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

[LazKat]

I didn't include this pic of my cabinet refinish project above but it might be of interest. Found this awhile ago - it was silver then but in good shape. I sprayed it green but when redoing the larger cabinet had the shop powder coat it to match the big piece. Good spot to store those small parts.

 

[drivesitfar]

Kat: these little metal cabinets are great additions to any shop. Nice finds.

 

[blueoval65]

Free, non working gas grill turned into welding cabinet

 

[Outlawmws]

That works!

 

[Odd Job]

Got busy last week and, with some scrap lumber and remnants, built this little workbench in the nook between the chimney and the foundation of the attached garage. It's a bit of a small parts cabinet menagerie. Below the bench top are a couple of blue Bowman cabinets. The lower one having six removable parts trays with lids. The old weatherhead four drawer is from the 1940's, (there is a 1949 price list inside. On the bench top, a Beach machinists toolbox. It has the same drawer layout as a Kennedy.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Here is a cabinet I pulled out of a nearby antique mall. It was the right size to fit a tough spot in a new space where I needed the 6" left on the side for long clamp storage. It also had open shelves for holding quite a few of my cased tools that I don't use all the time. It has a tough shop look with some vintage stickers and emblems I liked. Even has a refinery asset tag and PO name plate attached. The price was right so I grabbed it. Probably a little too much for some of my shops younger visitors so I may have to tame it down just a little...but not too much. Ed.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

It has a tough shop look with some vintage stickers and emblems I liked...[ ]... Probably a little too much for some of my shops younger visitors so I may have to tame it down just a little...but not too much.

That thing is rad, Ed! A Hollywood Assistant Producer could not re-create that kind of authenticity for a speed shop scene in a movie if they tried! But, I know what you mean. With a little touch up paint you could modify the word between Harley and Davidson. Haha. Or just obscure it. Some well placed scratches would take care of the others without ruining them. Congrats. It has a lot of the kind of character many of us hope for.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks Lugz. The cabinet does give off a great vibe and with a little scrap of ragged torn masking tape can now pass the parental test. With the right cabinet in place I added some of my clamps to the corner to help dirty it up a bit. Still a way's to go finishing up this area between the wood shop and the speed shop but it's coming around. Ed

 

[royudc]

Oddjob nice work! Looks very organized and functional.
Love the chrome rocker covers on the wall


Ron

 

[Odd Job]

Thanks Ron,
Those covers came from a rusty '74 Z28 parts car I owned 20 years ago. I believe it was the last year GM offered them. Unfortunately, they don't fit on the ZZ4 I'm running. They are actually aluminum and as a result are thicker than stamped steel. Even with the adapter kit to convert the way they bolt up, they touch on the top of the rockers. 20 years later I am wishing I hadn't unloaded the '74, A guy wanted it for the 4spd. I'd probably be restoring it now. The covers are nice tho, and needed to finally be displayed rather than packed up in a box. So there's my sob story.

 

[royudc]

Odd Job, great story, so many things we look back at and wonder eh?
I remember seeing those covers on Vettes, but not on Zs, I'm sure you're glad you kept them.

I picked this cabinet up at a local auction a few weeks ago.
It was so crusty I wasn't really sure what it was, but it looked useful.
It cleaned up not too badly, I'll post some after pics later.

Ron

 

[royudc]

Here are the after pics

 

[Provincial]

Cool cabinet! Nice save.

 

[Odd Job]

Nice find Ron. You can't easily create that patina, and yours is the only one that looks exactly like that. In the garage I like things to show their age, except of course the vehicles.

 

[mikeinri]

I'm not a patina guy, but that was an unbelievable cleanup!

Mike

 

[Private Lugnutz]

Good save, Ron.

 

[royudc]

Thanks for the kudos gentlemen.
Unbelievably (to me anyways) most of the dirt came off with a mixture of dish soap & water in a spray bottle.
I caused some of the paint loss near the piano hinge by spraying it with penetrating oil.
Rookie mistake.

Ron

 

[y'sguy]

Ron, That is a beautiful small cab, and great job of cleaning it up and managing to retain the original glory.

 

[Mintgrun]

I brought this little metal cabinet home for $4. I'd thought I might remove the card holder innards and have a nice set of small drawers to store tools in, but I think that would be a shame to do. Right now I am enjoying looking at it, but I may try to sell it to someone who collects post cards or something like that. It is surprisingly heavy for its size, so shipping would eat into its "value."








Tom

 

[royudc]

I brought this little metal cabinet home for $4. I'd thought I might remove the card holder innards and have a nice set of small drawers to store tools in, but I think that would be a shame to do. Right now I am enjoying looking at it, but I may try to sell it to someone who collects post cards or something like that. It is surprisingly heavy for its size, so shipping would eat into its "value."








Tom

Great find for $4 Tom.
I generally agree about keeping these cabinets in their original form.
If you can't sell it then you could tear the innards out of it and put it back to good use.

