Craftsman Toolboxes (Light the fire!)

[Corndoggeh]

I'm curious to how people come to conclusion that the craftsman toolboxes are of subpar quality and construction. I've owned the Craftsman homeowners box that was at the sears outlet for about 3 years now and have had no problems with it despite all the work I do out of it and surviving a move with no signs of damage.

My only complaint in its design would be that the drawers do not pull out perfectly parallel with the slides due to not being ball bearing and not having anything to align the slides as the drawer pulls out but that is more along building the box to a specific price point.

So what gives? Is it just a bandwagon fad to hate on Sears' boxes? I've gone to Sears myself and find that their higher end boxes are actually pretty decent, to what feels on par with harbor freights construction in terms of play on the drawers and thickness of the metal. Enlighten me! (And light the torches and get out the pitchforks because I so dared to mention the devil of the tool world )

 

[kn51]

Well, I think it stems from gradual decline like the rest of their tools and the perception it gives.

I wouldn't part with my non-pro Craftsman toolbox (red, gray drawers) that I've had for 20 years.

The one that I got as a gift 10 years ago, egads it is bad and will someday go on Craigslist to make way for something different.

 

[tarbellb]

You clearly havent played with enough boxes in your life to know a loose box from a tight one.

 

[gdocktor3]

A snap on drawer can support the weight of a 200 pound man hanging on it. Literally. Can yours?

 

[Tonellin]

I have one, it's garbage. If it wasn't given to me by a friend and contain sentimental value it would be in the trash. The slides are garbage, the drawers can't take any weight and work properly and I have no faith in the overall construction. It can't hold a candle to either HF box I have

 

[Corndoggeh]

A snap on drawer can support the weight of a 200 pound man hanging on it. Literally. Can yours?

Well no because I bought the best I could afford that suited my purpose so it states it can handle only 75lbs per drawer. However, I'm talking about the more expensive boxes that they have not mine specifically.

 

[bobcatdan]

The newest craftsman box I have was from '08, pretty quiet glide friction slide black drawer combo. Its the road box in my old service truck. When I left in '14 it was still working fine so I have no issues with that gradelivers of box. I was just at Sears looking at the new grip latch boxes. The 40" roller has too few drawers for my taste. The 52" drawer arrangement is good to me. Overall quality seemed good and specs are good on paper. If I had a need, I wouldn't have an issue buying one.

 

[John in OH]

I have a Cman Griplatch set that's maybe 6-7 years old. It has served me well and I've been very pleased. However, it is not in professional service and would probably suffer greatly from heavy daily use.



I, same as you, bought what I could afford at the time. It is "OK", for me, but probably not for a pro and from what I've recently seen at Sears, I don't think the newer ones are quite as sturdy.

 

[drink]

Several years ago I purchased a Craftsman tool chest to go in my workshop. My tool chest has ball bearing drawer slides with griplatch drawer handles. I have done a lot of work on stuff in my workshop and it has served its purpose so far. Keep in mind some people in this club might be working as full time professional mechanics and they might be using their boxes 40 hours or more per week.

Harbor Freight might have existed in some parts of the country back when I purchased my box but I am okay with what I paid. It holds my Craftsman tool set okay also. I like the way all the boxes stack up and it doesn't take up a lot of floor space in the work area.

 

[M6erfan]

My ball bearing single stack from mid 90's is still going strong, works and looks nearly like new and it's been from CA to NC to MA to TX. It's got a lot of miles on it and I'm more than pleased with how it's held up...

Now the more modern Craftsman boxes, can't speak to those.

 

[ssdave]

I don't have a craftsman box, but considered them heavily when I bought my first better quality box at Menards. I went to sears, looked heavily at one of the non-ball bearing glides, opened the drawers, closed them, flexed the drawers when open, etc. One of the drawers kinked and failed right in the store when I was leaning on it to see if it flexed. That decided me against it right there.

If you recognize it is light duty, and not suited for heavy loads or heavy use levels, it isn't a bad box. If you have a need for more, it is not suitable.

