Tool box opinions?

[Appleyard]

It's an exciting time! Time to upgrade tool boxes at work! It has to be less than 57" in length to put where I want it in the shop. I'll start out by saying that I really like Matco tools. Some people prefer Snap-On or you get the occasional oddball who likes Mac, but I've always been happy with Matco. That being said, my Matco dealer has a 4225R roll cab in sublime green with black trim that I drool over constantly. The problem is price. While he's still giving me a deal since he's had it for a while and no one else is interested, he still wants between $3,000 if I pay upfront for it, or $3,700 if I finance through Matco (that's not including interest on a 3 year loan at 20%) So I've been looking at alternatives.

Heres the Matco box on the truck: 4225R
<a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=m9vacp" target="_blank"><img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/m9vacp.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a>

This is another box I'm interested in. Craftsman 52" Wide 14-Drawer Ball-Bearing GRIPLATCH® Tool Cart
<a href="http://tinypic.com?ref=24od7vn" target="_blank"><img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/24od7vn.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic"></a>

One big drawback on the Craftsman box (which I realize is kinda trivial) is the colors they offer. EVERYONE has a red tool box in my shop. BORING. I've seen a thread on here about repainting your box, so that might not turn into such a big deal

Anybody have their opinions on either of these? Maybe you know of a better one? I really appreciate it.

 

[Deafautotech]

My big question is how much of tools you have? If lot or heavy tools which I would go for heavier toolbox as I would look around used one for cheaper price...

The craftsman box are nice but maybe it is not suit for tech with Lot of tools that will bend the roller slide easy... Also it only has 16" depth drawers...

 

[hammergodthor]

If you can afford the Matco, I vote for that one. As many others on here will agree with, don't buy something you can't afford. Try getting a loan from your local bank or credit union to get a better interest rate.

The Matco will way outlive the Craftsman IMO, its much heavier. My old Matco rep used to enjoy getting 2 guys (about 450lbs.) to stand in the bottom drawer of the 4s on his truck to show how strong they are.

If you've wanted it for a long time, you have a lot lower chance of regretting the decision. Good Luck!

 

[Case IH]

Can you even compare Matco to Craftsman? Personally I have never had any trouble with craftsman tools but I know alot of other peopl have. That being said I would go with the Matco ddue to the quality.

 

[muddyjoe15]

If you have the cash or are willing to finance, hands down go with the matco. If your like me and have jack squit for money then live with the craftsman for a while. Sometimes trucks have a deal where if you buy a new box they will give you like $3000 for your old box(no matter what its really worth) towards a newbox.

 

[Appleyard]

If you can afford the Matco

That's the kicker. I could afford to pay it outright, but I hate leaving myself without a nice healthy cushion in my savings account for whatever life throws at me. Being a young guy with little credit established, I cant get a loan through my bank without a cosigner or putting my car up as collateral (which if I did put up my car, I have to put full coverage insurance on it. It's not THAT nice of a car. lol) and even though I plan on making my payments like I should, I don't like the idea of someone being able to swoop in and take my car away.

In reality, I want to buy the Matco box and have it be the last box I ever have to buy unless I trade up. My tool collection isnt very large right now, but I'm expanding it as I go and I'm trying to plan accordingly with my next box.

 

[wafrederick]

The Craftsman boxes are not made for pro use either.The spots welds are ****** too and fail.For longtime use,get the Matco box.You get what you pay for.Most toolboxes at most shops get opened and closed a thousand times and more during a week,the Matco is the huge advantage over the Craftsman on this for pro use.

 

[richfinn]

Your only going to live once, buy the green one, make a deal with yourself to work a bit harder or spend a little less on something else to get what you really want in life

 

[sparky7]

Just get a used box... really... then you can have the matco box you want and not be in debt.

If u buy a cheapo box for 800 or so new, thats about half of the money it would take you to buy a nice 55 inch matco box. Cash is king and they can be found for that price if you wait for a deal and have cash in hand.

Literally that exact matoco box in black is on CL in my area for 1000 bucks firm, if i wasnt saving for a new car i would have already snagged it.

 

[freeskier]

or look for a used matco if your sold on that brand

 

[jethro29]

the craftsman will not hold up to professional daily use and definately will not hold the weight that a pro should need it to.also i assume you have prybars and long extensions,so wouldn't you need atleast one full width drawyer? go matco and you won't regret it.

 

[econoaddict]

If as you say you can buy the matco out right, I would do that then put what you would have made as a payment back in the savings account on a schedule just like a loan.
If you finance the box to keep your savings you would be paying more in out going interest than you are getting from the savings account.
Ask how much you would pay in interest over the life of the loan, that should help you make the decision.
Maybe make a few payments to your savings before buying for buffer room.

 

[Appleyard]

Just get a used box... really... then you can have the matco box you want and not be in debt.

If u buy a cheapo box for 800 or so new, thats about half of the money it would take you to buy a nice 55 inch matco box. Cash is king and they can be found for that price if you wait for a deal and have cash in hand.

