Metal Cabinets vintage or homemade and no name toolboxes. got any to show please do

[Private Lugnutz]

Tym & LUG: I wonder if Kennedy made boxes for SK cause that brown wrinkle paint is kinda their thing? why in the world would SK make a toolbox for rolls of film?

I don't know if SK made any of their own boxes, tools or otherwise, so the question might be 'Why in the world would SK sell a box for rolls of film?' My answer is - for the same reason they sold boxes for fishing! To make a buck in an adjacent market. I'm not sure why the idea of film boxes is more surprising than tackle boxes. All the major box makers - Union, Simonsen, Kennedy, Waterloo, etc, made boxes for every danged market they could think of. Some of my favorite fiber and steel boxes are from the photography profession.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: i'm not sure traveling with film was as popular as fishing, but ok i'll go with the idea you mentioned that they just wanted to see if there was a market for it.

as for photography boxes i'm not sure i've seen many or had any so i'll watch for some, but I can tell you that I really like the quality of most old medical metal cabinets i come across.

ALL: speaking of an old medical cabinet this one really holds a ton of stuff and it's got great casters and a rubber bumper around the entire base of the cabinet too.

since I really prefer metal cabinets and tool boxes I occasionally find or get plastic ones and these old Craftsman plastic tool boxes are great for stuff like grease guns and rotohammer bits.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

LUG: i'm not sure traveling with film was as popular as fishing, but ok i'll go with the idea you mentioned that they just wanted to see if there was a market for it.

Wanted to see if there was market??!! The Internet can be a funny, sensitive place sometimes, the way it instantaneously throws people from varying backgrounds and lifestyles together, so I'll just put it this way, Drives... In the Boomer world of my childhood, photography and "home movies" were extremely popular. I would go so far as to say it was an iconic activity, I don't know too many household that did not have projectors or a need to store the film, and while I sure loved to hunt and fish, unlike making "home movies", it wasn't for everyone. Those were Super-8 format that replaced the older 8mm format, but 8mm was the first "home movie" format and it was very popular in the 30's and 40's.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: while i'm not much of a fisherman either I agree that 50 years ago a lot of homes did have those little projectors and polaroid cameras, but I always saw the films stored in boxes and closets. maybe I didn't hang around the right people or those that traveled with their film?

funny to think of an old tool company making these though.

speaking of old films my bride just rented a few 1950's movies and one she was watching had a microfiche and film and I remember spending hours looking at stuff on that dang machine for my property research before computers showed up as a better option.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Despite the handle, I am not sure they were intended for traveling farther than from the closet to the living room, or from your house to a neighbor's house. The one I found was labeled like the PO may have had a few of them. There are slots for 8 reels. While 8mm was the first format for amateurs, it wasn't cheap.

It is odd - for us - to see the SK logo on a film box, for sure. I'm not sure it would've been odd to someone in the 30's or 40's who didn't know his way around a wrench. It isn't Kodak or Bell & Howell, but it's not the camera or projector, either.

There was an art to threading and operating a microfiche machine that younger generations will never get to experience. There was the instructions, and the warnings, and then there was the way you zoomed it and toggled it back and forth despite the instructions and warnings!

 

[DaveT]

Drives:

About the rod, nope it is not a part of the sliding divider, that’s why I’m perplexed as to what it’s purpose was.

As for a name on the stout card file cabinet I did not find one on the outside. It looks like there mat have been a makers mark painted on the front at one time but it is worn beyond recognition. Once I get a chance to remove all of the drawer maybe I will find something on the inside somewhere.

 

[drivesitfar]

Dave: it looks like there is a slot in the divider that goes around the rod so the rod has something to do with the divider and without seeing the other side or having a cabinet like it I can't say what at the moment.

not sure you'll find a name or another cabinet like the one you found with small drawers and slides, but it's built like a tank so not only finding out who made it, but what it was made to hold might be fun.

LUG: I missed the years of threading the microfiche and they were slides when I started using them, but I still recall threading the projectors with the 8mm film on the old bell and howell projector at my house and my cousins to watch family films and my little league football games.

