]

That is one of the most satisfying builds I have ever seen!

[@sidknowles4619]

Great project loved it thank you so much.

[@CBusschaert]

Wow that was a nice coinkidink! A great Wednesday night to everyone as well!

[@Siper2]

Further proof that the universe is not fair: not only is Adam an amazing individual, with great talent, humor, and the most enviable workspace in the world, but now he can also sing. Figures. 🤣🤣 Surely, I jest! Another great video, thank you sir.

[@alexwake850]

What a brilliant idea, I'm going to make something just like for my slowly evolving model railway, I've stuff everywhere and loose things I just put down. 👍❤️

[@hunters2028]

This is actually very helpful to see what works for others.

[@peterww3106]

Brilliant build! Definitely gonna Nick that one for the Community Shed!!

[@shampoojones5447]

That looks fantastic. Love it.

[@nathkrupa3463]

Fantastic build great work sir thank you for sharing sir.

[@justinfrazer2431]

Well done Adam .. you have inspired me to build some for may cave too awesome work

[@FixxerPete]

Friggin' impressive making that in one go and in that short time, shows great skill and experience (as expected tbh). Noice!

[@justinhicks306]

A 33 minute testament to taking your time and doing it right the first time.

[@nerdingforfunprops4487]

Ah! It is Wednesday here in the UK. Also, awesome file cabinet. 😁

[@TallTinyHouse]

Arggg, in NZ it's already Thursday. That's the problem with being one of the first places in the world to see the new day.

[@Of_the_House_of_Black]

Adam: "Oh god, this is heavy as f*beep*k!" Completely saw that coming. LOL

[@Sharkstout]

The company I worked for took over an adjacent office where all the furniture was being thrown in the dumpster. I saved the 4 stackable 5 draw flat file cabinets made in the early 1990s style of light yellow maple office furniture. Currently they are under two of my benches for measuring tools and vintage chisels. What a score.

[@valeriebrincheck6034]

Adam can free hand cut that felt better then I could cut it with a ruler. Very impressive sir!

[@rorywallace7335]

Due to the nature of the types of quick grab tools you made this for, I was surprised when you didn't opt for a centered single pull. Grab drawer with the one hand, tool with the other, Boom, Done!

[@Lee1978R]

I make this sort of thing for a living so it was nice to see you build something i can relate to lol 👍🏻

[@adnamamedia]

I love using these videos as an extremely loose 'how-to' when it comes to shop infrastructure. like in the future I may build something similar to this, but not exactly!

[@michaeladams4381]

Mistakes were made i love it still one of my fav people to watch

[@andrewmakestuff]

Man am I glad to see someone else's drawer slide struggles. I freakin HATE installing them!

[@flexiondynamo]

I was just designing a drawer unit in Sketchup for my parts keepers when this video popped up. Neat!

[@brentfowler2317]

Damn Adam, man I love those drawers. They are really nice looking and they really just turned out amazing. Well done my friend. I'm gonna have to build a set for my shop once I move out of my 80 sqft shop. Lol.... Luckily I work in a cabinet shop, that is over 12.5K sqft. Huge I tell you, just huge, largest shop I've seen in person..

[@WohlfePac]

Turns out it is wednesday for me, great build, I wish i had a space to make like you do

[@jlevy2000]

I love that you made mistakes just like the rest of us, got frustrated, and fixed it. Well done.

[@paulhall9811]

One of my Desert Island Discs tracks (Still Crazy After All These Years).

[@June1815VICTORY]

Great build Adam. 👏👏👏👏

[@klckel]

Hey Adam , May want the switch out the Nobs. I have the same ones in my kitchen and pockets, beltloops, and lanyards are going to grab them when you least expect it! Cheers

[@ocelotsly5521]

Lovin' the Paul Simon. I had no idea you sing that well!

[@dominicmillerca]

That's like a one month project for me. Incredible!!! 🍻🎉

[@GL-si8lt]

Great job!

[@SweetChuckPi]

Every time I see Adam do these carpentry builds I can just envision my High School shop teacher Mr Petruzates just shaking his head... I understand Adam's builds are made for speed but we would not have received good grades following Adam's techniques. :)

[@1pcfred]

Adam's all about getting it done. His whole career has made him that way. People told him to do stuff they wished was already done before they even talked to him.

[@-MrFozzy-]

Tested one day build 2026 - Mr Adam builds a new larger workshop instead of drawer space optimisations. Also music choice plus Timelapse/editing …..chefs mwah!

[@krisanderson7325]

Love this guy.

[@richardbrobeck2384]

Looks great !

[@bob9802]

*Envy. That is awesome. I am inspired to make one myself, eventually...

[@sundaynightdrunk]

What a cool thing to see such a thing be built. I would prefer a single center handle as I'm always catching my pants pockets or hoodie pockets on the similar used in my kitchen.

[@LegenDAIRYStinson]

Excited to see you speak in NWI coming up in October!

[@gerarddelmonte4205]

Talking to yourself is definitely the modus operandi in my shop too. 4 hours? Well done.

[@gothikravn]

It’s nice to know that even Adam is “Still Crazy” after all these years. I thought I was all alone.

[@adamross3487]

Glad to see that even Adam had trouble with drawer slides.