Harbor Freight boxes?

[T56 Impala]

Okay, will anyone admit to owning one of HF's tood boxes? Are they any good at all?

I am thinking of picking this up for some of my WW tools. http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95404 I need the space in my main box for other things. This should just about hold what I need it to hold. The price is decent too. Yes, I like the Yellow colour too!

Is there somewhere else I should look? Am I way off base here? I have only passed by their boxes when I went into the store. I never touched them but must say the didn't look very good from a distance. (I bought an air hose in an emergency if you must know.) So, what ya think?

 

[neblinc]

Go here
http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=4471&showall=1

 

[T56 Impala]

Good read for a noob like me! Thanks!!!!!

I guess I'll take a look at the black version since the yellow is an internet only special.

 

[T56 Impala]

FWIW, I have an ISKO Pro Stainless steel 41" top and bottom. I picked it up from Costco a few years back. Its much, much higher quality than the ones they are selling now. I paid under $800 for the combo.

I have tried to look them up on the net, but can find no reference to them as a maker at all. Not a single hit. I'm sure they were an overseas company but I have no idea what became of them. Anyone else have the same box or know anything about them?

 

[Brandon_Lutz]

FWIW, I have an ISKO Pro Stainless steel 41" top and bottom. I picked it up from Costco a few years back. Its much, much higher quality than the ones they are selling now. I paid under $800 for the combo.

I have tried to look them up on the net, but can find no reference to them as a maker at all. Not a single hit. I'm sure they were an overseas company but I have no idea what became of them. Anyone else have the same box or know anything about them?

More than likely CSPS if you got it at Costco. My father has a 41 inch roller cab stainless that he bought at a lowes about 2 years ago, and it says Steel Glide on it. Made by the same company as the Costco Boxes.

 

[T56 Impala]

I'll look into that CSPS line. I have neve seen another box like this one though. I'll have to figure out how to post up some pictures and see what you folks think.

 

[Danglerb]

The nice thing about a box, if shop a bit, and buy either a used box or a scratch and dent, then later change your mind and want a different box the old one is easy to sell for about what you paid. Or buy a truck box and figure on getting half back.

 

[rockwithjason]

i have that box without the side chest. it is pretty heavy and the drawers work well. i got it on super special and i would get another.

 

[TxDoc]

I have that set and the 56" boxes, too. I am not a professional mechanic. But, these boxes are used daily. The drawers roll in and out fine, the powder coating has held up fine. I needed something to arrange and store tools in...and I could not be more happy, so far.

I have had them for approximately two years. They are a very good value for the price. I would buy them again. With the money you save, you can buy many other tools.

Good luck on your search.

 

[chavist93]

Well.... I could tell you that I looked at them once and thought they looked like cheap junk, but then I'd have to admit to going to Harbor Freight.

 

[Fedwrench]

A couple of guys at my last job had Harbor Freight boxes and they were happy with them. I think they would be ok as long as you didn't overload them and then dragged them around a shop from job to job. Filled up sitting against a wall would be ok. Yellow gets dingey fast and shows every greasy fingerprint and smudge. The less money spent on a box (that is a home for your tools but, doesn't make money) means more money for tools (that you can use to make more money)

 

[markl]

I have that set with the side cabinet except in red. The only thing I dont care for is the wrinkle finish. I think the quality is fine. The HF boxes are made with slighly thicker metal than my Craftsman box. The deep drawers have double roller slides. I agree why spend more money for a name when you can buy more tools to fill it with the money you save. I bought mine on sale witha 20%off coupon for the bottom and 15% for the top and side. A great deal. If you have a HF near by I would say definatly look at the box yourself and compare with others.

 

[T56 Impala]

I was thinking of dropping in HF tomorrow. There are two around here. The yellow is an internet only colour. I agree that it would get dirty fast. I think I may go with the black instead. If I just have to have the yellow, I could always powder coat it!

Thanks for the info guys. This is exactly the reason I joined.

