- Thread starter Ryan
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Maxcustody
Well-known member
At that price they were a good deal. However, their regular price is crazy for what it is. I am searching for cabinets now for my new shop but I can't justify paying that kind of price per cabinet. The search continues......................
OP
I don't at all disagree... It's worth a look every time you go to Home Depot or Lowes though... just to see if something is on sale or returned or whatever...
I'd be willing to bet they do sales too... cuz their margin (even with the heavy shipping) has to be pretty good...
Maxcustody
Well-known member
That’s what I do, prices did not come down much even over the Memorial Day sales. I keep checking and hopefully will get lucky.
vavet
Well-known member
I bought 2 bigger cabinets like you pictured and 4 wall cabinets a few years ago from Lowes on Black Friday Special. The even let me stack my veterans' discount. They've been fine.
Auctions. I've gotten a bunch from .gov auctions for pennies on the dollar. Like $1 each for HON brand cabinets.
I bought several 30x30 Gladiator Premier wall cabinets over the years whenever Sears had them for $99. They were not bolt-together and were welded square and solid. The biggest issue I have with them is the exterior finish. Be careful of bug spray, sweat, grease and probably a few other things as the finish will be affected: dulling or bubbles or discolored. Other than that the Gladiator Premier cabinets are great if you can find them on sale. The Premier line also has tool cabinets and tall lockers.
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OP
Yeah, I believe the premier are thicker gauge steel as well...
kaymccampbell
Well-known member
I looked at those pre-assdemic, and they seemed nice enough, but pricey to me then. I discovered that shopping at a used office furniture store can get you similar HON, SteelCase or other heavy duty steel office cabinets for great savings, even compared to half off Gladiators. And they're welded.
OP
Yes. Agreed.
I'm weird about the colors in my shop though. I don't want beige or black... I like white, stainless, and gray.
kaymccampbell
Well-known member
I see you have not yet discovered rattle cans. You just point one at the visually offending object, push down on the top and the color changes, just like magic.
driftpin
Well-known member
I have some Gladiator Premier cabinets, yes, welded not their knock-down line. I am very happy with them. I bought them at Sears in Ft. Lauderdale, which of course is now gone. They are the 30" X 30" X 12" and instead of using their similar to french-cleat hangers, I used tapcons into a CBS wall, and fender washers on the tapcons for more holding power. I also used a 1" X 2" ledger underneath the lower edge, overkill, but it allowed me to hang 'em unassisted. At the same time, I got Craftsman 26" rollers, two are doors, two are drawers, and a 2' X 8' steel workbench frame, which I topped with a ripped lengthwise 4' X 8' sheet of plywood, glued and screwed, topped with a 3/16" piece of mill finish steel sized to fit the plywood, so 2' X 8'. I also picked up a 36" X ~ 6-1/2' steel cabinet, Kobalt brand from Habitat for Humanity, it looks barely-used.
I cut-down some Gladiator 2,000 lbs/shelf steel shelving units to fit the returns on the room, they do what I need very-well, and are very sturdy.
First the stock depth.
Then the cut-down depth, before bolting them together.
I think the welded Gladiator Priemer cabinets are a good value. I paid < $100 apiece for mine.
I cut-down some Gladiator 2,000 lbs/shelf steel shelving units to fit the returns on the room, they do what I need very-well, and are very sturdy.
First the stock depth.
Then the cut-down depth, before bolting them together.
I think the welded Gladiator Priemer cabinets are a good value. I paid < $100 apiece for mine.
KnurledNut
Well-known member
OP
You could do that pretty easily, but I didn’t.
wandrur
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I was actually just wondering about these. Lowe's has the 36"x72"x18" on sale for $239.99, today only. I'm thinking of picking up one. Maybe two. These are the assembly-required ones.
OP
Just saw this. Did you do it? Thoughts?
wandrur
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I did! Had to order one, the delivery for which was 'delayed' and should now be available at the store ~27th.
Unfortunately, the Tuff Shed I had delivered is sitting in my driveway instead of on its proper location because Tuff Shed corporate ***** donkey testicles and couldn't find their *** with 18 pairs of underwear.
That said, I am absolutely looking forward to picking up the unit and putting it together. I will report back once I do.
what if it was 19 pair?
wandrur
ALLIANCE MEMBER
Not hopeful.
consti2tion
Well-known member
I don't have any of the cabinets, but I have one of their tool chest/cab original stacks and I have had it for about 10 years. It was a great purchase(400) and has done what I have asked of it. I picked it up when my dad worked at an appliance store, they would get random Gladiator toolboxes, wish I could have gotten some of those cabinets. 
littlelebowski
Well-known member
“Heel” 
wmihl
Well-known member
Back in the day of Sears, I had also gotten a couple of the Premier 30"x30" cabinets, hammered finish with the gray tread plate doors. Hung them up in my garage and then went back when the were on sale and bought 4 more! Of course back then they were $99 retail and I knew the employee so she knew of every coupon and discount she was able to give me. I did also buy one of the "assembly required" cabinets due to the layout of it. Small shelf on the bottom to fit my radio and cabinets doors above for motorcycle gear and cleaning stuff. Love the cabinets since I have a shallow garage and only 24" to spare when I pull the truck into the garage. As for a tall cabinet, I found one on Facebook Marketplace with a few rust spots on the inside shelves which I just painted over. Another shelving unit I have fond was at Menards, similar to Home Depot and Lowes in Wisconsin. They have the pallet rack style shelving in multiple widths and beam lengths. Made quick work of getting the patio furniture up off the floor in the winter and the motorcycles underneath.
