Mining Millwright Tool Box

[BarrelRoll]

Edit 8/22/23 Finally got the last piece of my tool box in post #48

Here’s my work tool box. I’m a millwright at a mine in Alaska, we take care of the crusher, mill, paste plant, half a dozen rotary screw compressors, a small concrete plant, and do most of the mechanical work on our water treatment plants. The mine is smaller than a lot of commercial hard rock mines with roughly 300 employees with about 150 on site at any given time running 24-7-365 accessible by boat or helicopter. I’ve been here a couple months and before that was on the dewatering crew at a mine that didn’t even allow personal tools on property. When I got the job offer I was sent an over the top tool list and given some not great advice from a supervisor in charge of mobile maintenance who didn’t know much about what my crew did. I didn’t want to completely empty my home garage/ didn’t have a lot of the bigger stuff. To top it off I had 2 weeks in the middle of the covid mess from when I got the offer to when my tools had to ship. I had to scramble to try and get everything quickly while still working and trying to move to Alaska.

It can be a very dirty environment working outside in the mud and rain, dealing with a lot of slurry in the mill, and dust in the crusher. I took the pictures on a go home day when we typically clean our tools though there’s plenty of dust in everything.

My bottom box is a Knaack model 59 with the wheels pulled off and replaced with skids. The top is a Harbor Freight top box bolted on not flush with the edges to make it a little more challenging for forklift drivers to mangle. The bottom box was used off of craigslist and had a 5 gallon rebuild from the previous owner. The supervisor I talked to told me to sell the 54” Matco box I was going to ship up and buy a Knaack since the other boxes don’t survive shipping well. I got up here and everyone had 40-50” roller boxes without a single Knaack in the millwright’s shop, there’s a couple Knaacks underground but a ton of Husky, Kobalt, and lower end Matco and Snapon Boxes. I have a love hate relationship with the Knaack. I like the durability of the Knaack and if I was contracting moving every couple months it would be a lot more beneficial. The drawers are small and clunky and the lock is a pain in the ****. We’ll see if it stays or if I end up replacing it with a typical roller cabinet bottom box.

I wear a pair of bibs and here’s what’s always on me in my “tool box” pocket.
-6” and 8” Proto adjustable wrenches
-6” Channellocks
-Snapon flat head tweaker
-Irwin box cutter

I’m hoping to pick up an 8” indexable pry bar to give the tweaker a break while I’m on this round of days off.

Here’s my tool bag that gets dragged everywhere even if we don’t think we need tools for a job/ don’t need anything that’s in it. It’s the bigger Klein and I really like it after having the smaller version at the last mine for 3 years with no issues. My only complaint is I wish it was bigger. The shoulder strap is a life saver and I’ll never have a bag without one again. It’s always a battle on what to drag everywhere vs. how much you want to carry and this assortment has worked pretty good for me preventing too many trips back to the shop for tools when random things pop up.

-Willimas ¼”-¾” wrenches
-9.5” Channellock grip locks
-Needle Nose and Straight Visegrips
-Channellock flush cuts, Proto side cutters
-10” wrap wrench and 12” pipe wrench
-10” and 15” adjustable wrenches
-Standard and Metric Allen keys
-#2 phillips and a couple flat heads, mostly hard handled, Proto gasket scraper
-8” file
-Lineup punch, center punch, 12” x ⅝” chisel (I don’t think I’ll every carry a 6” chisel every day again), 2 14” pry bars
-2 pound 12” hammer that might get replaced with a 4 pound 12” Wilton, I really wish they made a 3 pounder
-25’ Fat Max tape
-Wire brush
-An assortment of pipe parts that just happen to work as a blow gun
-Magnet on a stick
-A couple lockout “trees” and usually several locks are on the shoulder strap.
-Teflon tape, electrical tape, and zip ties

I’ll get to what’s inside the box in the next couple days. I’m home for 3 weeks before heading back out to site and have a lot to get done and should probably have a little fun.

 

[Bigdogboogie]

Cool thread! Thanks for taking the time to post the pics and tool list.

 

[BarrelRoll]

The left side of the bottom box is storage with a shelf

The shelf has
-Miller digital elite welding helmet mounted on a cheap hard hat
-4 ½” Milwaukee grinder used once, the company has a bunch of matabos so why wear out my junk
-¾” IR impact I haven’t even put a fitting on since the company has a couple guns staged where we need them
-Welding rod container with 6010 and 7018

Bottom of the box
-My tool Bag usually lives here
-Grey Pneumatic ¾” drive shallow set ¾”-2 ½” 6 point
-Grey Pneumatic ½ deep 5/16”- 1 ½” 6 point set with extensions and wobble
-Irwin super tiny to ½”/ 12mm tap and die set
-Proto snap ring pliers set

The Grey sets are nice, The ½” drive set going up to 1 ½” is really nice and gets dragged all over the place. I like how there’s a wobble and some extensions in the case so I don’t forget them. I’d like to try a ½” shallow duo set since there are times I need a shallow socket and I like how there’s a ratchet in the case. We have a bunch of 8” victaulic clamps which use 1 7/16” hex nuts and I use the 1 ½” occasionally. I don’t use the ¾” set a ton and the shop has ¾” sockets but it’s easier to grab my own than find where someone hid one. It’s super heavy and actually says 2 person lift on it so you aren’t dragging it up 3 flights of stairs. I haven’t run into the need for a deep or metric ¾” socket yet so no plans to buy another ¾” set.

