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Craftsman Industrial Boxes

MagnumForce

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Anyone have any opinion on Craftsman Industrial boxes? Great prices at the Sears Outlet, I am just worried I won't have tall enough drawers for my hasen socket racks. I am thinking a Harbor Freight 44 with my HF side cab on it would be better. I need to upgrade my box so everything I have fits in a smaller area at my new job.

The 26 inch stack would only be 291 dollars right now. It still doesn't seem as heavy duty as the Harbor Freight boxes but the Craftsman Industrial logo has way more wow factor than lowly US General
 
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jrobb316

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It depends if you want to be laughed at or have some pride. HF and heavy duty or HF and professional in the same sentence is an oxymoron. I think those CMan boxes look nice and its of my opinion that higher line CMan boxes are very nice quality. Can you take your rack into the store and test fit before you buy? Those really don't add any height to your sockets so you should be fine.
 
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MagnumForce

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Yes, the 3000 series. Much thinner gauge than the US General but the 40 and 52 were way nicer, but 3 times the cost. I wasn't a huge fan of how the drawers shut and how unsmooth they seemed compared to my HF 5 drawer and side cab and the big drawers only had one slide instead of the 2 on the HF.... Guess I just talked myself into an hf 44.

Industrial work doesn't involve **** measuring the way being an automotive mechanic does so I won't be laughed at either way.
 
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MagnumForce

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But the Sears Outlet doesn't.

My shop is a mix of HF, Craftsman, Kennedy, and masterforce/performax. The only guy who has a Snappy is the guy that works on the Forklifts, Semi Trailers and Trucks and he bought it second hand and lived a former life as a diesel tech.

It's the old timers that have the Kennedy's
 

Codyyy

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Maybe try to look around at Sears's website and look up the specs, sometimes they will give drawer dimensions of each drawer. I had the exact same kind of worry before I bought my Craftsman Premium box, as the old brown wrinkle Craftsman machinist rollaway with the Kennedy top boxes I inherited just don't seem deep enough for anything I have.
When I went to Sears, I ended up taking some thick screwdrivers from the shelf, a tape measure, and a pry bar to see what fits and doesn't in certain drawers, and planned out where I would end up putting the tools. Then I put them back on their shelves. I also looked at where each drawer was in relation to how high up it was i.e. how high the shallow drawers were and how low the bigger drawers were.
 
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MagnumForce

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The 52 inch roller was only 750 but a hf 44 or the new Milwaukee both with top boxes are really nice too at less than 700. I dunno, though. The big Craftsman Industrial sticker is really cool...

What is killing me is I have a HF side cab on my 36 inch 5 drawer now that I would like to pull off and put on the HF. If I don't do that it is money wasted.

I kick myself every day for not buying the 44 in the first place instead of the 5 drawer and the side cab in 2 separate purchases.
 

1950mercury

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Buy the hf and be done with it. Its a better box and you have a matching side cab. Its a no brainer. Peel the hf sticker off if you feel the need to
 

slip knot

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I picked up 2 of the 44 us generals. pulled the labels off the first day. no-one knows what the boxes are but they all say they're good boxes. If they still had the us general labels everyone would be bitching about HF. The top drawer holds the Hansen trays w/o any issues.
 
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MagnumForce

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I picked up 2 of the 44 us generals. pulled the labels off the first day. no-one knows what the boxes are but they all say they're good boxes. If they still had the us general labels everyone would be bitching about HF. The top drawer holds the Hansen trays w/o any issues.
Half inch drive deep stuff?
 

1982fxr

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iirc hf does not sell replacement parts...

Waterloo lifetime warranty, plus top notch customer support. In an industrial environment **** happens, right? Could be one of those times you're buying more than just the box...
 

Fedwrench

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iirc hf does not sell replacement parts...

Waterloo lifetime warranty, plus top notch customer support. In an industrial environment **** happens, right? Could be one of those times you're buying more than just the box...

Waterloo no longer offers a lifetime warranty. Per their 2015-2016 catalog on page 4, The professional HD series (old magnum) has a 10 year warranty.
 
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MagnumForce

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Catalog in the top said 3 year warranty. HF is one year. My 5 drawer is quite bullet proof.
 
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MagnumForce

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iirc hf does not sell replacement parts...

Waterloo lifetime warranty, plus top notch customer support. In an industrial environment **** happens, right? Could be one of those times you're buying more than just the box...
Something happens and it gets damaged, I don't pay to get it fixed. The company just writes me a check for a new one.

If it falls apart it's all me, but I have never heard about the HF 44 doing that and people have had them for years.
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MagnumForce

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So after all this, what did I end up buying? A Menards Masterforce 41. After going to Menards, Sears, Sears Outlet, 2 Home Depots, 2 Lowe's and Harbor Freight and playing with everyone's boxes I decided I like the Masterforce 41 better than anything else. I like the latches way more than the plastic detents on the HF and it felt more solid that the comparable craftsman roller and the drawer layout made way more sense for me. Lowe's and Home Depot were at the bottom of the barrel. Not even in the same zip code as the others.