EasyTiger864
Well-known member
When it comes to shop organization my Dad always says doors and drawers. It has only taken me 40 years to grasp this concept, but he's right. Regardless of how organized shelves and wall hangers look at first they never stay that way. Even if I had the diligence to put everything back neatly it gets covered in dust and dead bugs in a few months. I'm now on the journey to store anything and everything in my shop behind a door or in a drawer. Regardless of how unorganized things are inside I can just shut the doors and the shop looks clean and the tools or supplies I'm storing stay much cleaner.
So I'm a big fan of Gladiator products except for the the cabinets ( I use old file cabinets). I have my whole garage, and laundry room walls done as well as the master closet ( wifes closest) and the back wall of my closet. I'm in the middle of re organizing my garage will take some pictures soon.
wandrur
ALLIANCE MEMBER
It finally made it to the store today after multiple delays! Picked it up on my way home from work.
Sucker is stout. 120# in the box. Gave me a good reason to finally buy a dolly on the way from Lowe's to home.
Debating putting it together now or waiting until the shed is in its proper place and then doing it out there, so TBD on impressions.
My smaller Gladiator tall lockers are packed full so your bigger cabinets will be more useful to store and organizeyour garage.
I have one of the same lockers in my garage and it's been full for probably 10 years. It holds a lot of detailing supplies and I don't complain about it for a second.
FreedomPenguin
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 11, 2016
- Messages
- 97
I got all my gladiator stuff for like 80% off. I was price matching sears etc when they are going out of business and Lowes would even add 10% military on top of it, I paid 150 dollars each for each of my chest cabinets, and 150 for my table, I think 150-200 each for my hanging wall things too.
even got the gladiator shelfs 5 tier for 80 bucks shipped
now the wall track, I didnt get any real deals on that ****, super expensive. but I am a big gladiator fan.
one day I will rip out the back cabinets and put some gladiator stuff in there, but the cabinets are perfectly working and great condition. dont see a reason to change it out.
even got the gladiator shelfs 5 tier for 80 bucks shipped
now the wall track, I didnt get any real deals on that ****, super expensive. but I am a big gladiator fan.
one day I will rip out the back cabinets and put some gladiator stuff in there, but the cabinets are perfectly working and great condition. dont see a reason to change it out.
Attachments
jjohnson70
Well-known member
That's a great price. I picked one up new around the beginning of June from Lowe's - they had them on sale for $239. I like the Premiere series from Gladiator better - those are the heavier gauge and welded version. However for the price they're terrific. If you keep an eye out they go on sale a couple of times a year.
marshrd
New member
I'm new here. I just redid my entire garage in Gladiator products. I have a couple of items left over and I missed the 90-day return period at Home Depot, so looking for the best way to find people that might be interested. I have two 48 in. W x 70 in. H x 18 in. D cabinets and four 28 in. wall GearBox cabinets with the stainless steel tread plate design doors. They were originally part of an 8 piece kit. Happy to make a good deal with someone. Best if they could pickup rather than paying freight. Can supply photos on request. I'm located just north of Cincinnati, Ohio.
craiger75
Active member
I’m on the hunt for small parts organizers (nuts, bolts, nails, wire nuts, etc). Can you share what you have in that middle cabinet? I also have Gladiator cabinets so am interested in learning about what you have in that middle unit as it appears to be parts organizers. Thank you!My smaller Gladiator tall lockers are packed full so your bigger cabinets will be more useful to store and organize
They look like the stacked harbor freight parts boxes. They used to be $7-8 each on sale, but I have no idea what they cost now. There are multiple threads on them, here is a thread that has them plus other storage ideas:
Bolt bins ..show me your creative cost effective solution
Local farm stores only have small ones with 6 spots , I'd like something larger ..
www.garagejournal.com
Started with the HF organizers but started the switch to larger Dewalt organizers. Milwaukee sometimes has specials too at HD. Dewalt were holiday specials at $10 and the HF were $6 with coupon. Prices were two years ago.
craiger75
Active member
Thanks for the replies on organizers!
Fueler
Well-known member
I did the wall hanging display in my early years. Looks fine for a month and goes downhill from that in a working shop. I am with the drawers and doors guy as years went on.
Recently my Dewalt collection was getting out of hand. Something must be done.
I bought this cabinet from Menards and can say that it is heavy duty. With the exception of long things like a weed whacker I have my Dewalt tools under wraps until needed.
Recently my Dewalt collection was getting out of hand. Something must be done.
I bought this cabinet from Menards and can say that it is heavy duty. With the exception of long things like a weed whacker I have my Dewalt tools under wraps until needed.
