Mac Tech 1000 60th Anniversary tool box restoration project

[MechanicMindset]

Hello, I’m new to the forum but have been reading on here about tools and boxes for quite a while. If this is in the wrong section, can a mod change it, thanks.

I picked up this almost 25 year old Mac Tech 1000 for $600 about 6 months ago as I needed a bigger tool box for work with a work surface as my HF 5 drawer cart was filled to the brim, this thread will detail work done to the box to bring it back in shape.

As expected with a way on the cheap end of the scale tool truck box that’s this old, the box had some rust although quite light which is nice. The drawer slides were all super rough as the guy was a body man and the compound and other stuff got in the rails over time.

However I really like how the box looks and that it’s a limited edition somewhat rare unit. Here’s when I first brought it home.


As soon as I was done looking around it I began taking the box apart to clean the ton of dust and **** and get to know it internally and find any possible issues.


Took every drawer and slide out of it to clean them all up and asses their condition. I found the best way to clean the super dirty and gritty slides was to use thinner.

After cleaning them all to my liking which took almost TWO DAYS I was able to put them back in the box to test their operation while lubricated with some 20w50. About half the slides worked eh-okay and the other half was unreliable, binding sometimes and sticking. Here are they being tested on the box, marked with tape rating their extension length as I thought they were all different, little did I know they’re all supposed to extend the same and these were just screwed up.


Hosed down every drawer and cleaned with dish soap to get all the **** off of them a bit.


Got almost all slides “working” and wiped down the box and assembled it to have a look at how it’s going. It’ll be back apart again soon anyway.


Next up I decided to work on the wheels. The box rolled very nicely but me being the ratchet lubrication enthusiast that I am, couldn’t leave the wheel bearings alone.

Thoroughly cleaned and lubricated the bearings with Mobil 33 grease we use at work for aircraft wing control surfaces and landing gear. More than good enough for a toolbox.




Also cleaned as much of the corrosion on the wheels as possible and polished with some Nevr-Dull to awesome results even though some of that chrome plating flaked off ages ago.

 

[MechanicMindset]

Next up I decided to give the Mac lifetime warranty a whirl. Mac customer support I would say leaves a lot to be desired, you cannot contact them through the phone for this AT ALL. I had to find an email on Reddit to which you can try get in contact with them.

Anyway I emailed them and they sent me drawer slides for about 9 of the 11 drawers as I had 3 sets that worked very well. (Asked for one extra in case) I don’t like to abuse a warranty for something I didn’t purchase new so didn’t ask for all.
They work very well and have stops when closed which my originals didn’t. Nothing a magnet at the back can’t fix on the old ones.
I also asked for replacement drawer trims as these are all peeling and destroyed. They sent an aluminum one to try out from a newer box.

There’s no way I was going to work on top of the paint on my box so I found a thrown away pallet on the side of the road and cut it to size to make my work surface. This will later be covered with a sheet of metal.

 

[dudley123]

Very cool! How did the trim fit?

 

[MechanicMindset]

Very cool! How did the trim fit?

The trim fits well and tight in there. They’re meant for a different box so they’re about 1/16 in too short on both sides of the drawer top but can’t complain, it’s a real full aluminum part made in the USA.

 

[MechanicMindset]

Had a couple keys made for it by EasyKeys according to my lock serial number which worked great. Sounds like you’re closing and opening a vault.

After I finished the pallet wood work top I decided it was good enough to take it to work. Rented a uhaul with a trailer with ramps and strapped it on for 40 miles of bumps and speeding which it survived just fine.

Now at work I had already set aside a huge piece of 2024-T3 Alclad that had been damaged and scratched up so couldn’t be used for a repair on the aircraft. Perfect for my box.

Fitted it on with the help of some very talented sheetmetal guys at work, countersunk all the holes in which the countersunk 1/4in bolts that hold the metal down will go. Final result:

Here it is next to my modified 5 drawer cart it replaced.

Picked up a Liquid Chrome pen to redo the labels on the trim. I read in this forum a lot to see what worked and didn’t. This makes them look nice but also will begin to come off if you rub it a lot and hit it with chemicals but it never gets touched.
Lifted up the box with a pallet jack to remove the two swivel casters and add washers under them to try and get the box to sit perfectly flat. Little did I know this hangar has a floor as even as the moons surface so nothing I added or took away made it even everywhere.

Coworkers and I found a ton of packing foam which was going to get thrown away so that made the perfect occasion to fit them to my drawers and begin my shadowing process.
However with some of these tools being junk and people with sticky fingers. There will always be one or two missing.

 

[MechanicMindset]

So we get to today and the time where I’ve been the closest to I think either ruining or fixing this box long term. I decided I needed to repaint this box as I hate the corrosion on it. Picked up some aircraft paint stripper and coated the sides on it.
Then went over it with a plastic scraper which removed almost everything except for some stubborn parts. This is why dents on toolboxes are a big deal. All the rust spots corresponded to where the box had scrapes or dings.

