Ok, so just to infuse some facts, I made a small xls spreadsheet to compare these two boxes.
Drawer Area- When considering two toolboxes, I compare the square inch footprint of all the drawers to get a sense for how much space I have for my tools. Boxes with many thin drawers will have a greater drawer area than, say, a Lista box designed to hold bulky items in 4 or 7 drawers. So you have to be careful about what this figure means in real terms. I find that HF sells boxes that look big and impressive in the store, but are really quite shallow in comparison to others. And this is the case here. This 6 foot long HF box has less usable storage space than the 4-1/2 foot long Snap On.
KRL 7022 drawer Area = 8341 sq in
HF 72 drawer area = 7466 sq in
For those of us with lots of tools, especially home shop mechanics who will invariably fill up our boxes with garage stuff, the real cost of tool storage is the cost per sq ft of storage space.
Cost per sq ft of storage (using $2000 as the cost of the KRL box):
KRL 7022 $34.50/sqft
HF 72 $23.14/sqft
Unsurprisingly, the Snap On KRL is roughly 33% more expensive.
To get a sense for the construction, I compare weight/box volume, to get a sort of box density if you will. I deducted for casters and used cubic feet:
KRL 17.4lbs/ft3
HF 72 15.6 lbs/ft3
The KRLs higher density indicates heavier steel or additional reinforcements.
Conclusion:
People with experience with both boxes will tell you there is no comparison between them. The KRL is a top of the line product from a world class company. It has features pro mechanics look for including high quality casters, and high capacity drawer slides (the big top drawer is rated for 450lbs versus 220lbs in the HF model). Construction of the KRL is excellent; Even though the boxes are roughly similar in weight, the Snap On model is more compact indicating additional reinforcing steel. The high second hand prices for these boxes indicates their long service life.
The HF 72" box, in keeping with HF's other smaller models, is a bottom of the line box offering an impressive looking front face, but not a lot of real storage capability. Low quality casters, drawer slides, and construction, limit the storage capability. Drawer layouts look impressive, but may not be all that helpful in the real world. Of the 18 total drawers, 12 are only 1 foot wide. Construction quality can be hit or miss. Every savvy HF customer will recommend a thorough in-store inspection if possible. That said, HF typically has good customer service in regard to initial purchase quality problems. Whether parts will be available in 10 years time is another question.
Despite the enormous difference between these boxes, the on-paper differences seem almost insignificant. All of the big drawers on both boxes are rated for at least 200lbs. For most people, this is probably sufficient. The amount of storage offered is also roughly comparable. Both boxes weigh in excessive of 500lbs, so we can't say one is flimsy. So apologies to the OP. I can see why he and others would think comparing these two boxes is fair.
My recommendation is to carefully consider the drawer layouts; would the many smaller drawers of the HF model help or hinder? The length of the HF could be detrimental in a crowded home garage. At 6' long, the HF takes up an extra foot and a half of wall space, offering no additional storage space. Are you happy to spend more than $1000 and take home a product that is decidedly at the bottom of the market in features and quality? What about resale value? If both boxes depreciate $500 over 10 years, was there ever really a difference in their price? We don't typically buy things (except cars) based on what they will be worth when we sell them, but maybe this should be factored in.
While I was hoping to help show the huge difference between these boxes, I feel I did the opposite. I'm leaving you to decide between new HF and used Snap On based on your unique situation.
we go...
