# Big, honkin' tool box...



## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

Hey all, 
Looking at buying a roll-away tool chest. Tired of the three tool box thing, so it's time to consolidate. You know, one of those large, heavy things with a plethora of drawers? Hit all the hardware stores in town, looks like it's going to be a Craftsman (just trying to figure out how many drawers/ball bearing slides/and locking drawer feature). 

Any thoughts/suggestions? 

Oni likes the tools.


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## moclan (May 26, 2005)

Man I couldn't agree more. I'd love to have one of those ... with a special lock that my kids and wife couldn't pick. I'd give them one of my small "portable" ones (  )

But those cabinets are so expensive (yes I know there are others than Snap on  )


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## ZoSoSwiM (Dec 2, 2005)

When my dad was a more serious auto mechanic he had a few of the large ass craftsman tool chests. They are nice, but if you put heavy stuff in the drawers and extend them past half way they stress the rails out too much. I'm sure this is true with any system. Luckily tools for bikes generally aren't very heavy so you should be in luck. You'll prolly never use the locking bar.. unless you have shaddy people around your area or kids So keep it simple and I think you'll be the happiest. Oh, the handles on the side are crap unless they're recessed into the cabinet.

just my 2cents


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## rcharrette (Dec 14, 2005)

ZoSoSwiM said:


> When my dad was a more serious auto mechanic he had a few of the large ass craftsman tool chests. They are nice, but if you put heavy stuff in the drawers and extend them past half way they stress the rails out too much. I'm sure this is true with any system. Luckily tools for bikes generally aren't very heavy so you should be in luck. You'll prolly never use the locking bar.. unless you have shaddy people around your area or kids So keep it simple and I think you'll be the happiest. Oh, the handles on the side are crap unless they're recessed into the cabinet.
> 
> just my 2cents


Actually, that's not true. I spent wat too many years as an auto mechanic and invested way too much money in tools  One thing about boxes is you get what you pay for. A Craftsman is substantially cheaper than a Snap on or Matco (I had a Matco) These are made for professional, heavy duty use. You can sit on a open drawer with Snap on/ Matco and it will not only support you but still slide (quality roller bearings). That being said These are wayyyyyyy over kill for anything in the bicycle industry. One of my drawers had over a dozen air tools in it, 100lbs+ alone easy. You would never have that in a bicycle setting.
I would look into Craftsman. They have some models (professional series) with descent bearings and it should hold up great for you.
Just my 0.02


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## CdaleTony (Jun 21, 2005)

http://www.kennedymfg.com/5300MP.htm
This is my garage box...Well I bought it for work but got layed off 6 months later and became stay at home Dad...PT work doesnt justify bringing it to the shop...
Ball Bearing slides all the way!!!!!

Tony

BTW I bought one of those "key safes" at home depot : http://www.keysafe.co.uk/
The top center one, I bolted it to the roll around and kept the keys in there, I never had to worry about leaving them somewhere...


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## the Inbred (Jan 13, 2004)

man, craftsman boxes cover such a large price range. joining the Craftsman club will save you 10%, though. i can't wait to have my own house so i can arrange my tools efficiently and effectively, rather than in a toolbox sitting on the floor. not to mention having an actual work space.


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## coldcase (Aug 3, 2005)

*Go Big!*

Whatever box you get, your tool collection will grow accordingly. Mine did. Empty drawer?!? You know, I could use a new ___ that would fit there nicely.

I purchased a black Craftsman lockable 40" top & bottom ball-bearing drawer combo & have been very happy with it. My suggestion is to try to get the 40" setup IF you have the space. Also, you can mix & match the top & bottom units according to your needs since they are sold separately. This setup has been great for almost all of my tools.

Oh, my other suggestion is to wait for a sale. If you're patient, you can get 10% markdown fairly regularly on the big boxes. Take another 10% off by going "club".