This showed what I suspected, the box had some small surface rust spots under the paint which were not visible right up. The rust was painted over by the previous owner. Very crappy workmanship by someone that repaired and painted cars for a living…

Removed all the rust I could find with a combination of red scotch brite pads for the rust and blue for the remaining paint.


I then put on a couple coats of Boeing primer which, unfortunately, is flat green. But this will keep my bare metal from corroding again.

Now time for the front of the box. Masked off all trim pieces which in retrospect I should have just removed. And began removing all the paint and corrosion.


I did a much crappier job on the front of the box removing all the paint and rust because I’m doing this in between task cards doing my actual job, this means for the next couple days I had to use the grinder again to remove primer off some drawer fronts because of flaky finish. And repainting.
Also featuring my awesome Dewalt fan, my favorite tool.

I made a rookie mistake of stripping this box down and putting primer on when I didn’t know if the painters at the hangar (who are gonna help paint the box) had black polyurethane paint. Turns out since all the planes we have here are blue, red, yellow or gray. They don’t have much but a bit to touch up parts.

So now I’m kind of left with a flat green massive box. I’m willing to purchase the black polyurethane paint myself for them. If any of you have suggestions as to where to buy 1 quart at least for a good price it would be very appreciated. I’m stuck up on using polyurethane paint as we use on planes, 20 years old they still look shiny and new.

 

[MechanicMindset]

After trying every back alley trick at work to get a black or very dark aircraft paint for the toolbox, I couldn’t source it. None of the planes here have black or dark blue.

So the next best thing, I’m pretty much set on using this blue with a light purple hue Southwest uses on their most recent livery.


I think it will look very nice, kind of similar to this box I found online without the decals. A can quart of black poly aircraft paint from Ppg is about 300 bucks so that’s way too much I think to shell out for this.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

I was going to suggest using the blue. I think it will come out real nice.

 

[Jayman17]

That should look good, plus the price is right.

Jay

 

[j3rf]

I like the Boeing green, just clear coat it.

 

[MechanicMindset]

I like the Boeing green, just clear coat it.

You’re one of the very few that does. Certainly isn’t getting mixed up with any other boxes with that color at least

 

[MechanicMindset]

Bought a toolbox cover made to fit by one of the supervisors at work. These boxes move around every day and you never know when someone is gonna slam their rusted out 80s craftsman into yours so a good investment to keep it nice. It’s a very thick nylon type material and has like insulation foam between the layers so will sustain hits. Way better than the Mac original covers


Also decided to fill the gap between the wood and aluminum sheet and the box with some sealant. Completely unnecessary but I thought it’ll look better when painted.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

I like the Boeing green, just clear coat it.

You’re one of the very few that does. Certainly isn’t getting mixed up with any other boxes with that color at least

I'll bet you wouldn't have a hard time selling the box with that Boeing Green!

 

[CGarage]

Awesome work!

 

[MechanicMindset]

I'll bet you wouldn't have a hard time selling the box with that Boeing Green!

This really is just one step above being painted pink. However there’s always that one guy with a green box so maybe the market value didn’t decrease that much…

 

[Shocker]

The blue will look awesome IMHO. I used to restore old USA boxes. This reminds me of a MAC 1100 top and bottom I did. Then a 1300 series. That never got done as someone bought it before I did the rails. I have a full set of rails for it in the shop.

 

[Jayman17]

That Boeing green and the sealant are bringing back a lot of memories for me.
When is the paint job happening? You might want to move that box a bit farther from the airplane.

Jay

 

[MechanicMindset]

The blue will look awesome IMHO. I used to restore old USA boxes. This reminds me of a MAC 1100 top and bottom I did. Then a 1300 series. That never got done as someone bought it before I did the rails. I have a full set of rails for it in the shop.

Probably a very niche market to restore boxes unless they’re tool truck branded. I’m not well versed in my Mac toolbox models but I figure mine is probably an mb1000 as I think it said ANV1000 in a sticker in the back wall when I removed all the drawers. There should be a list of models or something as a guide. I got lucky I got some of my rails replaced. The others are doing ok for now.

 

[MechanicMindset]

That Boeing green and the sealant are bringing back a lot of memories for me.
When is the paint job happening? You might want to move that box a bit farther from the airplane.

Jay

Definitely some of the most commonly used stuff at least in heavy maintenance. I want to try and do it today but we’ll see what happens. Keeps getting delayed because the painters in my shift don’t seem to like money.

Here it’s very common for people to put their box between the engine and the fuselage so you’re not being watched by every boss in the hangar. Just have to have good brakes and keep your distance just in case.