 

[wrenchr]

Save some dough on the box and buy more tools!!!!

 

[chavist93]

Save some dough on the box and buy more tools!!!!

To some people like myself, the box itself IS a tool.

 

[T56 Impala]

Well, I stopped in today. The Yellow and Black are special order items. So, I picked up a red side cabinet. It will look good with a Porsche or Ferrari sicker on it. Upon unpacking it I noticed it was slightly bent on one side. No big deal as it is only the lip area on the top. Easy fix with the right tools and a gentle touch.

I sat it next to my stainless box. (Not near the quaility but for a home garage it will work out super.) I noticed that it had a nice work surface. One small problem that I hope you folks can help me out with. My stainless box has no provisions for a side cabinet. Its not even something that crossed my mind actually.

What I'm thinking, and I hope you can follow along, is this:

Removing the handle from the RH side of my lower box.
Flattening out the lip used to hang the new side on a larger box.
Putting the now flat lip between the top and bottom stainless boxes.
Marking for holes to match the current holes in the side box and drilling the stainless for bolts. (Bottom)
Marking the New side box for holes where the handle was mounted on the stainless box and drilling the new side box for bolts.
Mounting it together.
Mark and drill holes on the opposite side of the new side box for the handle from the stainless box.

I sure hope you follow that!!! Do you folks think it will work? Look bad? Maybe I should mount casters on it and use it as a seperate small box? I didn't even think about mounting it before I got it home. Any suggestions would be helpful. Maybe you have gone through this before?

 

[Chris Adams]

I think you would be much better off to make it a small portable cabinet than fasten it to the big box.
I made a rolling side cabinet with two Dorman steel 4 drawer units, should be about the same size as the HF side box.

I put it on small castors and it works quite well as a small rollaway.

It is 14 inches deep, by 17 inches wide by 34 inches high.
That is 34 inches plus the castors.
At first I put very heavy castors under it, just because I had a new set laying around. Later I swapped them for much lighter castors I took off something else.
No problems with either set of castors, I just wanted the big ones for another project.
I found that 4 swivel castors work much better than two fixed with two swivels, like you normally find on a rollaway.

The present castors are the cheapest ones from HF, got them with a coupon for 1.99 each. By making it 4 corner swivel there is never any angular load when I move it, thus making it safer and more stable.
It rolls quite well, very little chance of tipping it over.


I put a wooden top on it, and I use it for a work surface sometimes.

I put a wooden base on it, just a 14x17 inch piece of hard plywood.

That allowed me to put bolts and fasteners where I wanted in the bottom of the cabinet, rather than have to just fasten it where the four castors went. This worked much better, I think.

If you put 4 castors on your side box, you can still bolt it with a few small bolts to the big box, but with the wheels under it the load won’t be on the side of the big box.

By putting a board under the side box you can vary the thickness to make the castors match up to the big box, keeping it all even.

My little ‘rollaway’ fits in lots of places if room is a consideration.

 

[Fedwrench]

If you're a welder or have a friend that welds, I would fabricate a frame with casters either to fit your whole set up or just the side box as a stand alone mobile drawer unit. this way you won't hit any of the slides when drilling your holes or have to worry about the weight of the side box damaging your other box.

 

[T56 Impala]

The more I think about it, the more I think I will either put it on casters or, if it fits, mount it under the table top of my Stainless steel table/work bench. I just need to go measure.

 

[alohavw]

Has anyone seen the top and side go on coupon sale like the bottom has?

 

[SM Racing]

I am a professional fabricator, I use this box on a daily basis. It is loaded down with tools. It holds up fine. Feels better than the Crapsman boxes beside it. Had it for two years with no problems. I don't move it though, I work out of a shop cart. One of the other guys in my shop has one and moves it all over for each job. Seems to be holding up fine. He doesn't have as much weight in it, though.

