Finally scored a Lista !

[prone2xl]

Cannot believe I lucked up on this one. 5 drawer Lista box in my area. Doesn’t appear to have that much damage or ding. Had some electrical parts and thermal magnetic circuit breakers in it. Dividers as well. Minor rust damage on surface top. Definitely want some ideas for possible restoration/repainting. And it does have an odor of cat urine or something. Any advice !? Also can you buy Lista decals? Mine appears worn. Here are Pics.
Did I get robbed for $130?




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[rmsg0040]

That's a good deal

 

[couch67]

cat piss or not that deal deserves a you ****!

 

[Max]

There was a robbery here - but you were not the victim. Nice score!

You definately want to get all the cat urine off the,box before it starts to rust.

Max

 

[slow]

Most are $100 a drawer even used, so $130 for that, great deal!

 

[PCMusicGuy]

Great deal for sure. Take the drawers and organizers out and spray it all down with cleaner/degreaser. That should go a long way to helping with the smell. Does it still have the lock and key? It doesn't look in bad shape so I don't see too much restoration would be required unless you have drawers that don't slide easily. Paint is easy enough, just pick a color you like.

 

[prone2xl]

I’m guessing there are YouTube videos on how to remove the drawers. The drawers all open well but require some effort. Not as smooth as my craftsman but prob bc of non cleaning for many years. The lock was drilled out and there’s a gap there so I’ll likely fill it. I saw this circular cap thing and kinda jammed it in there with some double sided tape.
What kind of degreaser is recommended ? I saw some other folks recommending a combo solution to oil the bearings and such with and then use 3 in 1 oil. Tons of packets of things in this which may also be adding to the smell. Small dent in bottom frame- not drawer. Heavy as all hell tho! Had a friend to help and used a dolly cart roller square thing from harbor freight. Wishing I had gone to the grocery store across the street to see if I could’ve used their pallet jack. Would a pallet jack fit into those feet slots ? Also really want one of those lista bubble labels.


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[Motorhead Extraordinaire]

The cabinet looks to be an MP (22" x 28" approximately. Anyways, it is the old style with roller bearings and with a lower tray drawer system as part of the suspension. It looks like i'ts a good 10 years old.

Wash the bearings out with a 50/50 mix of ATF and Acetone; re lubricate the bearings again with something like white lithium grease.

It's to bad they hammered the lock mechanism. If you straighten it out and need locks parts I'm pretty sure we have them.

Good luck. Let us know if you have questions.

Joe

Cannot believe I lucked up on this one. 5 drawer Lista box in my area. Doesn’t appear to have that much damage or ding. Had some electrical parts and thermal magnetic circuit breakers in it. Dividers as well. Minor rust damage on surface top. Definitely want some ideas for possible restoration/repainting. And it does have an odor of cat urine or something. Any advice !? Also can you buy Lista decals? Mine appears worn. Here are Pics.
Did I get robbed for $130?




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[pcmeiners]

Nice score.

I would wash with strong cleaner, rinse well, dry seams and crannies carefully with a propane torch otherwise rust will start within seams.

Fix damage lock area, will definitely increase resale value a few hundred years from now.



Aware rust is not an issue for you, but for others....

Two part glazing putty works great repairing rust damage at the seams, regular lacquer based putty *****.

Example below, any two part putty will work...

https://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-contour-glazing-putty.html

Also apply lube to the rails

 

[prone2xl]

[emoji119]

 

[PelicanPines]

Yea... you ****

 

[prone2xl]

The cabinet looks to be an MP (22" x 28" approximately. Anyways, it is the old style with roller bearings and with a lower tray drawer system as part of the suspension. It looks like i'ts a good 10 years old.



Wash the bearings out with a 50/50 mix of ATF and Acetone; re lubricate the bearings again with something like white lithium grease.



It's to bad they hammered the lock mechanism. If you straighten it out and need locks parts I'm pretty sure we have them.



Good luck. Let us know if you have questions.



Joe

Thanks Joe- I went over to the American Workspace site and emailed the contact us section to see how I might be able to purchase one of the bubble sticker labels for the badging. Haven’t heard back yet. Any ideas ?

I took out the dividers and contents of the cabinet drawers today and trying to get them to where I can possibly clean them this weekend. The dividers were semi fastened in place with these little black rivet like things in the second attached picture. I tabbed them out with a screwdriver. Some of the drawers are difficult to pull open at times and give a loud click pop sound when moving them back in. I can get most of them to open all the way and almost even past the front of the cabinet. (Haven’t tried to take the drawers out yet for fear of possibly not getting back in.