 

[MechanicMindset]

Finally got to paint the box. Super cool painter in the next shift let me bring it in the paint booth and we adjusted the gun and he showed me how to use it and we painted the thing really well, took no time. These guys get paid straight garbage so even though he didn’t want to take my money I slid him some hours worth of work for him in cash.

I used the harbor freight spray gun that has the regulator. Awesome result for a $20 gun. Stoked with how it came out, now I can sleep at night.

 

[Shocker]

Probably a very niche market to restore boxes unless they’re tool truck branded. I’m not well versed in my Mac toolbox models but I figure mine is probably an mb1000 as I think it said ANV1000 in a sticker in the back wall when I removed all the drawers. There should be a list of models or something as a guide. I got lucky I got some of my rails replaced. The others are doing ok for now.

I agree, but I have sold each and every box I have restored and for a profit. Not much really, but made it worth it. Mac, Matco, Cornwell and Kennedy were what I mostly what I got. Snap On's apparently are made of gold so they are never a good deal.

 

[MechanicMindset]

I agree, but I have sold each and every box I have restored and for a profit. Not much really, but made it worth it. Mac, Matco, Cornwell and Kennedy were what I mostly what I got. Snap On's apparently are made of gold so they are never a good deal.

Going to need some pictures to satisfy curiosity and maybe get some ideas for other boxes! I did notice that it was basically impossible to get a snap on equivalent of my box for a similar price when shopping. Even the most clapped out rusty classic 78 is 1500-2000 at least around here, Cornwell isn’t far behind.

 

[Mr_B]

My first box was a well used snapon, that sprayed all outside in the truck shop booth

Back before internet used listing sites was the thing Snap-On could be sensible money used ...
Best used box pices/deals always been MAC and Matco and 2 bays mostly.
I went 2 2 bay Matco over 3 bay as cheaper and more storage and countertop plus they fairly easy find is keep looking .
For used you got look at all brands, learn the nice older models & market prices and keep looking, if spot a bargain snapon great but most silly prices are going be word of mouth sales rather than online ...

Hope to see a photo shoot of your box (the MAC box) next to the same color planes lol
Thumbs up to the painter who got you in the booth ...

 

[CGarage]

The Teletubby blurple looks great on that box. I like the paint color.
What is the deal with the co-workers not wanting some extra beer / pocket money???

 

[Shiftless]

What is the deal with the co-workers not wanting some extra beer / pocket money???

Back in the ‘80s, I needed to get the cylinder heads on a ‘70s Ford V8 redone.
I found a guy who worked in the engine lab at the research facility at a major oil refinery near me. He did the work “on his lunch hour”. Needless to say, that job came out perfect in every way. I forget how much cash I slipped him but it was well worth it.

 

[MechanicMindset]

My first box was a well used snapon, that sprayed all outside in the truck shop booth

Back before internet used listing sites was the thing Snap-On could be sensible money used ...
Best used box pices/deals always been MAC and Matco and 2 bays mostly.
I went 2 2 bay Matco over 3 bay as cheaper and more storage and countertop plus they fairly easy find is keep looking .
For used you got look at all brands, learn the nice older models & market prices and keep looking, if spot a bargain snapon great but most silly prices are going be word of mouth sales rather than online ...

Hope to see a photo shoot of your box (the MAC box) next to the same color planes lol
Thumbs up to the painter who got you in the booth ...

I did notice that if you want a good deal it has to be Mac or Matco. However Mac boxes seem to be much more common. I only saw one or two 4s I think they were double banks for sale and I’m unsure about Matcos warranty. To say that Mac sent me parts for a 25 year old box is wild.

I wish I had been looking for a box in the middle of Covid, probably some crazy deals going around.

The thing is obvious as hell that it’s painted the same color as the aircraft I’m working on. Everyone notices, hopefully not management of course!

 

[MechanicMindset]

The Teletubby blurple looks great on that box. I like the paint color.
What is the deal with the co-workers not wanting some extra beer / pocket money??

Really it’s probably just those painters. The painter that helped me out was stoked when I gave him some money for helping me out.

 

[MechanicMindset]

Reinstalled the aluminum drawer trim pieces and took the painters tape off the emblems and aluminum top to see the final result. I think it looks pretty damn good.

Still have some work to do on the badges and all that plastic chrome that came on them that has chipped and such over the years and retouching the black parts that have began to turn lighter.

Also glad I put these small strips of tape over the front of the rails when painting as paint would have definitely made it’s way into them.

 

[Jayman17]

Looks real good with all the tape removed.

 

[Rgorke]

Looks amazing, well done!!!

 

[m6z]

Nice job.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

Very nice job!

 

[ecotec]

That turned out great.

I really like how you airframe guys shadow your tools. It always looks so nice.

 

[fury413rb]

I know this is a "long dead" thread but I have the same box and Mac isnt very helpful with parts. I mainly need the key lock mechanism and the drawer trim. I'll send you a PM