rolling tool chest - what type, brand

[footprintsinconc]

i am thinking of buy at least a two piece or three piece tall rolling tool chest. with this unit i will be able to organize all my small tools that i have. i was looking on line and there are so many options like ball-bearing drawers, or the "quiet glide" systems ....

craftsman has this unit for $300. it has lots of narrow shelves. a lot of narrow shelves is what i need to put away all those small tools.

and then last night i got thinking, man i have a lot of mdf, i have a set of two way locking four 4" caster and a lot of 18" european drawer slides, so i can make my own. my wife said "NO WAY!", literally, just as loud.

so what are you suggestions interms of what brand i should buy, the drawer slides --> should they be ball bearing or are the craftsman quiet slide good, etc.

lastly, how do you all organize and store all your smaller tools (the screw drivers, plyers, air attachment tools, files .....)?

thanks for your help!

[Carlos]

I have a rather large stainless steel chest that I got from Costco for $650. It's much nicer than the $1300 units at Sears. All the drawers have ball bearings and the larger drawers have double slides. After years of use it's still solid as ever, rolls smoothly, and all the drawers work perfectly. Sam's Club and Costco both have different chests every few weeks or months, so if you're not in a hurry keep checking back until one suits you. On my last trip to Sam's they had a smaller one, also stainless with ball bearing glides, for around $500.

I would avoid the non-ball bearing types if at all possible. They always suck and get worse over time. I'd also look for heavy-gauge stainless that doesn't easily bend and get tweaked with use.

[LinuxRandal]

i am thinking of buy at least a two piece or three piece tall rolling tool chest. with this unit i will be able to organize all my small tools that i have. i was looking on line and there are so many options like ball-bearing drawers, or the "quiet glide" systems ....

craftsman has this unit for $300. it has lots of narrow shelves. a lot of narrow shelves is what i need to put away all those small tools.

and then last night i got thinking, man i have a lot of mdf, i have a set of two way locking four 4" caster and a lot of 18" european drawer slides, so i can make my own. my wife said "NO WAY!", literally, just as loud.

so what are you suggestions interms of what brand i should buy, the drawer slides --> should they be ball bearing or are the craftsman quiet slide good, etc.

lastly, how do you all organize and store all your smaller tools (the screw drivers, plyers, air attachment tools, files .....)?

thanks for your help!

I would avoid the non-ball bearing types if at all possible. They always suck and get worse over time. I'd also look for heavy-gauge stainless that doesn't easily bend and get tweaked with use.

I have several boxes, and have worked around several. Non ball bearing slides are fine, as long as you don't overload them. Precision tools like Machinists squares, calipers, etc. normally are found in more of a wooden version due to it helps fight rust. Camphor blocks from a pharmacy are another old machinist trick I learned.

Tools breed, I have 4 boxes, and can understand, and am considering building my own workbench/large box. Otherwise, at some point, I am going to have to make a war wagon/pit cart for everything. (and get a larger shop for it)

[LarryG]

After lusting after a rolling combo for years, about sixteen months ago I finally bought this Craftsman ball-bearing combo. I like it very well, except that it's full and I need more drawer space -- not the fault of the unit, of course. The current sale price of $400 is what I paid.

I've been toying with buying a second rolling cabinet, and have been looking at the Quiet Glide models since they can be considerably cheaper, and the slides are quite a bit better than the usual cheap, non-BB slide. With the steel-plate dummy load in place in the display units, the drawers slide easily and smoothly, about like the BB slides, but I don't know how well they'd hold up over the long haul. For a non-pro, someone who isn't literally opening and closing drawers all day long, I suspect they'd be fine for many years, at least for the shallower drawers. The deeper drawers that can hold larger, heavier items might not fare so well, though.

I strongly recommend getting a 16" deep upper chest: the difference in storage capacity between these and the more typical 12" chests is quite significant. When I was shopping for my combo, I agonized over this as it added about $100 to the cost; but I was smart enough (for once) to realize that I'd never again be able to buy that much additional space for that little money. As it turned out, the greater depth allowed me to arrange my tools in a way that would not have been possible with a 12" chest.

The three-high stacks with an intermediate chest can get really tall, making it difficult to see what's in the top compartment and uppermost drawers. Instead of a three-high stack, consider the combos that have a ~40" high rolling cabinet, instead of the more common ~34", and see if one of those will fulfill your needs. Also, at least in the Craftsman line, many of these taller cabinets tend to have smaller drawers, and more of them. If I could change one thing about the combo I bought, this would be it: I'd get the taller bottom unit with eight or ten smaller drawers instead of five larger ones.