ALL: I picked up an old 7 drawer file cabinet that pretty stout and i'll post pictures after I find out where i'm going to put it.

 

[RedVise]

I just realized I hadnt post this for you guys. Leather handle on the side and no name. Pretty good condition with a little surface rust on the back.
Doesn't seem to be a Stanley or a Craftsman unless it is an early version ?

Brian

 

[DaveT]

So I figured out why this Card Cabinet is so heavy. It has a double wall construction "Fireproof" design. Even the small card drawer fronts have the double wall construction. Once I figured this out I thought maybe a little Google searching on fireproof file cabinets might help me identify this one, no luck, I can't find any like it.

Check out the double wall construction:

 

[thehorse13]

Here is my Lyons 18 drawer metal cabinet used to store hardware. Clearly it served the military in another life but now it serves as a parts depot for all of my home projects.

 

[davethorik]

Prompted by a post by pvt lugz in the tool box thread, about the Art Steel Company. I've had this for a while. I bought it at a small auto restoration shop going out of business sale for $20. I didn't find the sale til the 3rd day, and it sounded like I missed out on a lot of cool things, this was my sole find.

This may not even be vintage, if not my apologies. This "Steelmaster" 30 drawer cabinet is in good shape, though and is very handy. Think of the clear plastic little spare parts bins, but on steroids. The drawers pull out by tilting up and do not have slides.

The cabinet is 36" tall, 30" wide, and 12" deep.
The drawers are 3-1/8" tall, 9-1/4" wide, 11-3/4" deep.

 

[drivesitfar]

Dave: great find and yes i'd consider that Steelmaster 30 drawer cabinet VINTAGE!! i bet you'll like the size of those drawers cause they store stuff that you don't normally have a spot for.

i'm not certain how old it is, but with that badge and design i'm guessing 60's, but it might be newer.

Horse: I love these old Lyon 18 & 24 bin cabinets that are 34 inches wide. some are 10 inches deep and some are 17 inches and most are 10.5 inches tall. they hold a ton of stuff and i'm using mine for nuts and bolts and screws.

ALL: my bench isn't clean yet cause i'm getting ORGANIZED and of course my FSD is far from cured, but I can see some of the bench so I snapped a picture of my big Reed 4c and the Lyon cabinets behind it.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I love the extra wide bins under the bench, Drives. And "I Spy" an OD green cantilevered box with a leather handle just outside the shop. Get that thing out of the elements, soldier! "I also Spy" the corner of a type of toolbox I see several of every year that I have never figured out. I used to think they were homemade metal shop projects, but there are too many of them to not be commercial, unless the plans are that widespread. They have a sort of coffin look to them. White, in the foreground.

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: yep the Kennedy cantilever box doesn't stay outside and it usually has sat under those big bins that you spied. I move stuff off the floor if it's not raining and set in front of garage to give me a little more room to walk. I've only got a 9x15 portion of our 2 car garage to work with so it's going to be pretty packed. i'm still working on where to put a couple bench grinders.

The PREACHER BOX has to be a production box cause for a while there were only a couple, but as I searched online more started popping up. still not sure who the maker was/is, but I saw one with a label on it saying STOVE TOP.

here's a few pictures of mine and i've got a couple others I think along with the Stove Top one i didn't buy cause it was too far to drive in traffic just for another empty tool box.

I have 12 of those big bins and besides the 4 under the bench with the big Reed 4c on it i've got 3 on the floor under my other steel bench. pretty good storage for my circular saws.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The PREACHER BOX...

Haha. I like that moniker. That's them. And thanks for the brand name! I have seen one with any markings or decal.

 

[thundermug]

I have an old shop made preacher box.

 

[TailGunner3000]

Dave T: I found a pic of the metal dividers that rod holds.

Have you removed the drawers from these cabinets? I just got a Shaw-Walker card file that is stumping me as to how to remove the drawers.

 

[DaveT]

Have you removed the drawers from these cabinets? I just got a Shaw-Walker card file that is stumping me as to how to remove the drawers.

On both of my cabinets the drawers just lifted out once opened up all the way.

