My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

BB

I have a Costco/Price Club Stainless Steel tool box. Real nice.
I think they are about $600.00.

Bob AZ

On Sat, 19 Nov 2005 22:00:59 -0600, "B.B."
u wrote:

My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

I can just imagine. I have a crapsman and it can't even handle the
loud music without buzzing, about to take a BFH to it just to see if
it will shut up.

From the prices I've seen, it would be cheaper or the same cost to
build my own and be twice as good. I've seen lots of expensive tool
boxes and they don't seem be so great for the cost.

B.B. wrote:
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

can you use a kennedy they seem very reasonably priced

On Sat, 19 Nov 2005 22:00:59 -0600, "B.B."
u wrote:

It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom.


Oh oh...the Israilies did it, just like they did the WTC..using
controlled explosives secreted in all the drawers.

Chuckle...that must have been neat to watch...my Mac rollaway went
over backwards when both rear wheels collapsed.

Damnit

Gunner

"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire.
Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us)
off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give
them self determination under "play nice" rules.

Think of it as having your older brother knock the **** out of you
for torturing the cat." Gunner

On Sat, 19 Nov 2005 20:33:23 -0800, Sunworshipper
wrote:

On Sat, 19 Nov 2005 22:00:59 -0600, "B.B."
. ru wrote:

My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

I can just imagine. I have a crapsman and it can't even handle the
loud music without buzzing, about to take a BFH to it just to see if
it will shut up.

From the prices I've seen, it would be cheaper or the same cost to
build my own and be twice as good. I've seen lots of expensive tool
boxes and they don't seem be so great for the cost.

A friend of mine makes strong tool boxes, very similar to this one...

http://www.pitboxes.com/medium.html

I can probably get you a brother-in-law price. I helped him set up
his shop with lathes and mills and whatnot as well....

http://www.genewoods.com


Gunner



"Pax Americana is a philosophy. Hardly an empire.
Making sure other people play nice and dont kill each other (and us)
off in job lots is hardly empire building, particularly when you give
them self determination under "play nice" rules.

Think of it as having your older brother knock the **** out of you
for torturing the cat." Gunner

BB,
Been there, done that. What few people know is that SNAP-ON tool boxes are
made in China. I do not have the name of the company off hand, but I can get
it. I have their professional box in stainless. It is 41" wide 17.5" deep
and stands 65" tall. It has pnuematic springs on the top box cover. All the
drawers are roller. I did change the castors on mine to 250 kg greased
swivel on all corners because of the overall weight (around 1200 to 1500
lbs). They are available around the $1,000 in the states under the original
manufacturer's name. Here is a picture. This box is top of the line.
http://www.valkenpower.com/index.cfm...getItem&id=455

Steve






"B.B." u wrote in message
news
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

"B.B." u wrote in message
news
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

Kennedy makes some pretty decent roll-around cabinets, though retail is
around $500 to $1,000, depending on style and accessories. J&L used to put
them on sale once in a while and they seem to be offering 25% off sales
periodically for 5 or more items which can be a roller cabinet + 4 small
drill bits. Friction slide drawer models are a bit cheaper than the ball
bearing slide models. I can't find drawer capacities anywhere but they are
definitely higher than the Craftsman boxes and the casters are much better
as well.

I just picked up a decent one for $130 on eBay, plus the cost of a 250 mile
round trip to pick it up and 2 hours spent digging swarf out of the caster
tires.

"B.B." u wrote in
news
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide.
Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its
rails and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that
drawer off completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on
until all five of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom.
Then the whole mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight
suddenly shifting one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top
chest) went the other way and slammed into the ground, bending
basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman
Professional" boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped
metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of
stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.


The best box you can have is LISTA or a VIDMAR (Stanley) IMHO. These
are industrial boxes designed to take years of use/abuse and still work
perfectly. EACH drawer will support IIRC 450lbs. Cheap, they are not,
but I bet you can get one for the same money or less than that snap-on
you are looking at. Last one I ordered for the plant, 5' tall, double
width (52"W drawers) with 6" casters was ~$4000. The added benefit being
that you can customize the drawer configurations to suit you.