I looked for about six months for a box and covered all of the major brands and even some minor brands. Crapsman and Waterloo are the same. So is Husky and Kobalt. The crapsmans were way over priced for limited advantage. The Big three were just way over my budget. Maybe one day, after I buy a mill and lathe, I might spend some extra money on the nice box.

 

[sputnikv8]

Well, I picked one up today. I did the craiglist watch and didn't find anything in my price range. I went to look at a MAC box that was in horrible shape and super flimsy. Looked at several craftsman boxes and the drawers/sides stopped feeling super flimsy at about the $800 price point.

The HF box slides very well and feels very solid to me. Packaged well and I was also VERY happy to see that the instruction sheet inside the box had MUCH higher drawer load #'s than the one linked via the HF site. I think on the site they had a 475lbs limit? My sheet is more like 3x that. Double slides on the deep drawers.

So far....impressed.

 

[markl]

I have never regretted buying my HF boxes. The quality vs price cant be beat! Im going to get another side cabinet for the other side of mine.

 

[number9]

I stopped in my HF yesterday to take a look at these boxes and get my hands on them. They seem built better than the Craftsman chest I have now that I paid around the same price for, and the HF unit is much bigger.

BTW, the flyer I picked up in the store had the top/bottom/side on sale. Bottom was like $370 or so, IIRC and I forget the other prices, mainly cause I was thinking of getting the bottom first. Sale was good thru 1-14-08.

With this 15% off coupon, the bottom can be had for around $315 or so.

http://www.harborfreightusa.com/html/reconfirmation/coupon.html


...

 

[sputnikv8]

Thats correct. Forgot to mention that the bottom rang up at $379 and I used the 15% off coupon. Pretty good deal. Its china made, but, its much more rugged than anything I could find US made at the price point.

 

[goodfellow]

Just bought one myself -- checked all the usual places and could't find anthing that came close to the quality and price of this box.

It's in my small shop and doesn't get moved a lot -- here's some pics after I finished loading it up

Mostly SNAP-on, MATCO and some MAC

 

[alohavw]

Had mine for almost a month now (bottom) and am very happy with it. Bought mine for $299.99 on the coupon sale and hope to get the top and maybe the side soon. For the price, the quality of the box can't be beat!

 

[number9]

I stopped in my HF yesterday to take a look at these boxes and get my hands on them. They seem built better than the Craftsman chest I have now that I paid around the same price for, and the HF unit is much bigger.

BTW, the flyer I picked up in the store had the top/bottom/side on sale. Bottom was like $370 or so, IIRC and I forget the other prices, mainly cause I was thinking of getting the bottom first. Sale was good thru 1-14-08.

With this 15% off coupon, the bottom can be had for around $315 or so.

http://www.harborfreightusa.com/html/reconfirmation/coupon.html


...

As a follow-up to my post above, per the Sale Flyer.......

Sale Ends Jan 14, 2008

Top = $296
Bottom = $379
Side = 197

...

I think I will pick one of these up next week......and hopefully find someone to buy my Craftsman top box I have now.

...

 

[rsanter]

I bought the bottom box for my department at work. we keep alot of stuff in it and several people get into it daily. has held up well and works fine.
I do not think it is as good as the snap om, mac, and craftsman pro boxes I have at home but its better than some others out there. if you look at the details and under the bottom it looks like it was build by amatuers.
I got the bottom box for $299 when they were on sale for $399 and this one had a minor dent and scratch. best $299 box you will find new.

bob

 

[number9]

Dang, I wish I could find that bottom box for $299.

So, you guys who have bought these, they are pretty heavy, how you get them home? I was thinking of tagging my 5x10 open trailer down there to haul it home so I can unload it by myself when I get here (wife has trouble packing the groceries in , so I know she couldn't help with that box).

..

 

[fourfeathers]

Dang, I wish I could find that bottom box for $299.

So, you guys who have bought these, they are pretty heavy, how you get them home? I was thinking of tagging my 5x10 open trailer down there to haul it home so I can unload it by myself when I get here (wife has trouble packing the groceries in , so I know she couldn't help with that box).

