Tool Chest / Roll Away Cabinet

Hey guys, I've been looking around for a new toolbox to use in my garage. There are so many of these that choosing one over another becomes a challenge. The small town I live in doesn't help, because there are very few in stock at any of the local stores for me to look at. Home Depot had a 36" combination cabinet and tool chest with the Milwaukee tool name on it that looked pretty good, but it is too small. They also had a 48" Husky combination set, but it looked really really cheap, with super thin gauge steel. Cal Ranch had a 72" Technix combination set that was big enough, but was also really cheap looking. The top of the tool box didn't even shut all the way, and it was still brand new sitting in the store. The Ace Hardware store had a few small Craftsman tool boxes that were also super super cheap. They looked like junk that I wouldn't even take home if they were free.

So I'm asking for some recommendations for tool boxes to check out on-line. I'm looking for a 54" to 72" combination tool box and roll away cabinet, and I'm looking to spend anywhere from $1500 to $2500. It seems like each brand has a series of different models, ranging from cheap bottom of the line model, to expensive top of the line models, and it is hard for me to gauge which one would be an acceptable quality without being able to actually see them. Here are a couple that I have considered ... Tell me what you think, and feel free to recommend others to check out.

This is Northern Tool's number one seller, made by Homak: Homak H2PRO 72in., 21-Drawer Rolling Tool Cabinet — Black, 71 5/8in.W x 21 5/8in.D x 46 3/8in.H, Model# BK04021720 | Tool Chests| Northern Tool + Equipment
And the tool box that goes with it: Homak H2PRO 72in., 10-Drawer Top Tool Chest — Black, 71 3/4in.W x 21 3/4in.D x 20 5/8in.H, Model# BK02010720 | Tool Chests| Northern Tool + Equipment
Shipping weight for both of these is 915 lbs, so it would appear to be a reasonably sturdy unit, at least based on weight.

This Cat tool box set looks nice, although I don't have anything else from Cat, and I'm not a big fan of the yellow color, so it might look kind of out of place: https://www.cattoolstorage.com/product/52-wide-19-drawer-tool-chest-and-cabinet-combo


I can't afford the $18,000 Snap On, or even the $12,000 Proto top of the line tool box, but I'm interested in hearing what you guys have to say.

I spent a grand on black friday a couple years back and got a 52" Craftsman. Never had a single issue with it.

Sears.com

I'll second the Craftsman rollaway. I recently replaced my 25 year old rollaway with this one I pieced together for about 700 bucks on sale. It's heavy gage steel, with ball bearing drawer guides. I'm pretty particular when it comes to boxes (I''m an A&P mechanic), and the Craftsman HD line is still well made these days.





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I have had and still have a dozen or so old Craftsman chest's and rollaways. But they are the old style sliding drawers. If you're looking for quality nowadays you want ball bearing drawers. I really like Craftsman Griplatch drawers, but they are on their spendier boxes. I've bought a few of the big stainless steel, ball bearing boxes at Costco, and they are pretty decent, too. I even bought a big, wide rollaway from Harbor Freight because it was just the right size and price, and I gotta say it's not that bad, either.

I've owned Craftsman tools and small boxes for years. When I wanted to step up to a full roll away and chest set up, I went to Sears. At the time they were selling the Viper line side by side with the Craftsman line. The price equivalent Viper unit was of much better quality (I was very very surprised) with well built drawer slides (with bearings vs. glide blocks), solid locks and quality construction. I hauled a set home with the old MegaCan:



As I unboxed the units I was impressed with the quality of the stamped steel and casters, which are heavy duty to say the least. These things aren't going to get hung up on anything on the floor for sure and they swivel effortlessly.

I got the roll chest and top chest and have been very happy with them.

That Viper box looks good MadDog, I'll check them out. Thanks.

And to the others that posted about Craftsman tool boxes. It seems like all of the companies these days have a bottom of the line tool box, and a top of the line tool box, and sometimes several in between. Our Ace Hardware store I'm sure had the bottom of the line Craftsman tool boxes, because they were pretty horrible. I'll bet soda pop cans have thicker metal than the toolboxes with Craftsman's name on it that were in the store that day. Its too bad that they cheaped out so much. I agree, they used to be good. And perhaps their top of the line boxes still are good.

Just looked at Viper's web page. I like that 72" roll away for $2199. It doesn't look like they make a matching top tool box though.

WOW! Now this is a nice tool box. Too much money for me though, but real nice. Weighs almost 1500 lbs, so its no light weight.

https://www.amazon.com/Viper-Tool-S...qid=1468269761&sr=8-63&keywords=viper+storage

My craftsman box i bought in 89, i too am an A/P mechanic by trade, but now i just build Mopars in my little shop.