 

[TailGunner3000]

On both of my cabinets the drawers just lifted out once opened up all the way.

Thanks, I'll give it a try. I've been driving myself nuts trying to find a release tab for the slides.

 

[Outlawmws]

I have 2 of those "coffin" style boxes. Almost certainly factory - Possibly Butler? but no other examples are so marked? - See: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=6155999&postcount=6572


Also found by Drives: one marked Southern /stove works, QUALITY TIP~TOP METAL PRODUCTS Richmond virginia,
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showpost.php?p=8041471&postcount=1532

 

[drivesitfar]

ALL: the PREACHER BOX, COFFIN BOX or whatever you want to call these well built little carry toolboxes mystery is still sort of unsolved, but as more and more appear maybe we'll figure it out.

i'm not sure these PLANHOLD FLAT FILES are vintage, but they might be the best built flat file cabinets i've owned as far as how well they are built. I wish they had the old school handles so maybe i'll start grabbing old shaw walker or other old cabinets and taking the hardware from them if I don't need the cabinets?

anyway i was pleasantly surprised how well built these Planhold cabinets are. these are 46.5 inches wide, 33.5 inches deep and 16.5 inches tall and each drawer is about 2.5 inches deep.

 

[tym]

Prompted by a post by pvt lugz in the tool box thread, about the Art Steel Company. I've had this for a while. I bought it at a small auto restoration shop going out of business sale for $20. I didn't find the sale til the 3rd day, and it sounded like I missed out on a lot of cool things, this was my sole find.

This may not even be vintage, if not my apologies. This "Steelmaster" 30 drawer cabinet is in good shape, though and is very handy. Think of the clear plastic little spare parts bins, but on steroids. The drawers pull out by tilting up and do not have slides.

The cabinet is 36" tall, 30" wide, and 12" deep.
The drawers are 3-1/8" tall, 9-1/4" wide, 11-3/4" deep.

My dad's had one of those in the garage longer than I've been alive. Definitely vintage. Nice find!

 

[Private Lugnutz]

This "Steelmaster" 30 drawer cabinet is in good shape, though and is very handy.

I would've bought that just for the coolass decal!

 

[drivesitfar]

LUG: i'm tempted to save some of these cool old badges if the cabinet goes down the road in lieu of a better one cause I agree they are awesome.

ALL: here's a cabinet I picked up last week that has a nice badge, but also good size drawers and nice handles too. it should store a ton of stuff. as i'm cleaning out my storage I found a spot for it and the wood cabinet I picked up.

I'll move my 2 Shaw Walker fireproof cabinets in the hole left next to this Steel Age cabinet and start filling them up.

dang this storage unit has been a catch all since i moved out of my shop and I need to make a trip to the dump and our local thrift donation shop soon.

 

[DaveT]

here's a cabinet I picked up last week that has a nice badge, but also good size drawers and nice handles too. it should store a ton of stuff. as i'm cleaning out my storage I found a spot for it and the wood cabinet I picked up.

Drives: Yep those Handles and the Label holder have that nice Art Deco look to them. That’s what drew me to pickup the SteelAge cabinet a couple weeks ago.

 

[drivesitfar]

DAVE: yep the bonus to these cool looking cabinets is that they usually were built to hold a few hundred pounds of computer paper so they hold a lot of weight.

i'm still trying to figure out who made that cool FIREPROOF cabinet you found with the smallish drawers. I had a 11 drawer Fireproof cabinet a few years ago that was similar to my old Boeing file cabinets that had 2 bins (no holes in bottoms) per drawer and it was a beast. the pics are in my old crashed computer, but I seem to recall GENERAL FIRE or something like that. also I posted a 12 drawer cabinet a few years ago on this thread that wasn't fireproof, but had the same look as yours and it was two names and first name started with a Y.

i'm tempted to read this thread from the beginning to see if I can find it and maybe see some of the other cool cabinets others posted that I forgot existed. or maybe get some more ideas on how to organize the drawers.

you've got a great eye for quality so just be careful not to buy too many.