With that said, I still have small toolboxes that are dedicated to activities, such as a MTB box and a MX box. But they are MUCH more organized, and I don't end up lugging pipe cutters (etc.) out to the trail head.


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## rcharrette (Dec 14, 2005)

*Yea big is cool!!*

But only if your staying put. When I was wrenching cars I moved 3 times to different dealers. No problem then because the dealership called in the roll back tow truck and move your box (they cover the bill). The last two times I moved after leaving the car business I had to pay. Did you know AAA won't cover a tool box move  Anyway it's about $60 per move depending on miles and just a giant pain in the a$$ in general. Just a thought from a different perspective. They are cool but only if you don't have to move them!


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## -Anomie- (Jan 16, 2005)

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/item...group_ID=18215&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog

That's the one I bought for work, keeping in mind that I'm a "career" bike mechanic with a hell of a lot of tools. Snap On tool chests are expensive, but you get what you pay for and they hold their resale value very well (unlike Craftsman or other brands). The one above may be overkill for what you need, but they make smaller versions that are a lot less expensive. Check the KRA series at snapon.com.


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## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

*Nice!*

Like the suggestions and feedback. Snap-on! Hehehehe. That's a good idea. Probably more tool box then I need, but hey, it comes in Ultra Yellow!

Thanks,

Oni


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## acaridans (Mar 19, 2004)

I agree with the others, go big if you can and Craftsman is great. 
There is also Kobalt. I have the one linked here. It's about 200 less than the craftsman equitant and 3 draws smaller. I've been very happy with it and it can fit into my Outback when its taken apart and emptied....fun fun

http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=64481-56096-TRX11426&lpage=none
http://www.lowes.com/lowes/lkn?action=productDetail&productId=64381-56096-TRX942E&lpage=none


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## toolsnob (Sep 22, 2005)

If I could get any tool storage system I would go with Lista, nothing is better.

After using Lista cabinets everything else seems like junk.

http://www.listaintl.com/
http://www.listacabinets.com/


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## motomc (Jan 17, 2004)

I have a nice Craftsman 26" wide box with ball bearing slides. If I were to do it over again I would get either:

This Stainless box from Costco for $650

Or this stainless box from Sam's Club

I like the drawer configuration on the Sam's Club box better. I know a few people with these boxes and they are good. Not Snap-On quality but comparable to the better Craftsman boxes.


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## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

*Been looking at those*



motomc said:


> I have a nice Craftsman 26" wide box with ball bearing slides. If I were to do it over again I would get either:
> 
> This Stainless box from Costco for $650
> 
> ...


Had my eye on them. Kinda large though, but as someone else mentioned, you'll fill it up. I think I'd get a lot more for my money with them.

Oni


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## jdubsl2 (Feb 6, 2006)

Oni said:


> Had my eye on them. Kinda large though, but as someone else mentioned, you'll fill it up. I think I'd get a lot more for my money with them.
> 
> Oni


I work as an auto tech and have a Craftsman box. It is very high quality for the price. There is no point in spending $4000+ on a tool box. Even in a shop, a toolbox doesn't make you money -- but it sure looks pretty! ;-) Matco is probably the best box on the market, though.

Bang for buck, the stainless steel box from Costco is awesome. One of my coworkers has it -- it is very sturdy, made of high quality materials and the drawers open nice and smooth even while weighted.

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=00959624000

This is the box I have. I like it. It holds a full set of automotive tools. Pretty soon it'll be full, but there is always the top box. For the money, though, the Costco box is definitely hard to beat. We always ask the guy who has it when he's going to through the coals on, because it looks like a BBQ pit. :-D


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## Mattman (Feb 2, 2004)

*Stainless on Ebay*

I picked up a real nice heavy gauge Stainless box on Ebay for about $150 it's way nicer and better built than the similar painted Craftsman. It locks and has a top compartment under the lid with a lift out tray and then about 5 drawers with nice smooth roller operation. The guy sold huge roll away types too. I don't remember the name he sold under but he was in Florida or gulf coast somewhere. A great buy for the money......everyone who sees it loves my box. I have a couple smaller oak boxes that are pretty cool too and only cost about $50 each.