It isn't a bandwagon hate of Sears, it is a legitimate difference in needs between different users. If it works for you, and is in your price range, it's great. For a lot of others, it is a poor investment because it won't meet their basic needs. For others, they compare the more expensive Craftsman that would meet their needs to other boxes, and they are higher priced for a similar level of quality, so it becomes an economic decision. Obviously, the boxes meet some peoples needs, as Sears continues to sell them.

 

[ZRX61]

Even the cheapest piece of **** toolbox isn't going to **** the bed in just 3 years.

 

[Rileysan]

It's all about perspective. If you grow up in a house of straw, how will you ever know how much better houses of wood or bricks are?

Once you use/feel a good tool chest, you'll realize why yours is disparaged.

Brian

 

[1950mercury]

If you're happy with it that's all that matters. But 20 years ago when I bought a box with ball bearing slides I thought to myself I will never own a friction slide box again

 

[DSLTRK]

Instead of calling them "Craftsman" Boxes, the boxes are actually made by Waterloo(with a smattering of Lumidor and Kennedy).

Just like Snap-On, there are different grades/levels of construction and steel.

The homeowner Waterloo is like a Bluepoint, 20g steel, cheap ball bearing slides, etc.
Craftsman Premium is like a Snap on Heritage Series, mostly 18 gauge with a little 16g.

and the Craftsman Professional/industrial series is like KRA/KRL series with heavy duty ball bearing slides, 16 gauge construction and a roll cage/double wall. It's just a less "flashy" roll cab.


The fact is, most people start out with a Waterloo light duty CM box (I did), and then jump to a Matco or Snap-on $6000 roll cab (I bought a few CM Industrial series and love them). Of course there is going to be some criticism.

People who make blanket statements like brand "X" is **** usually are ignorant.

1950Merc is 100% correct, if the box works for you and neatly stores your tools, then you're set.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

I've got the Craftsman Premium Heavy Duty 40 inch set. I'm pretty darn happy with it. At least when I bought it was still made in the USA (3-4 years ago - only the Premium Heavy Duty line was) and has a lifetime warranty. Wouldn't have been able to say that about a HF box.

 

[JoeFin]

It can't hold a candle to either HF box I have

Yet I have NEVER found any thing in Happy Fart that didn't fall apart in very short order

Apples to Oranges

Your comparing Craftsman's Home-Owner series to Happy Fart's wanna-be professional. Craftsman Heavy Duty series blows them away without question.

 

[Al Borland]

I have the Craftsman 26"Red (only red) homeowner box that I bought in 1992. Sliders are friction, not ball-bearing. I have this box stuffed to the gills, and the drawers always close, unless something is sticking up. Drawers are shallow, so sockets are on rails lying sideways with sizes up. (HF rails cut to fit front-to-back)
Hasn't collapsed yet, but I'm trying...

 

[DSLTRK]

Yet I have NEVER found any thing in Happy Fart that didn't fall apart in very short order

Apples to Oranges

Your comparing Craftsman's Home-Owner series to Happy Fart's wanna-be professional. Craftsman Heavy Duty series blows them away without question.

If you mean the CM Professional Series, I agree.

But, to be fair, HF boxes are attractive due to low cost for what you get AND the Waterloo HD boxes are built in Georgia, HF is of course from somewhere in CN.

 

[80mirada]

My Craftsman Grip-Latch 41" is 14 years old and has served me well. That said I wish I had bought the professional 46 since it was much deeper bad had more shallow drawers. My beef with the current node is all of the deep drawers. I am also mad they dropped most of the add on boxes (41" single drawer, locker,etc). That said, the newest boxes seem better made than the previous models.

 

[Al Borland]

A snap on drawer can support the weight of a 200 pound man hanging on it. Literally. Can yours?

Soooo.....
WHY do you store 200 lb. men in your toolbox???
Is this a thing??? a new fad???
They: "Hey we need a hand lifting this!"
You: "Check my toolbox, there's a couple guys in the top drawer."