Ass Fault
Member
My new house had a bunch of Gladiator track installed in from the previous owner. It seemed logical to go with this flavor of wall cabinet.
I inadvertently ended up with both the cheap and the premium versions though. I originally ordered the cheap 'ready to assemble' versions from Overstock, but soon noticed the ship date was 2-3 weeks out. I also saw Home Depot had the premium line with 2 day shipping, so I ordered those and cancelled the Overstock order. Sure enough, overstock claimed they were unable to cancel it and shipped it anyway a few days later. At that I point I just decided to take the Pepsi challenge.
The cheap ones ship packed very tightly. This is 6 of them.
No photo, but the premiums obviously ship full sized plus a few inches per side.
On paper, they're nearly identical, but side by side the difference is more noticeable than I expected.
28x28 vs 30x30
The magnet catch is single one on the shelf, vs full magnetic strips on the top/bottom edges.
Honestly I was fine with the single magnet. The larger door closed and released with slightly more authority, but it wasn't a big difference.
The biggest design difference is the floor. The small one has downward bent flanges, while the large is reversed. This gives the large cabinet and 2 more inches of height, but with a lip you have to go over. So interior volume is closer to 28x28 vs 30x32.
The smaller ones have a office style wire passthrough. I was surprised to see the cheap on have an additional feature that the premium did not.
Thickness differences surprised me. The cheaper ones felt reasonable stiff, and I questioned weather the premiums were actually thicker gauge or not. Clearly my hands are not calibrated for this.
Take these values with a grain of salt. I did not put much effort to square up the calipers and there are likely paint thickness variances.
I forgot to get a side by side photo, but the cheap ones have a single channel to hang from, while the premiums have 2 channels, top and bottom. The lower channel on the premiums is in a slotted vertical hole so you can adjust to account for track installation error.
Load ratings are 150 lbs vs 200 lbs.
The load sharing on the two premium channels is only going to be as good as your installation method, but I suspect if you install them carefully you could load this thing easily to 300+.
The cheap ones are easy to hang. The premiums require a bit of finesse but nothing major.
The track location is indexed to alight the tops of both versions if you mix them. If you want the lower to align, you'll have to jog the wall tracks.
I inadvertently ended up with both the cheap and the premium versions though. I originally ordered the cheap 'ready to assemble' versions from Overstock, but soon noticed the ship date was 2-3 weeks out. I also saw Home Depot had the premium line with 2 day shipping, so I ordered those and cancelled the Overstock order. Sure enough, overstock claimed they were unable to cancel it and shipped it anyway a few days later. At that I point I just decided to take the Pepsi challenge.
The cheap ones ship packed very tightly. This is 6 of them.
No photo, but the premiums obviously ship full sized plus a few inches per side.
On paper, they're nearly identical, but side by side the difference is more noticeable than I expected.
28x28 vs 30x30
The magnet catch is single one on the shelf, vs full magnetic strips on the top/bottom edges.
Honestly I was fine with the single magnet. The larger door closed and released with slightly more authority, but it wasn't a big difference.
The biggest design difference is the floor. The small one has downward bent flanges, while the large is reversed. This gives the large cabinet and 2 more inches of height, but with a lip you have to go over. So interior volume is closer to 28x28 vs 30x32.
The smaller ones have a office style wire passthrough. I was surprised to see the cheap on have an additional feature that the premium did not.
Thickness differences surprised me. The cheaper ones felt reasonable stiff, and I questioned weather the premiums were actually thicker gauge or not. Clearly my hands are not calibrated for this.
Take these values with a grain of salt. I did not put much effort to square up the calipers and there are likely paint thickness variances.
I forgot to get a side by side photo, but the cheap ones have a single channel to hang from, while the premiums have 2 channels, top and bottom. The lower channel on the premiums is in a slotted vertical hole so you can adjust to account for track installation error.
Load ratings are 150 lbs vs 200 lbs.
The load sharing on the two premium channels is only going to be as good as your installation method, but I suspect if you install them carefully you could load this thing easily to 300+.
The cheap ones are easy to hang. The premiums require a bit of finesse but nothing major.
The track location is indexed to alight the tops of both versions if you mix them. If you want the lower to align, you'll have to jog the wall tracks.
Ass Fault
Member
It looks like most here were getting smoking deals on these, but I had no luck there beyond a few coupons. So these days you're looking at $200 vs $330 ea. The premiums are clearly better, but had I not seem them side by side, I'd be perfectly happy with the ready to assemble version. You can buy 8 cheap ones for less than 5 premiums, so it's pretty hard to justify the price difference if you need to cover a large area.
So what am I going with?
8 premiums.
craiger75
Active member
Nice summary and comparison!
wandrur
ALLIANCE MEMBER
I know this is long overdue, but I finally put mine together.
This thing is huge. Also, on that topic, I put it together in my spare bedroom, and getting it out is gonna be an adventure.
This thing is huge. Also, on that topic, I put it together in my spare bedroom, and getting it out is gonna be an adventure.