--
Anthony

You can't 'idiot proof' anything....every time you try, they just make
better idiots.

Remove sp to reply via email

But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?

Before you spend a ton of a Snap-On, Mac or other take a look at Vidmar and
Stanley/Lista cabinets. IIRC the drawers are rated at something like 440
lb! They're not cheap but if you're not in too big of a hurry you can find
them at auctions or even on the surplus market and they're hard to beat.

One other thing to look at... Harbor Freight is selling one now that has
ball bearing slides on all the drawers and it's often on sale for as little
as $399.99 plus they keep sending me coupons via email good for 20% off on
any one item, including sale prices, which puts it at around $320! If you
have a local store get on their email list and I'm sure you'll get them too.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=90320

I don't have any direct experience with using one but I've checked them out
in the store and they seem pretty decent. My quickie test for drawer slide
quality is to put quite a bit of down pressure on a drawer by leaning on it
and see how well it slides and theirs was pretty impressive. Not as good as
Lista and Vidmar though...

They've been discussed here before but I don't think we've heard from anyone
that's actually bought one and used it for awhile. Anyone???

Best Regards,
Keith Marshall


"I'm not grown up enough to be so old!"


"B.B." u wrote in message
news
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

aarcuda69062 wrote:

In article ,
"Steve Lusardi" wrote:

BB,
Been there, done that. What few people know is that SNAP-ON tool boxes are
made in China.

Few people know it because it's totally false.

I do not have the name of the company off hand, but I can get
it.

The name of the company is Snap-On Tools, headquartered in
Kenosha Wi.

I have their professional box in stainless. It is 41" wide 17.5" deep
and stands 65" tall.

Snap-On doesn't offer a box in stainless.

It has pnuematic springs on the top box cover. All the
drawers are roller. I did change the castors on mine to 250 kg greased
swivel on all corners because of the overall weight (around 1200 to 1500
lbs). They are available around the $1,000 in the states under the original
manufacturer's name. Here is a picture. This box is top of the line.
http://www.valkenpower.com/index.cfm...getItem&id=455

That isn't even close to a Snap-On box and it sure isn't close to
their top of the line, especially at a dinky 41"wide X 17.5'deep.
Their top of the line is 108" wide 29" deep (KRL1004)

Could be perhaps confusing Snap-On with Stack-On which I believe is a
Chinese brand.

Pete C.

I am curious...was your Craftsman a slide or ball bearing version for
the draw slides? The failure you mention sounds like the drawer has
sheared its guide supports off.

While I have not kept current as to the offerings of HD, Lowes, Costo
or Sam's Club (all of which I would check into before spending money
again), the offerings of Sears are hard to beat for price/performance
when you get the significant discounts in the scratch and dent
sections.

I have always gone with the ball bearing slides of the regular series
and the 26" width types. Please note that the Professional series have
ball bearing slides that are twice as wide and I would buy them for
this feature if doing it again. I also limit myself to the 26" wide
drawers to minimize racking and limit total weight per drawer....if you
need more space one can always buy two 26" units and mount them on a
combined base. If you really need a wider drawer, one can combine the
different units to have different widths. As a matter of habit, I
replace the standard casters with much better ones with larger wheels
for easier rolling. Realize that there is an upper limit as to how much
weight should be in a tool box...having hundreds and hundreds of pounds
of weight on casters is not safe if it gets away from you.

I assume that since your tools are sitting in a pile that you want a
replacement toolbox NOW. If you can wait, there are values in the used
market but as like used cars, there is the effort to separate the wheat
from the chaff.

TMT

"Keith Marshall" wrote in message
m...

One other thing to look at... Harbor Freight is selling one now that has
ball bearing slides on all the drawers and it's often on sale for as
little as $399.99 plus they keep sending me coupons via email good for 20%
off on any one item, including sale prices, which puts it at around $320!
If you have a local store get on their email list and I'm sure you'll get
them too.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=90320

I don't have any direct experience with using one but I've checked them
out in the store and they seem pretty decent.

