I'm getting a 24x36 granite surface plate to put on top of my SnapOn toolbox in my garage. Would a sheet of EPPCO drawer liner underneath the surface plate be a good thing or bad thing? I'm not in my permanent residence yet so I'm thinking it has the potential to help keep it stable when loading/unloading the KRA2407 box into a moving truck down the road. I'm also thinking that all plastics/rubber degrade over time; some turn into powdery brittle stuff while others turn to sticky, gooey, paste. Under the compression of a 500lb surface plate, there's no telling long term what will happen to the toolbox liner. So, should I line the box top and put the plate on top of the liner or just put the plate directly on the painted metal surface?
Drawer liner under surface plate?
- Thread starter gdpolk
- Start date
blazemaster83
Well-known member
If you plan to use your surface plate for precision measurement, it really needs to be setup on 3 points, not a solid surface.
Agreed, google search 'granite airy points' to learn about proper mounting of a surface plate.
If your buying a new plate then it should come with mounting instructions.
Your poll needs to have " none of the above " as a choice.
lg
no neat sig line
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bsaint
Well-known member
All our surface plates are on tables. And we do aerospace stuff. Its not gonna warp.
EOC_Jason
Well-known member
If it's 24x36, that would be less than 1-lb per square inch...
Maybe a heavy rubber, like a cut piece of stall mat from TSC. I don't think that would degrade any time soon. But the cheap drawer-liner I can see compressing and probably sticking pretty bad...
Maybe a heavy rubber, like a cut piece of stall mat from TSC. I don't think that would degrade any time soon. But the cheap drawer-liner I can see compressing and probably sticking pretty bad...
rlitman
Well-known member
dr_clyde
Well-known member
3 hockey pucks. What's the grade of the plate and intended use?
And 24 x 36 = 864!
Wamsutta
Well-known member
Just curious why you don't put it on the top mat that came with the box?
I'm a knife maker. It's only job is to be flat for checking my straightening after heat treat, making layout lines with height gauges, and hand lapping handle materials with sandpaper. Having it level really doesn't matter for my applications. As to why it goes on the SnapOn box, that's because I have a TINY shop, the box will hold it and support it plenty well enough for my uses, the SnapOn box is the perfect height for me to use it at already, and it'll integrate into my shop seamlessly there.
That's a no no for a surface plate. Abrasives shouldn't be used around a surface plate. Plate glass works good for hand lapping.
rlitman
Well-known member
Really level might not matter to you, BUT when it rests on three points, it will not rock at all. Sitting still is even more important than being level.
The box didn't come with a top mat. I bought it used off Craigslist for a song. It had been stored under an oak tree outside and the top had long since blown off, it was covered in green algae at the bottom, and when I opened the bottom drawer a king snake slithered out!
After an exchange of cash, two Magic Erasers, a couple of worn out dish rags, some soapy water, a new pair of keys from SnapOn, and elbow grease I am into the KRA2407 with new drawer liners for LESS money than a 44" Harbor Freight box. For a home DIY guy, it's just the right size for my modest collection of mechanics tools and you can't beat the price 
All the drawer liners were in the drawers still but dry rotted and moldy. I cleaned it up really well and bought some EPPCO drawer liner to replace the originals. I had planned to have a small slab of countertop granite cut to fit the top but then got a large surface plate that fits it perfectly in a trade for one of my knives.
You can get an 18 x 24 chinese for $60 or less, if that matters at this point.
Plate will probably have three mounting points.
How about a piece of paneling or plywood in between.
Your application should not be a problem.
Plate will probably have three mounting points.
How about a piece of paneling or plywood in between.
Your application should not be a problem.
Bad idea. It's too heavy for that box. The problem is the box isn't designed to hold something like that. The load needs to be spread out to contact the edges. You'd do better with a solid wood top, then the surface plate. Or a 1/2" aluminum plate.
While I'm not trying to argue for the sake of being right, I would like to know why you think it's not sturdy enough? The plate I have would contact edge to edge along the entire surface. The SnapOn Classic 60 KRA2405 top chest to match it weighs 222lbs empty with 5x drawers rated for 120lbs each and the option to go to 240lbs with an extra set of slides, plus the open cabinet which should hold at least another 120lbs.
222lbs + (120lbs x 5 drawers) = 822lbs plus arbitrary weight in the top. Seems to me that just by looking on their website a 550lbs slab of granite distributed evenly along the top edge to edge should be well within the strength of the box.
dr_clyde
Well-known member
The box can hold it fine. A top chest full of tools can weigh 500+ without too much trouble.
pcmeiners
Well-known member
Why would you add 500lbs of completely unnecessary/useless weight to a cabinet only to make it top heavy? A 1" steel plate would at least be useful at 244lbs.