MAC toolbox

[Thedroid]

I just picked up an 11 drawer bottom roller for a steal. It's a solid box that just needs a little TLC to be great again. I have a Snap On KRL in the shop, and although the MAC isn't as sturdy as that one, it's definately a sturdy box.

Most of the detents were worn from years of use and as I was pushing it into the garage, it turned, the drawers opened and it fell over. It didn't fall hard, but now some of the slides are a little rougher than they used to be.

What are the chances of getting some of the slides warranteed?

I wanted to replace most of them regardless, as they have been filled with 3/4-1" drive sockets and also combo wrenches up to 2"

They are all accuride slides.

I deal with the snap on truck at work, but never a mac truck. I have seen them around, but don't feel good about flagging them down for warranty work.

 

[Fedwrench]

If it's an Economizer model cabinet, the slides do not have a lifetime warranty. Pictures?

 

[35mastr]

I have a bunch of slides that I can sell ya if interested.

Just PM me some picks of what you are looking for and some measurments and they may work.

Thay are all new Mac ball bearing slides.It would be good if you have the model number of the box.

 

[Thedroid]

I'll pull the slides tommorow and see if they have a number on them. They are definately accuride, and they are heavy duty judging by the load they've carried all these years. I'm going to give the box a basic clean up, and put her to work.

 

[35mastr]

That is a MB1500 I think.Pull the slides.They probably wont have a number,Just need to know how they are attached.I think those have the small screws on them.

Measure the lenth when they are closed.

 

[Thedroid]

It looks like the slides are attached by 1 small screw. I'll pull the in the morning. Is the MB1500 considered a good box. I picked it up for 250. I'm tickled

 

[HolisticPerformance]

It looks like the slides are attached by 1 small screw. I'll pull the in the morning. Is the MB1500 considered a good box. I picked it up for 250. I'm tickled

if it is in good shape, you stole it. It is a great box - i know guys that have had them for 15+ and they are STUFFED, and still provide professional service every day.

 

[rsanter]

do the slides actually need to be replaced or can they be cleaned, lubed and re-used?

what is their lenth, I have a bunch of 24'' accuride slides that look very much like that

bob

 

[fatfillup]

Thedroid, nice purchase. Did the box come out of a body shop? If so, body dust seems to be hard on slides and they may need replaced. Keep us posted on progress. Oh and since nobody else said it, "YOU ****"!!!!

 

[Merkava_4]

- Pull the slide out far enough to line up the little window with the screw. A 1/4" nut driver is perfect for removing the screw.

- The slide is hooked into the square slots front and back with the same kind of hooks that engage the slide with the drawer.

- Extend the slide out far enough to provide you with a handle for pulling up on the front. Pull straight up at the front of the slide to disengage the front and then pull straight out to disengage the back. The slide is out.

- You might try soaking the slides in mineral spirits or some kind of petroleum solvent to free them up.

- If you need to replace any slide detents, I got the part number.

- Thank you for posting the pictures; I love the old MAC boxes.

 

[paramudduck]

Merk for the resident rabid Snappy person, You sure do know a lot about Mac stuff. j/k kidding teasing

Merk give good advice there and I definitely agree with the final statement.

I love seeing good quality boxes no matter who made them.

 

[-B-]

I like that box nice lay out I'll have to keep my eyes peeled for one locally.

Carb cleaner with free up the gunk for the ball bearings and flush it out. There is another product we use in the shop for cleaning bearings White Lightning Clean Streak (http://www.whitelightningco.com/products/clean-streak.htm) it is the only product I can recommend from them. Once clean use a good synthetic oil to lube the rails if you want a slight dampening effect use a light syn grease.

 

[billymade]

I believe, in his tech career; Merk owned a number of Mac tool boxes! Merk... didn't you say you owned a MB1500?

 

[Merkava_4]

I believe, in his tech career; Merk owned a number of Mac tool boxes! Merk... didn't you say you owned a MB1500?

I had a brand new MB1500A that I was moving to a job with a Ryder truck. I didn't have the box secured good enough and it rolled up against the wall of the truck and smashed the side handle into the box - causing what I thought was too much damage to live with. I was sick.

Even with the damage, I managed to sell the box for $1400 - which is less than 1/2 of what I paid for it.

 

[Thedroid]

I removed all of the slides today and gave the box a good washdown. It has a little bit fo paint splatter on the front, but is dent and scratch free. I guess all of the grime that was on it protected it all these years. All of the slides seem to be in good condition, I think that they just need to be cleaned and greased. Several are missing a few pieces, and I'm having trouble finding where I can get them, or if I should just hit the MAC truck up. There where tons of tools in the box. MAC combo wrenches up to 2", a nice assortment of sockets up to 3". and tons of smaller sockets, wrences, pliers, etc. There was an old Snap-On 3/4" inch ratchet and handle that I took to my Snap-On man today to get rebuilt, and he said it was from 1958!! Still works smoot, just need a new friction ball and reverse lever. I knew it was old, but didn't expect that it was that old. There was also an old Craftsman 3/4" drive ratchet that I though would be worth saving, but i took it apart and some of the teeth were broken off. I hope they give me a rebuild for it at sears, because it feel way more hefty than their new ratchets.

These are the parts I need for the slide. They are all 23" long

Both black detents. I need at least 6 sets. I'd like to upgrade to the grey, if their more durable.

 

[Merkava_4]

Several are missing a few pieces, and I'm having trouble finding where I can get them, or if I should just hit the MAC truck up.

What pieces do you need? I got the part number for the detents, but what other pieces do you need? By the way, don't even think about the grey detents unless you're gonna have your box unlocked on a 45 degree angle all the time.