I checked the HF tool chest over too. A quick look and they appear to be a
good box, but look one over well. The drawer glides, drawers and the box
it's self are all made out of some pretty thin material! Craftsman tool
chests are built much heavier than the HF model.
I would spend the money on one!
Greg

Tough to beat Kennedy for function and value. I am still using
the Kennedy topbox that my Dad bought in WWII (and it may have
been used). Over time I acquired the two drawer till, then the
roll-around. Then expanded into one hang-on. (currently thinking
about adding another. I have a grand nephew that will be using
these boxes some day.

Watch the Enco ads for specials on Kennedy boxes and be aware
that the freight costs can be high. The Kennedy lookalikes are
just that -- lookalikes with non-roller slides and thinner
metal.

Gerstner wood boxes look fantastic, but are for tool makers not
metal butchers like me, however I would love to have one for the
office in place of the small Kennedy I got when first starting
out.

see http://www.kennedymfg.com/
and http://www.gerstnerusa.com/

While the prices seem high, when you amortize it over the life of
the box it is next to nothing.

On Sat, 19 Nov 2005 22:00:59 -0600, "B.B."
u wrote:
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

"B.B." wrote:

My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

Sounds like a pretty spectacular cascading failure. I've got a pretty
decent Craftsman tool chest with the ball bearing slides and the
grip-latch thing and it seems to be holding up just fine with quite a
bit of weight in it. I hope it continues to do ok.

Pete C.

In article ,
"Steve Lusardi" wrote:

BB,
Been there, done that. What few people know is that SNAP-ON tool boxes are
made in China.

Few people know it because it's totally false.

I do not have the name of the company off hand, but I can get
it.

The name of the company is Snap-On Tools, headquartered in
Kenosha Wi.

I have their professional box in stainless. It is 41" wide 17.5" deep
and stands 65" tall.

Snap-On doesn't offer a box in stainless.

It has pnuematic springs on the top box cover. All the
drawers are roller. I did change the castors on mine to 250 kg greased
swivel on all corners because of the overall weight (around 1200 to 1500
lbs). They are available around the $1,000 in the states under the original
manufacturer's name. Here is a picture. This box is top of the line.
http://www.valkenpower.com/index.cfm...getItem&id=455

That isn't even close to a Snap-On box and it sure isn't close to
their top of the line, especially at a dinky 41"wide X 17.5'deep.
Their top of the line is 108" wide 29" deep (KRL1004)

B.B. wrote:

Know of any other box brands out there?

Might want to see if you can find some Vidmar or Lista cabinets
somewhere, maybe at an auction. Might be able to get something really
first class for a lot less than SnapOn and such.

I scored two Vidmar and one Lista cabinets at a yard sale a month or so
ago for $450 total. One was locked with no key, upon getting it open, I
found about a grand worth of tools! Long shot yes, but makes for a great
day if you can score like that. Even getting them empty, they're worth
over a grand each with the heavy casters.

Jon

In article ,
"Pete C." wrote:

aarcuda69062 wrote:

In article ,
"Steve Lusardi" wrote:

BB,
Been there, done that. What few people know is that SNAP-ON tool boxes
are
made in China.

Few people know it because it's totally false.

I do not have the name of the company off hand, but I can get
it.

The name of the company is Snap-On Tools, headquartered in
Kenosha Wi.

I have their professional box in stainless. It is 41" wide 17.5" deep
and stands 65" tall.

Snap-On doesn't offer a box in stainless.

It has pnuematic springs on the top box cover. All the
drawers are roller. I did change the castors on mine to 250 kg greased
swivel on all corners because of the overall weight (around 1200 to 1500
lbs). They are available around the $1,000 in the states under the
original
manufacturer's name. Here is a picture. This box is top of the line.
http://www.valkenpower.com/index.cfm...getItem&id=455

That isn't even close to a Snap-On box and it sure isn't close to
their top of the line, especially at a dinky 41"wide X 17.5'deep.
Their top of the line is 108" wide 29" deep (KRL1004)

Could be perhaps confusing Snap-On with Stack-On which I believe is a
Chinese brand.