Literally that exact matoco box in black is on CL in my area for 1000 bucks firm, if i wasnt saving for a new car i would have already snagged it.

I've been crawling on my local CL every few hours. lol I have CraigsPro on my iphone and it lets me search other craiglists and I've got a search out roughly 100 miles. I keep looking, but nothing really comes up. It's either smaller boxes that I just dont want, or it's bigger $8000 SO That I cant afford.

I should've mentioned this before too; I've considered putting up about $1500 towards the Matco box. Recently sales at my shop have been up, so my boss offered to give me a loan through the company of about $300-$400, interest free, and we would work out a payment plan where he just deducts x amount from my paycheck each week until the loan is repaid. So then I'd only have to finance about $1200 through Matco.

 

[DrkMtnDew]

if you have $3000, get the matco. if you don't have $3000, get the matco.

 

[mrholeshot]

Get the Matco

 

[klean63]

Just a couploe of observations FWIW

1)-I don't understand why he wants more money for the box if it's getting financed. It's not as if he's going to carry the loan himself, I'm sure it'll be thru Matco financial or whoever they use and he'll get the sale amount from them.
Maybe offer him 3,000 with 1,500 down and finance the rest.

2)-Although it is a nice looking box, there is one drawback I see and that's the number of drawers. When using those big deep drawers you usually end up with a lot of wasted space.

30- Between the 2 you've posted I'd still get the Matco since it will hold up much better for a lot longer than the Craftsman.

 

[mrholeshot]

. When using those big deep drawers you usually end up with a lot of wasted space.

.

what???????

 

[Zebu Fellenz]

I have that Matco box, it's pretty nice but I wouldn't pay $3k for it. Where are you located? Craigslist is a great place to look but if you're not finding anything you might want to start looking over a wider area. I bought my Matco for $850 after about a month of watching Craigslist and it seems like equally good deals show up pretty regularly.

 

[Deafautotech]

what???????

Me too!!!! My top wide drawer already keep whole sockets on it.... Many techs has borrow some of sockets that I has...

 

[BajaBound]

Harbor freight 56" 11 drawer... It's the real deal and it's 799.

 

[klean63]

what???????

Sorry I probably should have said height instead of deep. I refering to the bottom 3 drawers. Unless he has a lot of big bulky items you end up with a bunch of "air" in the drawers.

I've always liked the top, full length, high drawer like on the Matco he pictured. It's great for sockets but after that how many high drawers do you really need? wrenches, rachets, screwdrivers, electrical testing equipment...... the everyday stuff generaly doesn't need a 3,4,or 5 inch drawer. A bunch of 2" drawers would be a lot more useful for that kind of stuff.

 

[Appleyard]

Just a couploe of observations FWIW

1)-I don't understand why he wants more money for the box if it's getting financed. It's not as if he's going to carry the loan himself, I'm sure it'll be thru Matco financial or whoever they use and he'll get the sale amount from them.
Maybe offer him 3,000 with 1,500 down and finance the rest.

2)-Although it is a nice looking box, there is one drawback I see and that's the number of drawers. When using those big deep drawers you usually end up with a lot of wasted space.

30- Between the 2 you've posted I'd still get the Matco since it will hold up much better for a lot longer than the Craftsman.

I'm not positive, but I think when he gave me the price of $3700, he was giving me the total price of the box with the interest it would accumulate over the 36 month loan. The only reason I think this is because I calculated my loan of $3,000 at 20% interest for 36 months and got about $3,700. I'm really not sure to be honest with you. I'll have to ask him about it when it comes to the shop Tuesday.

I'd much rather have space that I'm not optimizing at the moment then buy a box and be immediately out of room. That's what happened when I bought my first tool set from Craftsman. Came in a top chest style box with plastic trays with everything having it's own special place, but it was 90% full when I took it out of the box (the remaining 10% was underneath the flip lid.) and my first tool purchase after I got that box was a pry bar set and all the sudden I had no where to put them =/ it's only been getting worse. One of my coworkers was nice enough to clear out a drawer in his Matco box for me and that worked great for a while, but then I bought more tools and that drawer is full. Extra room is only a problem because I'll see it and think "Oooh! What can I fill THAT space with!?"

 

[Appleyard]

I have that Matco box, it's pretty nice but I wouldn't pay $3k for it. Where are you located? Craigslist is a great place to look but if you're not finding anything you might want to start looking over a wider area. I bought my Matco for $850 after about a month of watching Craigslist and it seems like equally good deals show up pretty regularly.

I live in Elkhart, Indiana. I've been searching the South Bend, Indianapolis, Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Fort Wayne, and Chicago CL for a while. Another big problem with searching far out like that is I don't own a truck =/

 

[klean63]

Another big problem with searching far out like that is I don't own a truck =/

If you find a good enough deal on a box U-Haul is your friend.

 

[Appleyard]

Harbor freight 56" 11 drawer... It's the real deal and it's 799.

Harbor Freight is like a dirty word to me. lol I realize that a lot of GJ members and the general public have had great experiences with their boxes (I've seen the video on youtube of a GJ member standing on his top drawer) I just dont know that I trust HF.