 

[Deafautotech]

What pieces do you need? I got the part number for the detents, but what other pieces do you need? By the way, don't even think about the grey detents unless you're gonna have your box unlocked on a 45 degree angle all the time.

wow... 45 degree angle?? how can you do that??

 

[Merkava_4]

wow... 45 degree angle?? how can you do that??

I was exaggerating - sorry.

 

[Thedroid]

Actually it's sveral of the T shaped inner detents that are missing and also some of the rear detents. Are the grays too stiff? I'd like the drawers to stay closed, and I wont be moving the box much. What are the p/n's for both detents?

 

[billymade]

How about some pics of all the cool tools that were inside the box? I'm dying to see them!

 

[Steve V.]

For parts for that Craftsman ratchet wrench go to this place. There are some very helpful/knowledgeable people on there with regards to parts (rebuild kit) sources.

Craftsman Club Tool Collection

Very cool find by the way.

Steve

 

[tsumetai-kokoro]

i always wanted a box that had the long drawer on the bottom like that!!! good stuff

 

[Merkava_4]

What are the p/n's for both detents?

Yours are the wide detents in post #4 of this thread:
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=15748&highlight=detents

Copy/paste the part number into the search box of this page:
http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/catalog.asp

The gray detents will make your drawers real hard to open - they're not necessary unless you move your box a lot.

I don't have the part number for the full extension stops, but I'll see what I can find.

 

[Vinko]

- Thank you for posting the pictures; I love the old MAC boxes.

So do I. I like a lot of the Mac boxes I've seen, more than any other type. Some of the old Craftsman I've seen aren't bad either.

 

[Skyline]

On my Mac box, all the slides worked like **** when I got it. But after cleaning and re-lubing, they work fine. I did not remove the slide, but I did need to take the drawers out.

I fully extended each slide, then wiped all the old gunk off all the contact surfaces. I used a bit of WD40 on a rag for this. Then I sprayed lithium grease spay on all the rollers. After working the slide back and forth a bit, it was like new.

Another thing to check is that all the little screws that hold the front of the track are present and tight. A drawer will not work right if the track can move.

Be very carefull moving these boxes around, I don't think they are as stable as the Snappy boxes....something about the way the casters are designed.

 

[diiulio]

Can you remove the drawer handles? I looked at a Mac box similar and it was blue with gold handles. I was wondering if I could remove the handles and have them powder coated black. I am not sure if they are integrated or spot welded onto the drawer.
Thanks,
Jason

 

[Thedroid]

I have not had any luck yet finding the full extension stops. I'm going to give mac a call in a few.

 

[35mastr]

After all the drama.I still have the slides that you need.

You can call Mac,But I dought that they are gonna be any help.

They are gonna forward you to a Dist.If you dont have one.I dont think one is going to drive over to your area just to warranty drawer slides.

Those slides are about 16.00 each at rock bottom cost to the Dist.

I can sell the whole lot that I have.You may just have to fabricate them to your box.

I did alot of that in the field on discontinued boxes.

 

[35mastr]

I have not had any luck yet finding the full extension stops. I'm going to give mac a call in a few.

You are not going to find them.As they have been discontinued back in the 90's

The only way to fix it right is to replace the drawer slides.

 

[DynoDale]

Can you remove the drawer handles? I looked at a Mac box similar and it was blue with gold handles. I was wondering if I could remove the handles and have them powder coated black. I am not sure if they are integrated or spot welded onto the drawer.
Thanks,
Jason

The drawers are painted steel, and the handles are polished aluminum extrusions. The handles are held on with screws from inside the drawers.

 

[Merkava_4]

I have not had any luck yet finding the full extension stops. I'm going to give mac a call in a few.

Click on the medium duty slides and see if any of those part numbers look familiar. The bottom drawer will probably be the heavy duty slides.

http://www.accuride.com/Industrial/Product/Default.asp?CatID=9

I don't think Mac will have the full extension stops, but Accuride might very well.

PS. What are the length of the slides in their closed position?

 

[Thedroid]

Slides are 23" closed. I have the box at my house, and the mac dealer stops at the pep boys a block away, I'll hit him up and see if he comes over.

 

[Rigmaster]

Wait just a minute........ $250 for that box AND it was full of tools???!!!!!!111111

You sir, definitely ****!!!!

 

[35mastr]

The color of the detents only represent the duty of the slides

Grey = Medium Duty.

Black=Heavy Duty.

 

[Thedroid]

I sent an email with pics to accuride and explained the situation. The replied back the next day asking for dimensions of the slides. The say sent me 26 of each on the Detents and full extension stops. They came in the mail today. Gives me a project for this weekend.

 

[jerk_chicken]

Wait just a minute........ $250 for that box AND it was full of tools???!!!!!!111111

You sir, definitely ****!!!!

Yup, seriously. I'm still waiting for pics of the pile of tools!

 

[voidifused]

What pieces do you need? I got the part number for the detents, but what other pieces do you need? By the way, don't even think about the grey detents unless you're gonna have your box unlocked on a 45 degree angle all the time.

Block it up with some wooden blocks.

 

[Thedroid]

I posted pics of most of the tools in the thread


http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=32364

 

[Merkava_4]

The color of the detents only represent the duty of the slides

Grey = Medium Duty.

Black=Heavy Duty.

You're quite wrong about that sir.

The grey detents are a firm retention and the black detents are a medium retention; they don't represent the load capacity of the slides.

 

[35mastr]

This is quite amusing as that is the way that it is printed in the Mac Distibutors Master Parts Catalog that I used daily.

Mac tool box drawers are rated in Duty.Smaller drawers are Light,Mid size drawers are Medium and Large size drawers are Heavy.

Merk,If you would like the proof.For a small fee I will fax it to you.