I have foam drawer liner (bought at Wal-Mart: MUCH cheaper than the essentially identical stuff sold in the tool departments) in all my drawers, with most of the tools laid out in nice, orderly rows. This makes it a snap to find the particular tool I need, as well as instantly spot any that are still floating around the shop somewhere. Some of my tools don't organize so well, though, and are just stored as best as I can manage. (I can take some pictures, if you'd like.)

The Craftsman, Kobalt (Lowe's), and Husky (HD) units all look fairly comparable to me. But for the last two I'm going on my tire-kicking experience alone, as Craftsman is the only one I've ever owned.

Lastly, two pieces of advice when shopping for these things at Sears: unless you're REALLY strapped for cash, don't even LOOK at their "Homeowner" line; and don't buy anything unless it's on sale. Sears literally has three or four different combos on sale at any given time. If the unit you want isn't on sale right now, within a week or three it will be.

[Uncle Cracker]

Tools breed...

So that's the noise I've been hearing in my shop late at night...

[Tequila]

I would avoid the non-ball bearing types if at all possible. They always suck and get worse over time.

I've had a lot of luch with the Craftsman Quiet Glide boxes. I haven't noticed any problems with them after 10 years of regular use.

[mpauly]

I got a ridiculous deal on a set of husky boxes (I think it was mis-priced) with the ball bearing slides and I've been very happy. It's lower and wider with one set of drawers that is 3/4 the width and one set that is 1/4 the width. That arrangement allows me great flexibility to store some of my longer tools (rules, breaker bars, etc.) that might not fit in the taller narrower one. Also the lower height doubles as a work surface (albeit a slightly high one, but it does take up more wall space).

As others said, the ball bearing slides are very nice, maybe not required, but nice to have. I'm going to mess up this description, but look to get drawers that have a sort of 'snap fit close', meaning you have to pull/push a little harder to initially open/close the drawer. This will keep the drawers from opening on their own as you move things about or slam other drawers closed. Also definitely make up some drawer liners if they aren't included with your set. Costco used to sell large rolls of the rubber padded stuff for $10 or so.

Michael

[Carlos]

The self-closing drawers are a good point. That's VERY nice to have. The Costco and Sam's boxes all do that (seem to be made by the same company). They also include drawer liners, and some include labels.

[footprintsinconc]

thanks for your replies! larry, you hit all three things that i had in mind!

i was debating the 12" deep verses full depth, so i am definately going with full depth.

i will go for the taller bottom unit, around 40". the model you pointed out was the 2nd choice price wise (right now its only $70 difference - you get the wider top + bb slides). those three stacks are taller than me.

carlos, thanks for the idea. i will check costco and sam's club out. its a good idea to get familiar with what is out there.

i was a little jumpy last night on the sears deal. but you know what, i think i will not rush myself. like you guys said, deals will keep coming around. thanks for the reminder!

if you guys see a real good deal, let me know as i need to do something with the growing mess that i have.

but none of you said that it was a better idea to make your own , i was going to show this thread to my wife and point out, "look honey, even they think i should make my own" . she just wants me to focus and make some of the furniture i have been promising for the last couple of years .

thanks once agian!

[Carlos]

It's definitely better to make your own. You'll need a plasma cutter, a press brake, a hydraulic shear, and a nice assortment of dies. You could rivet it, but I'd say a nice Lincoln 180T MIG would give you a more solid, durable cabinet.

[jonmulzer]

Does it have to roll? I know this is the second time I have mentioned it in a week but Tom Clark's book about shop cabinets is awesome. And then you could design it to do exactly what you want and have all the drawers exactly the size you want. Something to think about.

[footprintsinconc]

carlos, when i told my wife that i needed a tool chest, she said, "what do you have in the bench that you made, what is in the cabinet that you built in the garage?" she went on to say, "i am afraid that when we buy one, you are going to buy more tools..." so when i show her your reply, she is definately going to say, no more tools!

jon, as for does it have to mobile, yes it does. i have a one car garage that i am doing my ww in, but take up the two car when i am working, so its got to be mobile. i would have to have a huge shop to have it stationary.

[sparkeyjames]

Can't beat this deal. Is on tools section front page.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/v_10153_12605_Tools?adCell=AH

[machinistchest]

Ok!

This has got to be the finest role top/role away I`v ever seen. You`ll just have to check it out and let us know your opinion.

http://www.papawswrench.com/vboard/showthread.php?p=7495

Machinistchest

[Black wallnut]

Ok!

This has got to be the finest role top/role away I`v ever seen. You`ll just have to check it out and let us know your opinion.

http://www.papawswrench.com/vboard/showthread.php?p=7495

Machinistchest

+1 this should work for ya!