Could be but then, who doesn't know that? ;-)

BTW, I haven't forgotten to send you the pix of my brake bleeder,
camera crapped out and now that I have a different camera, I just
gotta find the time.

I bought that Stainless set, 41" wide, top chest and roller cab, under $600

my brother is a professional mechanic, and bought the set that is around 50"
wide, under $700


"Bob AZ" wrote in message
ups.com...
BB

I have a Costco/Price Club Stainless Steel tool box. Real nice.
I think they are about $600.00.

Bob AZ

I bought the Homack they had before the Stainless model. Looks good but just
doesn't cut it when loaded. Just a half step better than the Craftsman.
(Baby half-step). Drawers don't slide straight and bind, etc...

--

Clif Holland KA5IPF
www.avvid.com


"Jon Grimm" wrote in message
news:7I6gf.2613$BU2.2459@trndny01...
I bought that Stainless set, 41" wide, top chest and roller cab, under $600

my brother is a professional mechanic, and bought the set that is around
50" wide, under $700


"Bob AZ" wrote in message
ups.com...
BB

I have a Costco/Price Club Stainless Steel tool box. Real nice.
I think they are about $600.00.

Bob AZ

[...]

Thankyou for the suggestions. I now have my heart pretty much set on
a brown Kennedy roll a round unit:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg...l?ItemKey=1RG3
2
Just need to either locate someone who can get it to me now (and
maybe for less) or just bite the bullet and order it through Grainger.
As an aside, I know I can't order from Grainger over the internet as
an individual, but if I personally voyage to one of their branches can I
buy from them then? Or do I still need to figure out some way to buy
through work? Never actually been to a Grainger, so I don't know.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

Would this help?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/102-...nedy%20toolbox

TMT

"B.B." wrote:

[...]

Thankyou for the suggestions. I now have my heart pretty much set on
a brown Kennedy roll a round unit:
http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/wwg...l?ItemKey=1RG3
2
Just need to either locate someone who can get it to me now (and
maybe for less) or just bite the bullet and order it through Grainger.
As an aside, I know I can't order from Grainger over the internet as
an individual, but if I personally voyage to one of their branches can I
buy from them then? Or do I still need to figure out some way to buy
through work? Never actually been to a Grainger, so I don't know.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

Grainger, unlike MSC, McMaster, ENCO and others, can be a real PITA
about the business thing. What you get when walking into the local
branch can vary greatly depending on who is working there at the time
and what kind of day they are having. When I needed to order some stuff
from Grainger (they do have a few things that others don't), they gave
me some grief about the business thing. I convinced them that I was a
business, albeit a very small one by faxing them a copy on my Sch. C
from my tax return. One from a year when I moved halfway across the
country and didn't do much consulting, but a gross consulting income of
$750 is still a business.

Pete C.

"B.B." u wrote in message
news
My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.
It's a top chest and a bottom roll a round, 26 inches wide. Anyhoo,
I pushed in the top drawer of the bottom chest and it fell off its rails
and landed on the drawer below it. Sheared the rails of that drawer off
completely, causing the two to hit the third, and so on until all five
of the bottom drawers came crashing down to the bottom. Then the whole
mess slid forward, fell out, and with so much weight suddenly shifting
one way, the remainder of the toolbox (with top chest) went the other
way and slammed into the ground, bending basically every part of it.
I so wish I had a video of that.
But now I need to invest in a new box. To anyone who's been there
and done that, are the hideously expensive Matco/SnapOn/Mac/Etc boxes
worth the money? I investigated and I can swing the payments, but I
sure don't want to. OTOH, I know first-hand I can annihilate a
Craftsman, though they do offer the more sturdy "Craftsman Professional"
boxes with actual drawer rollers instead of stamped metal slides.
Know of any other box brands out there?
I guesstimate that little red box was holding about 600 lbs of stuff
when it died. It's most likely rolling around the halls of Valhalla
right now.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

Do you know if 600 pounds of stuff is more than it was designed to hold?

