Blue Point v Snap-on tool boxes

[skipskip]

I was in a garage today and the owner had a Blue Point toolbox.

If it were a tool, I would say BP is a little lesser quality than SO.

But are the boxes the same? and just rebadged?

Skip

 

[philw]

The only BP toolbox I have seen was at a pawn shop a year or two ago. It was in mint conditon but I'm not sure how old it was.
I was very disappointed to see the quality. I don't think I would rate it as high as a standard Craftsman box. It just felt cheap.
Again, I have no idea of the age but it couldn't have been very old.

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

I was in a garage today and the owner had a Blue Point toolbox.

If it were a tool, I would say BP is a little lesser quality than SO.

But are the boxes the same? and just rebadged?

Skip

They're not the same. I'm sure there's some guys on here that can give you more specific info, but Blue Point is definitely lower quality than Snap On.

 

[onecheck]

The only BP toolbox I have seen was at a pawn shop a year or two ago. It was in mint conditon but I'm not sure how old it was.
I was very disappointed to see the quality. I don't think I would rate it as high as a standard Craftsman box. It just felt cheap.
Again, I have no idea of the age but it couldn't have been very old.

Blue Point box's are a much better quality then the new Craftsman boxes. Two techs in my shop have both boxes. My Harbor Freight "General Steel" Is the same quality as the tech's new Craftsman box for a lot cheaper. The tech felt stupid and ripped off when we compared his new Craftsman box to my Harbor Freight box.

 

[vartz04]

blue point is higher quality than anything craftsman makes except the pro series.

 

[peterbilr98]

my blue point tool cart is great looked at many others they are made in china
it has worked for me

 

[philw]

blue point is higher quality than anything craftsman makes except the pro series.

Not the Blue Point I saw. It was a 27" cab/chest combo. If comparing to newer Craftsman boxes it may be about the same but there is no way I could say there is a big difference and I'm not a big Craftsman fan.

Maybe Snap on made different quality levels of BP's through the years? I believe it was this one:
http://www.snapon.com/tool-storage/krb-tool-storage.asp

I can't find a price or anything else so I guess they are discontinued?

 

[vartz04]

I will say that they aere overpriced for what they are. Its cause they are tied in with snap on

 

[Lookin4'67Galaxieconv]

Blue Point box's are a much better quality then the new Craftsman boxes. Two techs in my shop have both boxes. My Harbor Freight "General Steel" Is the same quality as the tech's new Craftsman box for a lot cheaper. The tech felt stupid and ripped off when we compared his new Craftsman box to my Harbor Freight box.

The OP was asking about Snap On vs. Blue Point.

Not Blue Point vs. Craftsman, or Craftsman vs. Harbor Freight.

 

[philw]

It's my fault! I should know better to compare Craftsman and anything Snap-on related!!!!

As far as the Blue Point box I saw (not necessarily all Blue Point boxes ever made) compared to Snap-on then I would say there is a night and day difference.

 

[Diesel_Crawler]

As far as the Blue Point box I saw (not necessarily all Blue Point boxes ever made) compared to Snap-on then I would say there is a night and day difference.

I would have to agree with you, I don't see no wheres near the he same quality in them as I see in my KRL1023.

 

[Thedroid]

When I was first approved for my KRL series, I thought twice and almost bought a BP box and spent the balance on tools. I looked very closely at the BP box, and it didn't look anywhere close to the quality of a SO box. I would have been very disappointed if I would have bought that box.

 

[Chris Adams]

I've only seen ONE Blue Point box in person. It was in a pawnshop.
I took time to mess with it a lot.
Don't know how old it was (couldn't turn it around to inspect the back) it was a much better box than most Waterloo boxes, or the rest of the lower end pack.
The roller action felt as good as a SnapOn, the metal may or may not have been quite as heavy as a low end SnapOn.
It was narrow but deep, with a matching top box.

Honestly, it had better quality than any but the top brands, like SnapOn, Mac, (older or high end Mac) Matco, Cornwall.
I would defiantly take it over my Sears Industrial for roller smoothness, overall feel.

I have seen Snappy boxes that were not any better. Entry level boxes, but with the SnapOn label.

 

[southpier]

i just got a 'snap-on/ blue-point' 3 draw carry box. i ordered it from the snap-on website but when i opened it the label said blue point.

i think it's okay. cost 118$ and probably some shipping - don't remember.

 

[Thedroid]

I don't really care for any of the entry level truck brand boxes. I don't think they are any better than a nice Craftsman, and the price is not really that much less than the top of the line boxes the companies are known for.

 

[rgates]

I was in a garage today and the owner had a Blue Point toolbox.

If it were a tool, I would say BP is a little lesser quality than SO.

But are the boxes the same? and just rebadged?

Skip

The blue point boxes are the price fighter line for SO. They are no where near the same box as the KRL series. There are several differences.

The finish acrylic paint vs. powder
Gauge of metal 20 vs. 14
Drawer slides capacity
Casters 1200lb vs. 6000lb

And then the obvious limited choice of sizes.

 

[fordbroncodave]

wtf are you guys talking about?

i have a blue point top and bottom KRB box and it is great. far more better then any craftsman box (other then their professional ones).
the KRA series snap on boxes are built the exact same and the drawers even interchange with the lower cabinet. the drawer slides are all labeled snap on.

original price for the top and bottom was around $1890 plus tax. now they sell for about $700 for a used combo.

much better of a toolbox then all of you were saying it is. don't bash on it if you don't know

 

[sawatch]

I have to agree with Dave. I have an older ['80s maybe] KRB top/bot/side and it's highend quality. Made in Canada. Mine has a plac that designates it as Detroit Diesel 60 Series [see avatar/side pic] It's a classic design too.

 

[billymade]

Has anyone ever figured out who the OEM is for these boxes? I have a earlier version (Kiq 1980's vintage) and need the lock bar for it (slides up/down internally, locks all the drawers); aside from the sliders/lock.... all parts are obsolete! These are badged as made in Canada and possible made by International.... http://www.spginternational.ca/

http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=19089&highlight=fleamarket+box&showall=1

 

[csp]

i have a blue point top and bottom KRB box and it is great. far more better then any craftsman box (other then their professional ones).
the KRA series snap on boxes are built the exact same and the drawers even interchange with the lower cabinet. the drawer slides are all labeled snap on.

How old is yours?

We all know that the new stuff isn't the same as the old stuff.

 

[fordbroncodave]

my box was purchased new in 2001. they only started making my blue point box and sawatch's toolbox in 2000.

a buddy of mine 2 doors down from my house bought it right when it came out and i got mine about a year after in 2001. he paid $960 for the sidebox and the top and bottom toolbox was the same price as mine.

they are not from the 80's. they are early 2000's. same identical box as those starter KRA classic boxes

 

[rtvinc]

I have an old blue point roller and top box. I don't know if things changed over the years but
it is one fine box. i cant imagine things could get much better. i would gladly trade all my kennedy, waterloo
and all the rest if i could find more blue points of the same vintage. just saying dont just ignore them if they come up for sale. check to see if the are like mine or something later (worse) .they might be a great deal
because the name is not so well known as SO

 

[CGarage]

22 posts and a bunch of conjecture but not a lot of real data or info.

Gentlemen, you need to remember the history of Snap-On and Bluepoint.

Snap-On bought Bluepoint and used it to distribute tools and supplies not manufactured by Snap-On.

This translated to tool boxes as well.

The Bluepoint boxes were always from China.

Nicely made and high quality, but not to the US/Canada grade of durability or finishing quality.