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## Warp (May 24, 2004)

And I thought my small orange toolbox was cool... bummer....


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## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

*Gotta start somewhere*



Warp2003 said:


> And I thought my small orange toolbox was cool... bummer....


Live the dream! Buy more tools! Need bigger toolbox!

Oni


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## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

*It's huge!*

Well, after lots and lots of running around town, looking into toolboxes, in pretty much every hardware store in town, I ended up with the shiny stainless one from Costco. Really was the best thing for the money (and small people can sleep in it). Spent all day yesterday taking stuff out of the small ones and putting the tools into the large one. Not a bad way to spend a day. I was left with the impression that I have way too many tools (box wrenches out the ying-yang) and enough allen wrenches to build little stick people.

Best parts? The toolbox has this sexy white plastic wrap on it, which I think I'll leave on for while. And there's enough steel near the handle area to stick my magnetic parts bowl on. Nice!

Anyway, tha's for all the help.

Oni has a new best friend, and she's all shiny.


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## mtnbkrr (Mar 27, 2004)

Thats what she told me


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## Oni (Jan 15, 2004)

*Strong Contacts?*

Yeah, but did Momma Bear say that with or without her contacts in?


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## jaxonwager (8 mo ago)

toolsnob said:


> If I could get any tool storage system, I would go with Lista; nothing is better.
> 
> After using Lista cabinets, everything else seems like junk.
> 
> ...


I completely agree with you. Lista Products are better than other brands.


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## CdaleTony (Jun 21, 2005)

16 year thread resurrection......!


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## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

It's usually the 1st post guys that dig up these. Often you never see them again.


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## One Pivot (Nov 20, 2009)

The new husky and harbor freight boxes are really good. Not so much all the husky boxes, but definitely us general/hf. A lot of guys in automotive picked up the carts and boxes. Theyre legit, and pretty cheap. 

Zombie thread! 😂


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## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

Zombie thread...

Actually, this is a good intended thread, perhaps it's worthy of a resurrection. 
Any of us that are serious about performing our own service and maintenance on anything, not just bikes, has a need for storing the tool collection. The trusted tool box(es). 

Even more so for the tool enthusiast that finds high quality specialty tools a wonderful addiction and an expensive mistress. 

I have recently looked the Harbor Freight boxes for under-bench hardware drawers.


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## NYrr496 (Sep 10, 2008)

I have an enormous Snap On box from my diesel days. I was in the process of deciding the best way to store all my bike tools when I visited a friend's shop and I believe he has the answer. He has a big main box with all of his wrenches, sockets, screwdrivers, pliers and such in it. Then he has a few of those US General carts from HF. The ones with a big open top and five or six drawers. One is set up strictly for wiring with all electronic type tools, wire connectors and he even drilled the legs and has spools of wire on conduit axles. 
Another one is set up for hose and plumbing and two others which I haven't looked at. I'm going to set one up just for bike tools. I have a big carpenter type open top bag for all my wheelbuilding stuff.


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## Wabatuckian (9 mo ago)

My dad got a Craftsman back in the '70s when he was maintenance in a manufacturing plant.

I got auto tech training in high school in the '90s. Upon graduation I went to work as a tech and inherited that toolbox.

It's now setting in my garage filled with tools I've acquired. The bike-specific tools, though, sure in this small tool box that unrolls. It's pretty cool. I'll try to remember to take a pic. I find it more convenient for bicycle work than I do my Craftsman.


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## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

^^^^
Post a photo of your Craftsman! 

I had a Craftsman top box and roller from the 70's. It was not the same red box that is mostly seen today, it was Grey.

I gave it to a friend 30 years ago and he still has it.


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