Ron

 

[Mintgrun]

I generally agree about keeping these cabinets in their original form.
If you can't sell it then you could tear the innards out of it and put it back to good use.

I won't be gutting this one. The drawers are built to do this particular job. I'll probably wind up finding something new to collect and store in it. I looked them up on the auction site and people paid-up for beat-up examples. The shipping's got to be expensive though.

It's neat how the drawers have a hooked back that hangs them. Lift and they pull right out. There are metal dividers between them, which add a lot of the weight.

The dimensions are 9" high, 10" wide by 16" deep and it weighs in at 27 pounds.

Tom

 

[Provincial]

Cardex file. A very popular way to keep track of inventory and things like periodic maintenance on aircraft in the days before computers.

They are popular with people who collect small items like cartridges that will fit in the shallow drawers. I can see keeping postcards in the sleeves if the sleeves won't cause deterioration. The yellowing of the plastic is not a good sign.

 

[drivesitfar]

Orc: always fun to find that missing piece to fill a hole. Even if it’s not perfect I’m sure it’s better than nothing snd you can now look for a perfect upgrade if you need to.

Roy: great cabinet and looks like it’s been there for 40 years.

all: I found a couple Cole 27 drawer cabinets and these have 17 inch deep drawers so they should hold a ton. The plan is to put wood tops and grinder or buffer attached to tops and wood base with casters. The black paint wasn’t original and was a bit worn and rusty so I sanded and primed and tried to paint shiny white gloss and spray cans aren’t doing well. Any tips appreciated or I’ll go back to stripping and BLO or BLO over original patina. Any tips on spraying cabinets with spray cans or should I stick to small projects with the rattle cans?

 

[drivesitfar]

Updated pics and just sprayed a couple more cans of hammered rust oleum at $7 per can. Far from perfect but with added wood, casters and wood top with buffer or grinders thus should work for now. I’ll work on my painting skills later.

 

[sXe]

I've been meaning to share this one. It's an old typeset foundry roller cabinet? Very heavy...the double casters roll over uneven ground with ease. Shallow drawers work well for all the drills, milling cutters/bits, taps, etc

 

[mikeinri]

Wow, that's incredible! How did you find that?

Mike

 

[sXe]

Got this in a trade. I saw it and thought it was perfect for storage of smaller items which I have much of and collectively it is heavy. I'm guessing it weighs 300-400#. I have probably 500# of hss tooling.

I traded a 7x mini lathe for that and a bunch of hss tool blanks, end mills, etc. I had no use for the lathe and this was going to be useful for me.

 

[sXe]

The casters are great. They pivot. Never seen this before.

 

[sXe]

The drawers pull out nearly the entire way and stay supported. It works well for my intention.

 

[FJ 432]

SXE there's just nothing to hate on your roller. Would you share the dimensions?

 

[Odd Job]

That's stout.

 

[mikeinri]

I have a few sets of pivoting, double-roller casters (but with plastic wheels) that I grabbed from work when they were throwing away some mini clean rooms. They also have feet that you can screw down. They're awesome.

Mike

 

[sXe]

SXE there's just nothing to hate on your roller. Would you share the dimensions?

It's 30x39, 3' tall.

 

[Mintgrun]

The drawers pull out nearly the entire way and stay supported. It works well for my intention.

I like your use of baking sheets. I use them too, along with other baking pans. They're practically free in the scrap bins and work great for organizing drawers. I especially appreciate the ones without the tabs on the ends, because they fit up against each other on all sides. I have screw drivers stored on baking sheets and they can be stacked on top of each other inside drawers.

I figure one difference between collecting and hoarding has to do with organization. I spend a lot of time organizing things up in the shop. Pans help a lot.

Tom

 

[sXe]

I like your use of baking sheets. I use them too, along with other baking pans. They're practically free in the scrap bins and work great for organizing drawers. I especially appreciate the ones without the tabs on the ends, because they fit up against each other on all sides. I have screw drivers stored on baking sheets and they can be stacked on top of each other inside drawers.

I figure one difference between collecting and hoarding has to do with organization. I spend a lot of time organizing things up in the shop. Pans help a lot.

Tom

Baking pans and sheets are great. I too pick them up when I find them for free/cheap. I worked in screw machine shops and it's what we put small parts in before going to inspection. Great for small items and can be moved around with weight in them

 

[Jayman17]

Sxe, that’s a great looking work table, nice find!

Jay

 

[Outlawmws]

sXe, that'a an awesome roller! if for typesetting its WAY under loaded wit "just" Steel!

 

[sXe]

that'a an awesome roller! if for typesetting its WAY under loaded wit "just" Steel!

It probably literally weighed a ton when it was loaded. I believe it had a couple more trays that are missing. The trays weigh about 25lbs each. I would be interested to know the history and how it ended up in northern illinois.

 

[royudc]

Amazing piece sXe, great character and you're getting terrific use out of it.
Outstanding!

Ron

 

[royudc]

Mike, what are using those rollers on now? As dollies for your shop?

Ron