..

I like to use one of those 4 wheeled mover's dollies to move obscenely heavy stuff by myself. similar to http://www2.northerntool.com/product/18569.htm

 

[goodfellow]

All three boxes (Top. Bottom and Side) fit into the back of my pick-up. They're packed in a wooden exterior frame so once I got them home, I was able to tip and lower the boxes off the tailgate myself.

It took an afternoon to get everything out of the boxes, lube it and assemble the whole deal.

 

[wilbilt]

Block and tackle around the limb of the old shade tree. Back pickup under, lift box, drive away, lower box.
I moved my Snappy boxes a few times that way.

 

[alohavw]

All three boxes (Top. Bottom and Side) fit into the back of my pick-up. They're packed in a wooden exterior frame so once I got them home, I was able to tip and lower the boxes off the tailgate myself.

It took an afternoon to get everything out of the boxes, lube it and assemble the whole deal.

I bought the bottom box about a month ago and this is the way I got it home and off my truck.

 

[number9]

Thanks for the tips guys.....I'll keep that in mind when I pick one up later this week.


..

 

[SteveU]

All three boxes (Top. Bottom and Side) fit into the back of my pick-up. They're packed in a wooden exterior frame so once I got them home, I was able to tip and lower the boxes off the tailgate myself.

It took an afternoon to get everything out of the boxes, lube it and assemble the whole deal.

What size box did you get?

 

[grillmasterp]

Dang, I wish I could find that bottom box for $299.

So, you guys who have bought these, they are pretty heavy, how you get them home? I was thinking of tagging my 5x10 open trailer down there to haul it home so I can unload it by myself when I get here (wife has trouble packing the groceries in , so I know she couldn't help with that box).

..

If you have a trailer - go ahead & use it - Dismantle the crate on the trailer
then roll the cabinet off of the trailer via ramps.

They fork lifted the crated cabinet into the back of my Tacoma-
- called up a friend to help me unload it from the truck.
Not something I would ask the wife to help me with either

 

[number9]

If you have a trailer - go ahead & use it - Dismantle the crate on the trailer
then roll the cabinet off of the trailer via ramps.

They fork lifted the crated cabinet into the back of my Tacoma-
- called up a friend to help me unload it from the truck.
Not something I would ask the wife to help me with either

Yeah, I think I will use the trailer. I don't trust people around my vehicles with fork trucks, or any "helpers" from stores that come out to load stuff - I tell them, I'll load it myself, thanks. A scratch or a dent is permanent....it can be fixed, but it won't be "right"......yea, I have been accused of being **** about my stuff


..

 

[number9]

So, where/when/how did you guys find these bottom boxes for $299...... . I was going to pick a bottom unit up this week (maybe today) and now this has me thinking if I should wait it out to hopefully find one at $299 - that's dang near $100 off the current sale price of $379 - but with the 15% coupon, I'd get it at $350 with tax and all.

Was the $299 deal a coupon, or on-sale combined with a coupon or what? And where was the store you got it at, maybe it's a regional thing.


...

 

[grillmasterp]

So, where/when/how did you guys find these bottom boxes for $299...... . I was going to pick a bottom unit up this week (maybe today) and now this has me thinking if I should wait it out to hopefully find one at $299 - that's dang near $100 off the current sale price of $379 - but with the 15% coupon, I'd get it at $350 with tax and all.

Was the $299 deal a coupon, or on-sale combined with a coupon or what? And where was the store you got it at, maybe it's a regional thing.


...

Paid $260 out the door for the box. I used a 15% (discount taken from $399) coupon from the back of the HF ads in conjunction with a rain check I got from the previous $299 coupon.

They had a printable coupon for the 90320 for $299 -
It was on sale with coupon the day after thanks giving, the week through 12/05 and also from 12/12-12/19.

Not sure when the next $299 price is-