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[SRX]

Nice score!

 

[Rickster55]

There's a guy in the Vintage Tool Section that recreates labels.
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=356439

 

[bczygan]

You were taken to the cleaners on that one.

Nice guy that I am, I'll give you $150, just to make you whole again.

Bill

 

[prone2xl]

Guys I have some questions on the bearings and cleaning of the slides. Very new to this so “bear” with me
I’m taking pics bc I want to make sure I’m assuming what the bearing is etc. this is what I’m working with. Looks like the thing has gunk. They (roller things) are affixed to the slides somehow and there is also another roller thing that doesn’t have the inner mechanism that the other ones do. The ones that look Gunked up don’t slide at all. The ones without the inner things (they look white) will slide.
Just trying to understand what I need to clean and if I’m supposed to remove them from the slides to do so or if I even can. Sorry but I’m a very amateur woodworker here venturing into a new realm. Just don’t wanna start throwing brake fluid on the wrong thing. Etc. thanks so much in advance for your help!



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[bad_idea]

The bearing in the first picture is your issue. That type of bearing throughout the cabinet. Nothing wrong with the design. The bearings are all old and the grease in them has dried out and caked up. Go to town with some brake clean to get all of the old grease out. Spray some in the bearing, roll the bearing around by hand, spray more brake clean. Once the old grease turns to liquid again spray the whole mess out with compressed air to get it out of there. Then lube the bearings with fresh white lithium grease. Will take a while but the cabinet will open and close smooth as silk after that.

 

[Motorhead Extraordinaire]

Absolutely right. Clean them and lube them. 95% of the time they need maintenance and it will usually cure them. We use a 50/50 mix of ATF and Acetone to clean them out before hitting them with air and some good lube.

I do have a few (Very few) of these old style bearings if they are truley gone.

Joe Germann

The bearing in the first picture is your issue. That type of bearing throughout the cabinet. Nothing wrong with the design. The bearings are all old and the grease in them has dried out and caked up. Go to town with some brake clean to get all of the old grease out. Spray some in the bearing, roll the bearing around by hand, spray more brake clean. Once the old grease turns to liquid again spray the whole mess out with compressed air to get it out of there. Then lube the bearings with fresh white lithium grease. Will take a while but the cabinet will open and close smooth as silk after that.

 

[Motorhead Extraordinaire]

Isabelle sent you some cabinet labels at no charge of course. Let us know if you need parts or any guidance. Feel free to call us also at 978-618-2800 if chatting on the phone is better for you.

Joe

Thanks Joe- I went over to the American Workspace site and emailed the contact us section to see how I might be able to purchase one of the bubble sticker labels for the badging. Haven’t heard back yet. Any ideas ?

I took out the dividers and contents of the cabinet drawers today and trying to get them to where I can possibly clean them this weekend. The dividers were semi fastened in place with these little black rivet like things in the second attached picture. I tabbed them out with a screwdriver. Some of the drawers are difficult to pull open at times and give a loud click pop sound when moving them back in. I can get most of them to open all the way and almost even past the front of the cabinet. (Haven’t tried to take the drawers out yet for fear of possibly not getting back in.





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[BigGarage]

And it does have an odor of cat urine or something. Any advice !?

I would suspect rat or mouse urine if it's been in a garage.

 

[prone2xl]

Isabelle sent you some cabinet labels at no charge of course. Let us know if you need parts or any guidance. Feel free to call us also at 978-618-2800 if chatting on the phone is better for you.



Joe

Joe yes she is excellent. Emailed me and of course I am willing to send back the love with future business you can bet on that ! Just gotta get done with residency so I can have the real money to spend ! Haha. It’s bad that this forum is already giving me plenty of ways to spend it in my head


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[cbacres]

Maybe you got your answer on removing drawers, just pull them out, back off just a shade from when it stops, pick front of drawer up and pull out, you have to clear the frame below drawer.

Like Joe and other have said, it's just the dried grease making it stiff.

I use Superlube grade 0 grease, regular grease is too stiff, I've made this mistake on my first one. 3 in 1 oil does wonders too.
I like the Superlube as I researched that it doesn't dry up like regular grease, I'll let you know in a few years.

Clean the outsides of the bearings, remove grit, etc. I also make sure the rails that bearings ride on are clean and smooth, spraying with a dry lube to keep rust at bay and it slicks it up some. Cleaning the rails have made a huge difference with some of mine.