 

[yamaha0343]

Yet I have NEVER found any thing in Happy Fart that didn't fall apart in very short order

Apples to Oranges

Your comparing Craftsman's Home-Owner series to Happy Fart's wanna-be professional. Craftsman Heavy Duty series blows them away without question.

Whoah now, you just insulted the Lord's toolbox.

I have a KRA now, but I still have my old cheap Craftsman friction slide box hanging around. It was my first box and I'd hate to ever let it go.

 

[Jim C.]

A snap on drawer can support the weight of a 200 pound man hanging on it. Literally. Can yours?

Well no because I bought the best I could afford that suited my purpose so it states it can handle only 75lbs per drawer. However, I'm talking about the more expensive boxes that they have not mine specifically.

Agreed Corndoggeh. For the cost of a snap on box, the drawers should hold 200 pounds. I'm not sure why I'd ever need to hang from one of my tool box drawers, but okay. As a DIYer, I've purchased Craftsman boxes (3 rollers, 3 mids, 3 tops) in the 80s, 90s, 00s, and 10s. I have ZERO complaints about any of them. They're good homeowner/DIYer boxes.

Jim C.

 

[Moose364]

What in the hell do you put in a 26" wide drawer that weights 200 lbs

I own 3 craftsman roll around all made in the 80s and have no complaints

 

[HomeTheaterMan]

It's funny because we were just talking about this at work today.

I personally have a Craftsman box that I got when I first started out. I was perfectly happy with it until I saw some nicer boxes. It has held up for the past 10 years of homeowner use, but in comparison to my buddies Snap On, the drawers are very light duty and will bend if overloaded and the drawers are no where near as smooth when sliding them in and out. I suspect they would wear out or break long before his ever would. When you fill the drawers on my box with heavy items they will sag. This isn't an issue with him. I've also noticed if you overfill a drawer on mine, it will also sometimes push it back behind the the drawers and you will wonder where your tool went. I recently pulled the drawers out and found a missing tool behind it.

That said, I can't imagine spending 15k-20k on a box. Even if I was using it everyday professionally, there is no way I'd spend this kind of money on a box. Especially when you consider how much they depreciate as soon as you buy them. I see boxes on CL for a fraction of the new cost all of the time. Even at 5-6k is ridiculous imo which is what some of their cheaper boxes cost. I could probably never justify it as a homeowner and I'm not sure I could as a professional. For many of my friends that are mechanics, it's more of a status symbol for them rather than them actually needing one of these boxes.

All of that said, I think there are some good boxes that are in between a Craftsman and a Snap On/ Mac/ Matco and I'd most likely go with one of these if I was buying another box. Are they Snap On quality? Absolutely not, but do you really need that quality? I'd rather put that extra money in an investment account and watch it grow instead of always being broke because I'm making weekly payments on a depreciating tools box. (Usually paying 15-20% interest in addition to it losing value.)

Since I already have my Craftsman box, I'll keep using it. It certainly gets the job done well enough for someone using it at home. (Although I'm starting to run out of space.)

 

[WhiskeyRanger]

A snap on drawer can support the weight of a 200 pound man hanging on it. Literally. Can yours?

I don't know which toolbox drawers can or cannot support 200lb men hanging from them. I use my toolboxes to store stuff. HF, craftsman, Waterloo, and SO have all done the job just fine, but that job is storage, not using them as a trapeze for dudes.

 

[Askme42]

Yet I have NEVER found any thing in Happy Fart that didn't fall apart in very short order

Apples to Oranges

Your comparing Craftsman's Home-Owner series to Happy Fart's wanna-be professional. Craftsman Heavy Duty series blows them away without question.

They are also apples to oranges price wise.

 

[Ctkelly]

200lbs? Pffff....those are some weak drawers. Lista advertises 440lb drawer capacity! Lol....I have a 10 year old cman bb griplatch stack and I'm happy. Except I'm running out of space so I'll probably put in a order with lista, so far they seem to have the best layout and options without spending over 5k.