No complaints with the digital elite helmet, I also use it for cutting and occasionally grinding/ if I need to do something quick. Rain and mud haven’t bothered it yet. If I need to grind a ton I have a face shield I use.

In case you can’t tell by now there were some things on the tool list I really didn’t need to bring up/ buy right away like the ¾ sockets and impact and 4 ½” grinder and the theme will continue throughout my tour. I have them now and I’m glad I have them but when a guy making $10 an hour more than you wasn’t told they need them it’s a bit frustrating.

Here's a view out the back of the shop on the rare nice Southeast Alaska day.

 

[Junkdrawer Dog]

Looks like you use pretty much the same as the millwrights in the steel mill I retired from.

 

[BarrelRoll]

The right side of the Knaack is drawers. They are pretty close to ⅛” thick and the slides are nowhere near as smooth as a tool truck box. I had no worries putting everything from the top box into the bottom box to ship it up here on 5 different trucks and 2 boats. If I was in and out of the drawers constantly like an auto mechanic the box would already be replaced. Usually we get assigned a job, load up another tool bag with what we need and head out to the job. We aren’t at our tool boxes much.

Top drawer is screwdrivers

-Snapon mini pick set, 1 of which is currently in my tool bag
-Proto/ Stanley hard handled screwdrivers
-Milwaukee insulated screw driver set left over from my industrial maintenance days
-Kobalt Precision screwdriver set
-Seal puller
-Random pick and scraper

I really don’t use much of this stuff very often and might add some duplicate screw drivers to what’s in my tool bag so I’ve got them in the shop while my tool bag isn’t and another scraper or 2. I like the hard handled tools better because they get covered in grease, oil, and mud and are easier to clean. The insulated and precision screw drivers went in the box because I had them from my industrial maintenance days prior to mining, if we need anything electrical we call a sparky.

Pliers drawer

-Channellock filter pliers big and small
-Large Proto “channellocks”
-2 pairs of tin snips
-Snapon Retaining ring pliers
-Mini needle nose pliers
-A couple more pairs of vise grips
-Cable cutters and wiring pliers
-Knipex straight and gearwrench bent needle nose pliers
-Smooth jaw Channellocks I bought by mistake a couple years ago and have never used
-Visegrip welding clamps

You can never have enough clamps and I’d like to buy some more vise grip clamps and add some other styles. The 90 Degree bent needle nose come in handy for pulling cotter pins. Again with this drawer I don’t use much in here all that often but it’s nice to have it all when I need it and besides the smooth jaw channellocks everything gets used on occasion.

Big wrench drawer #1

-Willimas wrenches 1 ⅜” to 2”
-18” Rigid adjustable
-A couple small spare proto adjustable in case I loose one out of my bibs tool box

I’m happy I own wrenches up to 2” but I’ve never used a combo wrench out of this drawer. Occasionally I use the 18” adjustable for things like compressor fill plugs. There’s a ton of money sitting stagnant in this drawer and the shop has wrenches 1 5/16” +. Making the jump from 1 ¼” to 2” wrenches hurts unless you buy Chinese stuff. Once in a blue moon it will come in handy and if the mill was bigger we’d have more big stuff.

Big wrench drawer #2

-Harbor freight angle wrenches 1 5/16” to 2”
-12” and 24” Williams chain wrenches
-Williams strap wrench
-14” and 16” pipe wrenches

I’ve used the strap wrench for a couple filters. Everyone on the crew wonders why the tool list requires angle wrenches up to 2” as they’ve never used one bigger than 1 ¼” and I’m glad I didn’t spend the money on made in USA angle wrenches. There are jobs we do when the chain wrenches will come in handy. If the 12" pipe wrench in my tool bag is too small I usually grab my 24" aluminum pipe wrench and forget about the 2 in this drawer.

Socket drawer
-Kobalt 6 point ¼” drive set with additional sockets up to 9/16”/ 14mm, ratchet, and extension in a blow molded case
-Grey Pneumatic torx set up to T60
-Metric deep ½” drive impact 6 points mainly husky
-Metric shallow chrome ½” drive 12 points, mainly older stanley
-Metric deep chrome ⅜” drive 6 points, snapon
-Metric shallow chrome ⅜” 6 points, snapon
-Metric ¼”-½” drive impact Grey pneumatic allens up to 19mm
-Chrome Torx sockets, I think snapon but there’s a mixture of everything
-E-Torx sockets, a little bit of everything.
-Chrome Allen sockets, assorted brands standard and metric
-Standard ½”-½” drive impact Grey Pneumatic allens from tiny to ¾”
-Standard shallow chrome ⅜” drive 6 points ¼”-⅞”, snapon
-Standard shallow chrome ⅜” drive 12 points, cheapie parts store sockets
-Standard deep chrom ⅜” drive 6 points, snapon
-⅜” drive gearwernch standard pinless swivel sockets
-Standard shallow chrom ½” drive 12 points up to 1 ¼” with a 1 ½”, gear wrench
-½” drive gearwernch standard pinless swivel sockets up to 1”
-Standard ⅜” crows foot, snapon