By the way, you ****

 

[prone2xl]

Maybe you got your answer on removing drawers, just pull them out, back off just a shade from when it stops, pick front of drawer up and pull out, you have to clear the frame below drawer.



Like Joe and other have said, it's just the dried grease making it stiff.



I use Superlube grade 0 grease, regular grease is too stiff, I've made this mistake on my first one. 3 in 1 oil does wonders too.

I like the Superlube as I researched that it doesn't dry up like regular grease, I'll let you know in a few years.



Clean the outsides of the bearings, remove grit, etc. I also make sure the rails that bearings ride on are clean and smooth, spraying with a dry lube to keep rust at bay and it slicks it up some. Cleaning the rails have made a huge difference with some of mine.



By the way, you ****

Ha love reading your thread as well! So applying the brake cleaner or ATF will break up the crud I have in there right? And trying to remove it if I don’t have an air hose is there a good way? Also when I’m replacing with the new lube or grease I’m applying to the inside of the bearings as well as the outsides ? I also gotta get rid of this smell. I hope maybe cleaning some of the bearings will do that too.
I don’t remove the bearing right? Bc it looks like it’s fastened to the box via rivet or somethjng. Thanks for all y’all help!


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[MattN03]

I have a couple Lista's I need to refurbish too. Subscribing...

 

[cbacres]

Ha love reading your thread as well! So applying the brake cleaner or ATF will break up the crud I have in there right? And trying to remove it if I don’t have an air hose is there a good way? Also when I’m replacing with the new lube or grease I’m applying to the inside of the bearings as well as the outsides ? I also gotta get rid of this smell. I hope maybe cleaning some of the bearings will do that too.
I don’t remove the bearing right? Bc it looks like it’s fastened to the box via rivet or somethjng. Thanks for all y’all help!


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Yes on brake clean or the atf/acteton , blow with Air would be best as you’ll want to get all residual out before greasing.

Just grease inside the bearing, like you’re packing a wheel bearing.
Bearings stay on, you’ll need to remove the frame after drawer is out, just flip up the little keeper on each side, it’ll slide right out.
No grease outside bearing.

Really need air to get all the hunk out. It’s a spray, rotate bearing, stay again and once it’s all broke up, blow it out. May need to do a couple of times.

 

[Monza Harry]

if air absolutely isn't available "WD-40" in an aerosol can will do for clean/blow [and lube(ish)] but hit the dollar store for one of those garden sprayers (pump-up ones) and with it empty you can get a decent(+/-) blast of air out of it for a quickie clean. As for the smell use a little baking soda wash and rinse/dry well. Then put some baking soda in some shallow plastic cups/plate in each drawer to absorb the remaining stench. Harry
P.S. There are many similar varieties of this one: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=902718&stc=1&d=1560804718

 

[prone2xl]

Well I pulled out all the drawers and frames sprayed the bearings as good as I could with the brake cleaner. Was spinnning like crazy and then now that I finished all the drawers I think some are barely spinning but hopefully that’s bc I need to lube the inners of the bearings ? They looked cleaner to me. And boy did I take a spray of brake cleaner to the eyes! Exactly what a radiologist should do right !? Anyways. I also cleaned out the inside of the cabinet fully with engine degreaser to hopefully get the smell down. And I’m wondering
1) how long should I wait until I can put on some grease ? Got the wd40 white lightning stuff. Or can I go ahead and do so ? I tried blowing dry the bearings with this air gun I have from ryobi. Do they need to be completely dry of brake cleaner before I can apply oil? Thanks so much guys !,,,


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[prone2xl]

They’re sliding well now but I’m noticing my top 2 drawers are not able to close all the way leaving them slightly open. The bottom 3 drawers close like butter all the way. The third drawer somewhat catches the second drawer and opens it when I open the 3rd as well. It’s as if something is keeping the top 2 drawers from completely closing shut .
Otherwise I’m hoping the smell of using degreaser has shut down my precious urine smell lol


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[prone2xl]

So I’m a dummy- somehow I put the slides for the first 2 drawers in backwards. Was comparing them to the others today after work and the lightbulb went off! Shocker. Now everything is perfectly flush

Now- who knows if or how u can remove these drawer handles? It looks like they’re essentially not a separate entity and are attached to the drawer.


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[prone2xl]

Some progress with filling found some foam lying around. Not perfect but since the drawers are kinda deeper than I’d like it raises them up closer to surface.



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