When shopping, try to press down in the middel of the drawer as you slide
the drawer back and forth. It may give you some idea of how well it will
work with tools in it.

Good luck and happy shopping.

In article ,
"Pete C." wrote:

Grainger, unlike MSC, McMaster, ENCO and others, can be a real PITA
about the business thing. What you get when walking into the local
branch can vary greatly depending on who is working there at the time
and what kind of day they are having. When I needed to order some stuff
from Grainger (they do have a few things that others don't), they gave
me some grief about the business thing. I convinced them that I was a
business, albeit a very small one by faxing them a copy on my Sch. C
from my tax return. One from a year when I moved halfway across the
country and didn't do much consulting, but a gross consulting income of
$750 is still a business.

Pete C.

As luck would have it, MSC has it, and for slightly less. Of course,
tax and shipping will push it up to over $1800, but that's still less
than half the Matco cost for about the same dimensions. Only about $100
more than Craftsman when all is said and done.
MSC has some nice customer support people, too. I like 'em!

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

In article 0Rlgf.563870$x96.361471@attbi_s72,
"JWho" wrote:

[...]

Do you know if 600 pounds of stuff is more than it was designed to hold?

Yeah, it was roughly six times what it was designed to hold. (:
Seriously, this is amusing: when you're in Sears next time, poke around
in their toolboxes and once in a while you'll see a weight plate. It'll
have a little label on it, stating that it represents the weight of a
drawer full of tools. It's maybe 20 pounds. So, going by that, my
bottom box was made to hold 100 lbs, and my top was made for perhaps
half that.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

"B.B." u wrote:

MSC has some nice customer support people, too. I like 'em!

Not always cheapest, but good selection, and generally ship so fast
it'll make your head spin.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

"Anthony" wrote in message
. ..
| The best box you can have is LISTA or a VIDMAR (Stanley) IMHO. These
| are industrial boxes designed to take years of use/abuse and still work
| perfectly. EACH drawer will support IIRC 450lbs. Cheap, they are not,
| but I bet you can get one for the same money or less than that snap-on
| you are looking at. Last one I ordered for the plant, 5' tall, double
| width (52"W drawers) with 6" casters was ~$4000. The added benefit being
| that you can customize the drawer configurations to suit you.

They are so durable you can get well worn/abused ones on ebay for a tiny
fraction of that, but you get someone else's colors. Plenty of miles left
on them, though. Not so long ago I had the "pleasure" of overhauling a
number of Vidmar boxes. What kills them is to have the drawer overloaded
with several hundred pounds of bucking bars and to slam the drawers open and
closed. Other than that, they take a beating like you wouldn't believe, and
are built like tanks.

"B.B." u wrote in message
news | My little red craftsman tool chest finally got too overloaded. I'd
| long ago reinforced the bottom and replaced the casters, and I've been
| temporarily fixing the drawers when they'd fall out, but yesterday it
| had a total failure. Which was actually pretty funny to watch.

All my tool boxes were overloaded, so after some thought, I built my
own, using a completely different line of thinking.
http://metalworking.com/DropBox/toolrack1.JPG through 5 and .txt
I spent about $150. Holds gobs and gobs of tools, big and small.

Ecnerwal wrote:

"B.B." u wrote:

MSC has some nice customer support people, too. I like 'em!

Not always cheapest, but good selection, and generally ship so fast
it'll make your head spin.

--
Cats, coffee, chocolate...vices to live by

Indeed, typically on my doorstep in like 26 hours from placing the
*ground shipping* order and I'm not exactly in a major city.

Pete C.

"B.B." wrote:

In article 0Rlgf.563870$x96.361471@attbi_s72,
"JWho" wrote:

[...]

Do you know if 600 pounds of stuff is more than it was designed to hold?