All this talk of Craftsman tool boxes got me to drive over to the local Sears store after work tonight. What a disappointment the store in this little town is. I was primarily looking for Viper tool boxes; they didn't have any. I looked at their Craftsman tool boxes, and all they had was standard duty tool boxes, which are super flimsy. Some had dents and dings in them, some had drawers that didn't shut straight, and none were something I was interested in. There were only two middle aged women working in the store when I was there, and they were not interested in helping me at all in the tool section. When I asked if they had any of the heavy duty tool boxes the reply was "we sell what we have right there", pointing at the few tool boxes they had.

Sears stores are dying on the vine. I'm convinced if it weren't for craftsman, they'd already be ****-up.


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sbarron said:

Sears stores are dying on the vine. I'm convinced if it weren't for craftsman, they'd already be ****-up.


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Craftsman is already separate and online.
Last time I went to replace a tool and they didn't have it they gave me a gift card and told me I had to get online to buy a replacement and pay for shipping. I said no I have always had Sears just mail me the tool and she said they can't do it anymore because they are separate stores. Best Buy is the same way

sbarron said:

Sears stores are dying on the vine. I'm convinced if it weren't for craftsman, they'd already be ****-up.


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Yeah, I agree.


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I got to looking at this tool box again, and found that it is on sale for $3000 off retail. $4999 isn't a bad price at all for a tool box like this. I actually decided to buy it, and clicked "add to cart". The link that led to this page had said "free shipping", so I was a little surprised when it asked me to calculate shipping before checking out and giving them my credit card number. Turns out shipping is $434, so I didn't buy it. Anyone know someplace I can get this that really does have free shipping?

vipertoolstorage.com – New! Viper XXL Series 86″ Ultimate Box, Black

82Crew said:

Craftsman is already separate and online.
Last time I went to replace a tool and they didn't have it they gave me a gift card and told me I had to get online to buy a replacement and pay for shipping. I said no I have always had Sears just mail me the tool and she said they can't do it anymore because they are separate stores. Best Buy is the same way

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Nope. Still owned by Sears. As are Kenmore, K-Mart, DieHard, Lands End, and many, many more. They issued you a gift card for use ordering online (perfectly legal as far as honoring the warranty), and expected you to pay shipping if you had the tool delivered to your house. They can get away with that because they also offer the free "ship to store option.


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I got mine from Home Depot. Husky brand. Was on clearance, spent $300.

Rollers are nice on the drawers, well built. I don't need a $4K tool box. I just need a box to hold my $4K+ in tools! :0)

Picked one up from Costco. Get as big as you can. Its like a gun Safe youll regret getting a small one. Picked it up 8 years ago for 700$ on sale. I belive they were Torin Brand or something.

Cost me 40$ on ebay for the real Snap On chrome decals... lol....

They are double slides full extensions and works great after all this time. .

07MegaCabRam said:

I got mine from Home Depot. Husky brand. Was on clearance, spent $300.

Rollers are nice on the drawers, well built. I don't need a $4K tool box. I just need a box to hold my $4K+ in tools! :0)

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Had a buddy that got one of these and he loves it. Whenever I need another toolbox, this is what I'll be getting.

My current toolbox is a Husky 36" stainless steel box. It is Husky's top of the line model, and is good quality. I have just outgrown it, and plan on giving it to my son.

I am in the middle of a major garage renovation project of my 4 car garage. After a month of evening and weekend work in the garage I have hauled away 4 pickup loads of junk that I don't need to hold onto anymore. I've built a 10 x 16 Tuff Shed in the back yard, and have moved a whole lot of things I need to keep from the garage to the Tuff Shed. I've found all kinds of things I didn't know I had, such as a beautiful 6 ton set of jack stands, 6 drop hitches for my truck, 4 caulking guns, etc, etc, etc. I've removed countless hangers from the walls, painted the entire garage including the ceiling, walls, and concrete floor. I've installed a new back door for the garage, and new lighting that increases lighting power from 4200 lumens to 80,000 lumens. Now it is time for new storage cabinets and a bigger better toolbox. I've ordered NewAge storage cabinets, and they shipped last Friday, so I should get them any day now. I just need the toolbox now.

I've really been looking at this one: http://www.strictlytoolboxes.com/ex...er-professional-roller-cabinet-top-chest.html

After looking at the $5000 Viper tool box it got me to go back and look at other $5000 toolboxes, and it opened up a whole other list of possibilities. This Extreme Tools toolbox is pretty impressive. Drawer capacity is 300 to 600 lbs, it is made of 16 gauge steel, etc, etc, etc. Shipping weight is over 2000 lbs.

OP needs to drive to a bigger town to look at tool boxes.