So I guess I need to sell hf 5 drawer and side cab.
 

BDT/NWMN

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Ten years ago I bought two sets of Craftsman Grip-latch boxes to get latching drawers. They can call these things heavy duty or any thing else they choose. I would call them OK boxes for lighter use on a lever floor; but nothing else. Sears offers at least 5 different levels of boxes under their Craftsman name; these would have been a level 4 at the time,. Their Commercial or Professional boxes would be a level 5 , and were built for a hefty task.

I bought a HF 56" top last year to get latching drawers.. The HF I believe was a whopping 90 day warranty. Two of those fantastic plastic drawer latches on that HF have gone "ping" when I touched them to open a drawer.. Not impressed... I set this top on a HF bottom that I bought used two weeks before buying the top.. One slide on the bottom was hurting a bit, so I called the HF store to get a new slide.. "We don't stock parts" is what I was told. Then I called customer service and got a similar answer. Factory order/expect 10 weeks.... I tweaked that slide myself and used a common size bicycle bearing for replacement balls... Sure glad that HF56" gets to rest while sitting in one place in my main shop, holding mainly special tools.... Oh ya,, I put black electrical tape over the US, but left the General..

I bought a used KRA SnapOn 7drawer box that measures 18X34.. I didn't like (hated)the detents, so when I removed the drawers to clean the gummed up slides, I removed the detents.. That turned that box into a monster. I now have to hold seven drawers closed while I lock it.. There is NO moving that box safely without being locked.. It will end up fastened under my Younger Son's workbench minus the casters...

My ancient SnapOn Road Chest (used daily) and 30" bottom have friction slides, but still get locked.

I find the Menards Masterforce boxes appealing,, Yep,, I like those latches,, and the choice of colors is a bonus....

You made a good choice.
 
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Vigo

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Lowe's and Home Depot were at the bottom of the barrel. Not even in the same zip code as the others.

Glad you are happy with your purchase and i'm not trying to comment on what you ended up with, but for anyone else reading i feel like the ~42" Milwaukee top/bottom at Home Depot is actually pretty dang good. I feel it's very competitive with the HF 44 and if one NEVER planned to add side boxes or cabinets i think i would actually take the Home Depot Milwaukee over the HF 44. If you planned to use all the expandability then i'd still take the HF 44, though. :p
 
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MagnumForce

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I went to 2 home depots and those were no where to be seen. I went hoping to check them out.

The Masterforce boxes carry a lifetime warranty, that sold me as well. Masterforce also has all the expandability of the HF boxes but the full length full door side cab on absolutely killer. Adjustable ball bearing drawer shelfs It's so cool!
 

Gear Wolf

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The C-Man Industrial series boxes were way overpriced in my area. You may as well consider a Matco, Cornwell, or Snap-On box at the prices they were charging.

Remember Craftsman Industrial was Sear's failed attempt to try and get Craftsman tool distributors and retail partners. It flopped miserably. Industrial was the same as regular C-Man, but with a "beefier" warranty.
 

JWILL

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I have a HF 44 top and bottom with two full side lockers at home that's pretty much overflowing. And since work buys all the tools and the boxes(pay isn't that great though) we have a Masterforce 41inch top and bottom. The box is well built but the pull out work platform is a waste of space and the drawer layout *****. Our Menard's doesn't carry any of the bigger ones for display but I've been thinking of either another HF44 or a 56inch top and bottom Masterforce. I wish they would make a topnfor their 72inch roller. As for the threads original topic of the Craftsman industrial series boxes I had seen a 56 inch IIRC at the south does Moines Sears a few years back it was very nice and was told it was going to a mech over at McAninch Construction shop. But the price tag was very near a Snap On. I removed my HF badging and run Craftsman badging in its place.
 
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MagnumForce

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I really like the drawer layout and the shelf. Nice place to eat lunch and do paperwork.
 

1982fxr

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The C-Man Industrial series boxes were way overpriced in my area. You may as well consider a Matco, Cornwell, or Snap-On box at the prices they were charging.

Remember Craftsman Industrial was Sear's failed attempt to try and get Craftsman tool distributors and retail partners. It flopped miserably. Industrial was the same as regular C-Man, but with a "beefier" warranty.

??? 1st time i've heard that here
 
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MagnumForce

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3a1d9005137925ccb69cb33e89674ad8.jpg


I ended up with that. I am very happy with it.
 
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MagnumForce

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I never thought I'd have anything that nice! Craziest thing is that I have it packed to the gills already!
 
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MagnumForce

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Thinking about the full length side cab next. That thing is awesome with the adjustable drawers.
 
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MagnumForce

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I almost custom ordered the blue but thought my Michigan State Magnets would look cooler on green. That Blue is gorgeous though.
 

77Ford

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Thinking about the full length side cab next. That thing is awesome with the adjustable drawers.


My next purchase will be the 72" Masterforce.....they have went on sale for $1000 at the end of the year for 2 years in a row.

Throw a stainless top are they are sweet.....[emoji7][emoji7][emoji7][emoji7][emoji7]
 
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