ALL: I usually put my flat files on shelves or set them up by myself, but things were pretty tight in my portion of our 2 car garage so I asked my bride to help put these heavy Planhold flat files up on top of my old Hamilton flat files and it was pretty quick and easy.

now to figure out what to put in all these big drawers?

 

[fourbyford]

Hey Drives,
...You took the words right outta my mouth... what do you plan to store in these LARGE drawers?
I was at a school auction last spring and was able to pick up a flat file for cheap. I've always thought these were cool, so I didn't hesitate to buy it. Now that I have it, I'm not really sure what I want to store in it. Guess I'll hold onto it until I get the shop expansion done... thinking there may be a place for it in the wood shop side. But, these things have such a HUGE footprint, I'm not sure the amount of storage is worth the loss of floor space. Dunno, guess we'll see when that time comes. For now, it's safely tucked away in one of my barns. If I can't figure out a good use for it, it may find a new home.
...D

 

[drivesitfar]

4by: with all your room you could maybe make a nice layout table in the middle of your shop/barn and have the flat file cabinets built in your table. they hold huge saw blades, tons of wrenches and of course maps and blueprints. one of our members built a nice steel welding table with 4 flat file cabinets built into it with access to 2 on each side. sorry i didn't save a picture, but i'm sure you can figure out a way to use them. what brand are yours and what size and how about taking and posting up a few pics?

here's one drawer I have full of Plvmb.

while I was sorting some of my Williams tools i had them in this old Hamilton flat file drawer and noticed the drawer was starting to drag on the lower one in the middle until I removed a few.

i've got one drawer full of hammers another full of clamps and so on. the Hamilton drawers are 49 inches wide and the Planhold ones are 46.5 inches wide.

since they are about 2 or 2.5 inches deep (I think some are actually 3 inch deep and i've seen a few 8-9 inch deep ones on huge cabinets). i've also seen some flat file cabinets that were 72 inches wide and OMG that cabinet was big.

 

[fourbyford]

Hmmmm... a layout station is a cool idea... just might be able to make that work although, at the same auction, I bought a couple of vintage wooden (almost standing height) drafting tables with adjustable tops and a bank of drawers down one side. My thought for those was design/layout... one on each side of the shop (wood/metals). I have 3 large tool boxes (base +upper chest) for my mechanic and machinist tools... plus a variety of other storage options. Not really sure I'll ever really have a use for the large flat file. I do leather work as well... it just may end up in that area... would be good to store smaller pieces of leather and projects underway... and the top could be a nice place to work on cutting, etc. if I build a stand for it to get to a comfortable working height. Now that I think about it, pretty sure that's exactly what ill do! Thanks!!
Sorry, I don't remember the brand or have any pics. I'm in Wyoming freezing my tail off and my good stuff is a few (hundred) miles to the west. When I get back ill snap a pic.
Good luck with your projects... sounds like you have a plan!
You mentioned your daughter/SIL "shipping out"... military?? Care to share where they're headed? Just curious... I spent more than a few years working for our rich Uncle (Sam)... many of which were overseas.
...D

 

[drivesitfar]

4by: sounds like we've solved your usage of flat files. I remembered the member's name and steel fab table with flat file project and his only had 2 flat files in it. i'm pretty positive another member built one with 4 and accessing 2 on each side. anyway here's the link for one of the nicest steel fab tables on the planet. JJ does really nice work and i really wish I was his neighbor and i'm sure I'd be better organized by now. here's the link and a few pics

https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=411719&highlight=flat+file

let's catch up by email one of these days. my son in law shipped out overseas to a NON WAR ZONE for now while his bride (my 29 year old daughter) is here with their 4 cats to figure out their options of renting or buying a home. she and her cats are pretty easy to live with, but our 8 year old cat is not ONE BIT HAPPY.