 

[M6erfan]

^^^like I said, my Craftman stack is just fine, but If I was in the market for high end tool storage it would be Lista without a doubt

 

[Cato]

Is it just a bandwagon fad to hate on Sears' boxes?

Pretty much. No matter what they say, folks love to kick a man when he is down. Fellas will moan and grown about Sears stocking Chinese tools, but will buy a HF tool box over a Craftsman box made in the USA or at least Mexico.

I have NEVER seen a post or heard of ANYONE whose Craftsman tool box has fallen apart. What I do see are lots of guys posting pics of projects and in the background is one of the cheap Craftsman standard duty boxes in the background doing it's job just fine.

Like you said, the heavy duty and premium boxes are as good as anything you'll find outside of Snap On or Lista. But do you really need to spend 5k-20k so that you can stand on a drawer?

I expect my tool box to hold my pliers and hammers, not my fat a@@.

 

[gdocktor3]

I don't know which toolbox drawers can or cannot support 200lb men hanging from them. I use my toolboxes to store stuff. HF, craftsman, Waterloo, and SO have all done the job just fine, but that job is storage, not using them as a trapeze for dudes.

Lol. I don't own a Snap On box and I'm not even a mechanic, I was just making a point as to why people think the Craftsman are subpar.

 

[zendriver]

I have one of those craftsman rollers with a non-ball bearing drawers for 25 years. I've never liked it but that was all I could afford even though I paid a couple hundred dollars. Whatever grease they put on them turned a tar when the weather gets cold so the drawers open even harder.

Harbor freight's brown tool boxes are in the same flimsy design and quality and I would nit want one of them either.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Jim Diesel]

Buy what you can afford and what will meet your needs not only now, but possible future requirements. This can be applied to both DIYers and professionals.

I wrench for a living and there is no way in hell I would pay over $5000 for a box. Its more important to obtain and maintain good quality tools. I also don't like the fact of being in debt in order to work. It amazes me how much some of these young guys are forking out each month to pay the tool man.

 

[crackit]

OP, the Craftsman boxes of old were built like tanks compared to today's models. That may be where some of the disdain comes from.

 

[zendriver]

Yet I have NEVER found any thing in Happy Fart that didn't fall apart in very short order

Why would you continue to shop there, if everything you buy falls apart?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[bubinga]

I have a Cman Griplatch set that's maybe 6-7 years old. It has served me well and I've been very pleased. However, it is not in professional service and would probably suffer greatly from heavy daily use.



I, same as you, bought what I could afford at the time. It is "OK", for me, but probably not for a pro and from what I've recently seen at Sears, I don't think the newer ones are quite as sturdy.

I got a very similar box, used, but as new, (well I know we're not supposed to appoint suckage, ) But trust me, it was a "you **** " price.
I don't have the long center(middle) box.
But It's a well made box for my needs, and esp considering the price.
it has the grip latch drawers

 

[Jim C.]

Buy what you can afford and what will meet your needs not only now, but possible future requirements. This can be applied to both DIYers and professionals.

I wrench for a living and there is no way in hell I would pay over $5000 for a box. Its more important to obtain and maintain good quality tools. I also don't like the fact of being in debt in order to work. It amazes me how much some of these young guys are forking out each month to pay the tool man.

Amen to all of that Jim Diesel..... Amen.

Jim C.

 

[Tinner]

Even the cheapest piece of **** toolbox isn't going to **** the bed in just 3 years.

I have a Homak H2pro that did.

 

[Yankee]

If you mean the CM Professional Series, I agree

But, to be fair, HF boxes are attractive due to low cost for what you get AND the Waterloo HD boxes are built in Georgia, HF is of course from somewhere in CN.

FYI, I purchased the 36 inch single stack Waterloo HD box last year. It is made in Mexico..

 

[DSLTRK]

FYI, I purchased the 36 inch single stack Waterloo HD box last year. It is made in Mexico..

Sigh** that's terrible. Both my 1997 CM Industrial Series and the 2004 CM Professional I have were built here in the states. Must have gone over around the recession era.