Ideally, I'd like whatever box I buy to be very long lasting. I've thought maybe when it's time to upgrade to an even bigger box to take the one I have at the shop home instead of trading it in towards credit or trying to sell it.

I really do appreciate all your guy's contributions to this thread and helping me come to a decision. You're really making a GJ newbie feel welcome

 

[BajaBound]

I tell you what, I scoured through the boxes and read all that I could read before I pulled the trigger. The 56" is a different beast then the one in that video.

Take the time to go put your hands on one and see what I am talking about, it's stout!

 

[sparky7]

http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=97269

I know its far from you.. but just another example of why you should wait and find one cheap.

hell buy it for 1500 and have it shipped for another 500 and you will still save a bundle and wont be owned by a metal box

 

[nissan_crawler]

what???????

*shrug* I agree with him.

 

[Appleyard]

http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=97269

I know its far from you.. but just another example of why you should wait and find one cheap.

hell buy it for 1500 and have it shipped for another 500 and you will still save a bundle and wont be owned by a metal box

Thanks for the find! That's definitely one to consider.

The only issue I have with that is that it's red. I know, I know, I know. I hear your voices in my head screaming "SO WHAT!?", but even if it were to be shipped to my shop for 2k, that's only $1,000 less than a brand new box in the exact color and trim that I want. I just dont know if I would ever be 100% satisfied if I made that purchase. But I will definitely consider that one. Again, thanks for the find.

 

[Appleyard]

I tell you what, I scoured through the boxes and read all that I could read before I pulled the trigger. The 56" is a different beast then the one in that video.

Take the time to go put your hands on one and see what I am talking about, it's stout!

I was actually just in a HF last Thursday. I had some time to kill before an A/C clinic and I needed a new mini sledge anyway. I went inside and their tool box selection was especially slim pickings this time. But from the US General box I did put my hands on, I have to say I was impressed. Longevity is my biggest concern. Especially in my shop because we scrub our floors every week. The soap we use can do a number on a box if it splashes up and goes unnoticed. Obviously this could happen to any box I buy, but I'd hate for the HF box to get a spot of rust and have it spread like cancer over the rest of the box.

 

[Gregg33]

Go big or go home! While I don't condone going into debt, there is nothing wrong with being broke, when you die you can't take any $ with you anyways. Often I regret buying something too cheap (low quality), but I've never regretted buying anything too expensive, especially when it's something I'll use often and for many years.

 

[Sh1thead]

pm me and i will send you the student price for that box and make you sick to your stomach

 

[dumper]

Harbor freight 56" 11 drawer... It's the real deal and it's 799.

a used Matco in the $800-$900 range would put that HF box to shame- sorry, I didn't find the 56" HF box to be that solid, compared to the Matco, or even to the 41" HF box everyone loves around here.

 

[Appleyard]

pm me and i will send you the student price for that box and make you sick to your stomach

I know man. =[ I really should've jumped on it when I was in Vocational School. But I was working at a grocery store then and didnt have the money for tools.

I've got a buddy that goes to Ferris State University for automotive. He's got 2 weeks before graduation, I should get him to buy a box for me

 

[Appleyard]

Pulled the trigger on it today. Sure is pretty

<a href="http://s850.photobucket.com/albums/ab66/akombuchamushroomman/?action=view&current=758919da.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i850.photobucket.com/albums/ab66/akombuchamushroomman/758919da.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

<a href="http://s850.photobucket.com/albums/ab66/akombuchamushroomman/?action=view&current=ac9e1479.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i850.photobucket.com/albums/ab66/akombuchamushroomman/ac9e1479.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

 

[route246]

If you amortize $3000 over 36 months at 20% interest you get 111.49/month for a total of 4,013.64 over the 36 months. You can plug these numbers into any loan amortization calculator online.

I'm not positive, but I think when he gave me the price of $3700, he was giving me the total price of the box with the interest it would accumulate over the 36 month loan. The only reason I think this is because I calculated my loan of $3,000 at 20% interest for 36 months and got about $3,700. I'm really not sure to be honest with you. I'll have to ask him about it when it comes to the shop Tuesday.

I'd much rather have space that I'm not optimizing at the moment then buy a box and be immediately out of room. That's what happened when I bought my first tool set from Craftsman. Came in a top chest style box with plastic trays with everything having it's own special place, but it was 90% full when I took it out of the box (the remaining 10% was underneath the flip lid.) and my first tool purchase after I got that box was a pry bar set and all the sudden I had no where to put them =/ it's only been getting worse. One of my coworkers was nice enough to clear out a drawer in his Matco box for me and that worked great for a while, but then I bought more tools and that drawer is full. Extra room is only a problem because I'll see it and think "Oooh! What can I fill THAT space with!?"

 

[hammergodthor]

Congrats dude!! In a few years (barring really bad things happening) you'll still be glad you bought it.

 

[canuckian]

congrats! that's one sharp lookin toolbox!

 

[Sh1thead]

very nice

 

[not-required]

Very nice. Im planning on picking up one of those with my student price right before graduation.