Yeah, it was roughly six times what it was designed to hold. (:
Seriously, this is amusing: when you're in Sears next time, poke around
in their toolboxes and once in a while you'll see a weight plate. It'll
have a little label on it, stating that it represents the weight of a
drawer full of tools. It's maybe 20 pounds. So, going by that, my
bottom box was made to hold 100 lbs, and my top was made for perhaps
half that.

--
B.B. --I am not a goat! thegoat4 at airmail dot net

That's not unreasonable, a 2" high drawer full of anything short of lead
type shouldn't exceed 20#. The bigger drawers would of course need
higher weight ratings.

Pete C.

"B.B." u wrote:
As an aside, I know I can't order from Grainger over the internet as
an individual, but if I personally voyage to one of their branches can I
buy from them then? Or do I still need to figure out some way to buy
through work? Never actually been to a Grainger, so I don't know.

Wow, must be tough getting to a Grainger from tw.ch.ru! :-)

Seriously, the counter person might just put it on another account and
let you buy something but I wouldn't count on it. (If you have a
business license, you can get a grainger account.)

If you have a buddy or acquaintance with a smaller business and a
grainger account, they can boost their buying total with Grainger and
get a bigger discount.

Funny how Grainger is totally ripoff for some/most stuff and quite low
priced for other stuff.

Jay

Actually this is a good thread to bring up these questions...

"What makes a good toolbox good?"

"How do you determine a toolbox is a good one?"

"How much would you pay for a good USED toolbox?"

"Are older toolboxes better built than their new counterparts?"

"Finally, what color should a toolbox be?" :)

TMT

Too_Many_Tools wrote:

Actually this is a good thread to bring up these questions...

"What makes a good toolbox good?"

"How do you determine a toolbox is a good one?"

"How much would you pay for a good USED toolbox?"

"Are older toolboxes better built than their new counterparts?"




"Finally, what color should a toolbox be?" :)

Black is my preference.

Pete C.




TMT

Well I tend to lean towards red....as everyone knows, red makes for the
fastest cars and the strongest toolboxes. ;)

I know of a family that for furniture of the children's bedrooms
stocked them with toolboxes...chests and cabinets....and black was
their color of choice. Their logic was toolboxes were a long term
investment that the children (both boys and girls) would use later in
life while normal bedroom furniture would end up at the thrift shop.

Lucky kids... ;)

TMT

But now I need to invest in a new box.

If you're in N.E. and considering used, this guy:
http://used-tools.com/
will often have them. Hours are a little unusual, but he's a good egg.
--Glenn Lyford

Too_Many_Tools wrote:

Well I tend to lean towards red....as everyone knows, red makes for the
fastest cars and the strongest toolboxes. ;)

I know of a family that for furniture of the children's bedrooms
stocked them with toolboxes...chests and cabinets....and black was
their color of choice. Their logic was toolboxes were a long term
investment that the children (both boys and girls) would use later in
life while normal bedroom furniture would end up at the thrift shop.

Lucky kids... ;)

TMT

Nice, but a bit dangerous with the sharp corners and greater potential
to tip over.

Pete C.

I don't know which pieces you are getting but you can request
that these are keyed alike so you wont have to have a bunch of
keys. Also look in the Kennedy catalog for drawer
liners/dividers, dust covers, etc. lots of neat stuff.

Uncle George

On Mon, 21 Nov 2005 17:30:29 GMT, Ecnerwal
wrote:

"B.B." u wrote:

MSC has some nice customer support people, too. I like 'em!

Not always cheapest, but good selection, and generally ship so fast
it'll make your head spin.

I thought so too....and the parents had taken the wheels off the
cabinets and screwed the toolboxes to the walls.

The "sharp" corners do still remain but actually no more so than much
of the cabinet hardware available.

TMT

carl mciver wrote:
They are so durable you can get well worn/abused ones on ebay for a tiny
fraction of that, ...

I went looking on eBay, at the Completed auctions. There was one Dutch
auction with 3 11-drawer cabinets full of electronic components with a
starting bid of $400, looked to be in very good shape, but NO bids !?!
When I clicked Calculate Shipping, it came to $3000! Are you ****tin'
me? Bob