Thanks for your interest guys and sorry for the delay. LOL! Here's my review of 166C after two days of ownership. I realise that it might be too soon to give a verdict on the cart before actually putting it through its paces but I figured what the heck - I'd share my first thoughts anyway!
I was in two minds about the 166C until the very last moment and even then I wasn't sure if I made the right choice. That's until I received the trolley yesterday. At first… I was shocked! The trolley was a lot bigger than I anticipated. In all honesty, I'm still getting used to its size. I think the biggest factor for me is the height of the box – even in its collapsed form it is pretty tall.
On to the box:
The top is plywood - bolted to the cover. Apart from being a regular catchall, it can be used as a mini desk for taking notes, drawing diagrams, etc. Standard size laptop sits comfortably on it too - great for checking the EPC or researching something while working on a car or in the garage.
Unlike 166N, the two intermediary shelves in 'C' are made of hard plastic. Personally I'd like an all-metal construction but that would make 28kg trolley even heavier, so I accept the solution. The plastic shelves are lightweight, forgiving to tools and virtually indestructible. They are soundproof too. My 160ST, full with tools, could wake up the neighbourhood when rolled from the garage and back. Not the 'C' though. It just glides as if it has suspension – it doesn't of course but the feel is similar. As Ricleh said above – 166N is a very smooth rolling cart.
Pillars on 'C' are more sophisticated than on 160ST. To collapse the cart one has to undo two black knobs – which in fact are two long threaded screws – half way and fold down both pillars by turning them in. I wish it was illustrated or mentioned somewhere because it took me a while to figure out how to drop them down!
The shelves go up and down in particular order as well. To lift - one has to grab top two shelves together and pull them up until the lower one clicks in recess in the pillars. Then the top goes up until it clicks in too. Lowering is done in reverse order. Even with fully loaded shelves, the operation is silky smooth. I suppose with sliding the shelves up and down the pillars on regular basis, the plastic sleeves will eventually wear out. AFAIK Hazet offers replacement parts for their boxes – let's hope they are available in a few years time.
The capacity of 'C' is where it truly shines. According to Hazet, 166C offers 50% more space than 166N - the cart it was designed to replace. They still make all 3 of them which is great, because I can't see how they can possibly compete with each other. 160ST being the smallest of all, weighs far less than the other two, meaning it can be carried, loaded on the car or just rolled around by one man with no hassle at all. Size wise, 160ST is more like a 7-tray cantilever box with wheels. Its full metal construction makes it sturdy enough when opened and it's very capable too as shown in my earlier posts. There's no comparison between 160ST and 166C thought - NONE. I was able to fit the entire content of 160ST in the two top shelves of 166C. Thanks to the deeper shelves, everything in 'C' is more accessible too. The bottom tray of 'C' is in the league of its own. It's deep enough for oilers, cans and just bulky and heavy items – perhaps some cordless power tools like a combi drill or even an impact wrench. The divider may look out of place but its other purpose is to strengthen the floor for the front swiveling castors.
After loading the cart with tools, it was time to test my weight lifting skills. As I thought, the pillars move about when folded, however they are still the best place to grab when lifting the cumbersome cart. With double its original weight, getting it in one’s car boot or truck bed is a two-men job at best. The plan is to roll the cart between my house and the garage. The house has a step so I might as well get some wooden plank or two to help roll it in and save my back.
Am I happy with it? You bet. The marginal price difference between equally expensive 'C' and 'N' carts could mean that one is a bargain (or another one is overpriced) but like I said before - I don't think they quite compete with each other. 'C' offers better bang for your buck yet 'N' is a balanced all-rounder with classic status. N's metal construction is another advantage and it has been in the market for much longer. How 'C' is going to fare in the long run remains to be seen. For the money one can’t go wrong with either. Me? I k'N'ow what I'm getting next when I need more storage ;-)
Some pics. Sorry Bart, I didn't take the comparison photos – the small cart was in the garage at the time of the photoshoot. Will try to take some in a few days.