 

[fourbyford]

...thanks for the pics/link. That table is incredible! I wish I had room for something that large. Maybe one day but, for now, I'm a bit short on space in my garage/shop (something about my misses thinking her car should go in there) so I'm trying to keep most things on the smaller side so I can squeeze the things in that I use on a regular basis. One day...
Anyways, yep, it would be cool to get caught up... i had one of the busiest summers i can remember and know that you did too! I'll mail you one day soon!
...D

 

[fourbyford]

...know what ya mean about the cat... my misses has one that we think is about 16 years old. He likes our 2 dogs (English Mastiff and German Sheperd) but won't even tolerate another cat! Go figure... lol
...D

 

[isb cornbinder]

One of the early jobs I had when I was an apprentice was to build some custom cabinets for a customer. This is something we did in trade school, but I was watched over by an older Journeyman. This was back in the 1960s.
In more receint times I made a couple of cabinets for myself. The larger twin door cabinet had a retractable power cord for my espresso machine.
I needed a smaller and lockable cabinet for my larger pry bars and punches. This smaller cabinet has a fitted tool tote with a retractable handle.
I was working at the time and there were a few employees I did not trust, thusly, the locking doors.
I built 27 of the larger cabinets for other mechanics. This was nearly 20 years ago. about 1/3 of the cabinets have not been paid for. When I go the retirement events these now retired bums avoid contact with me.
What a BS way to go through life and retirement
BTW. I found and bought a PEXTO box and pan brake on Craigslist. I am sure this brake is the same model as the one I used in the 1960s.

 

[fourbyford]

...nice job on the boxes and nice score on the brake!
I just ran across a 48" brake a few weeks ago and found a 1907 PS&W (Pexto) shear last week... one of the reasons I'm challenged for space in my garage/shop. Cant wait to get back and start using them! My mind is racing trying to keep track of all the projects that will be coming soon!
...D

 

[jeffmoss26]

great work!!

 

[drivesitfar]

Corn: great looking cabinets indeed!! if you would like to show more how you make them on this thread by all means please do. sorry your co workers didn't seem to know they should have paid you for your work. it's certainly not a way to live and why people choose to live that way is beyond me.

post up more pics anytime you can. also the paint jobs look amazing so do you own a paint booth or have them professionally painted?

4by: I can hardly wait to see what you can make with all the tools and stuff I hear that you own. did you start a garage or barn thread yet cause some of the stuff you do is far from common or easy and some of us would love to learn from a pro (you).

ALL: I had a spot I needed to fill on a bench that was 35 inches tall and 20 inches wide so I decided to put this 30 drawer addressograph I own in that space and it's 17 inches wide, 30 inches tall and 24 inches deep. the 30 drawers should hold a lot of misc. tools that are either collectibles, users or need spiffing up.

have a great weekend!!

 

[fourbyford]

Hey Drives,
Haven't yet started a thread... definitely something I want to do! My goal is to start one when i get back to the farm. I don't have an actual internet connection here... do everything from my phone. Will be much easier working from my tablet or laptop.
I gotta tell ya, your collection of storage cabinets, drawers, boxes, etc seems endless and is absolutely incredible! Just when I think we've probably seen them all, you bring out yet another awesome piece. Guess that's a real benefit of living in the "big city"... lol. I run across the odd thing every once in a while... you seem to run across "cool" pretty much every day!
It's cool that you're getting your spaces set up in a way that will work long-term. You and I must think alike... I don't mind doing a job the 1st time around, but really don't want to have to do it again... once and done!
Anyways, keep up the great work!
...D

 

[drivesitfar]

4by: yep I do own a few vintage cabinets and bins, but i'm afraid i've driven more than a few miles and spent more than a little bit of time acquiring them. i'm sure I have a few more choices than you do in Idaho and Wyoming just because of the amount of people that live in my area compared to yours.

i'm sure from reading about a few things you have you sir are doing ok so keep up the good work.

ALL: that 30 drawer cabinet is an Addressograph and i've got it's brothers and cousins in my storage unit. I have another 30 drawer, 2 12 drawer cabinets and this 133 drawer cabinet.

the 133 drawer cabinet I bet weighs close to 300-400 pounds empty and it holds a ton of stuff cause the drawers are 23 inches deep. the cabinet is 66 inches tall and 39 inches wide.

 

[fourbyford]

Wow! Talk about cool!!!

 

[jeffmoss26]

oooohhh