The ½” swivel sockets are my go to most of the time and I want to go up to 1 5/16” with a 1 7/16” ¾” drive and a stubby Grey Pneumatic adapter. The ¼” Kobalt kit is super handy and I use it a ton for things like pulling guards and run the sockets on an impact driver most of the time. I don’t use the metric stuff all that often but it is nice to have. Most of the stuff we work on a ½” impact socket works for and adding a shallow Grey Pneumatic duo set should round out my socket collection. The impact torx/ Allen sockets work good and I could probably bring the chrome stuff home. Keeping with the shorter rails and breaking up the ½” drive sets onto 2 rails has worked good. The rails are Husky and I’d like better ones but that’s a lot of money to upgrade every rail. The Husky rails are $8 a piece so they work for now and replacing a clip or 2 every hitch isn’t a big deal. Some of the guys I work with only buy stuff in blow molded cases which makes sense since our stuff is always in and out of tool bags.

Hammer and small pry bar drawer

-4 pound wilton dead blow
-Smaller proto dead blow
-Ball peen hammers from 8-24 ounce
-4 Pound Kobalt 12” steel hammer
-Claw hammer
-Lead hammer
-Nail puller
-Lyle race installer
-12” Craftsman pry bar
-18” adjustable head pry bar
-Mayhew 3 piece lady foot pry bar set
-Mayhew rolling head pry bar

I could get away with the 24 ounce ball peen, 4 pound steel hammer, and 4 pound dead blow. I really haven’t used anything else out of this drawer. I will probably pick up a 4 pound wilton steel headed hammer for my tool bag and retire the Kobalt. The shop has an 8 pound dead blow and I wouldn’t mind buying one of my own along with a 4-6 pound Wilton brass hammer for assembling things. I have some bigger pry bars/ line up bars in another cabinet and have never felt the need to run back to grab a lady foot pry bar bar but a lot of that has to do with personal preference.

 

[dr_clyde]

Very cool. What model Knaack box is that? I wouldn’t mind one like that for my service truck.

 

[Earp69]

Simalar to what I carried at my old job. Now just being a sparky I carry an 11 n 1 and a crescent along with my Leatherman. What do you guys get around on there?

 

[BarrelRoll]

Very cool. What model Knaack box is that? I wouldn’t mind one like that for my service truck.

Model 59, I paid $1800 off of craigslist but was in a hurry and couldn't really shop around for a good deal. I believe the 112 is the taller version with drawers

Simalar to what I carried at my old job. Now just being a sparky I carry an 11 n 1 and a crescent along with my Leatherman. What do you guys get around on there?

We have crew cab diesel dodge trucks with flat beds, some of the underground guys have Kubota tractors, or imported Jeep J8 4 door jeeps with diesels, and there's some Kubota side by sides running around. It's taken a little getting used to driving a pickup underground. The last mine I was at had diesel Polaris rangers and they were much more forgiving to a little rubbing up against the rib compared to a pickup. Part of our welding truck is in the picture of the back of the shop.

 

[ForrestT]

Thanks for sharing your set up and about your job at the mine! I kept thinking Gold Rush reading your posts. Hope you keep posting about work and your tool set ups.


Sent from my iPhone using The Garage Journal mobile app

 

[Elbert C.]

I've got a knaack with a similar shelf design....do you find it aggravating that stuff can move all around on the shelfs and an if not somewhat large it can fall all the way down to the next shelf or down to the bottom shelf. In my case the box sits in my shop for storage...but if it were to be man-handled and sitting out on a truck/job site/ or moved around with a forklift it would have #$#@ everywhere.

the door don't seal against the shelf or otherwise get that close to the shelf...leaving a pretty good gap when the doors are shut, the space between the front lip of the shelf and the door when the doors are closed.

Later on Im going to come up with something to help control movement of stuff in the box (on the shelfs, I looked around on the MFG web site, never saw anything there so far.

 

[PhantomEB]

*following*

Very interested in seeing what other plant maintenance Millwrights have for set ups. I just got into one of Canada’s biggest fertilizer ones....if they keep me on long enough and give me a tool box, I gonna be organizing it way better than some of my coworkers!

 

[Earp69]

For you guys interested there's a decently long thread already going called the industrial maintenance man I beleive.

 

[Chuck122]

I've never worked in a mine but I have been contracting as a millwrights for a couple of years now. The setup I found works for me is greenlee job boxes. I have 2 30x48 and one 24x48. One of the larger boxes holds hand tools. I group like items (ie metalworking tools, electrical stuff, wrenches) in either fabric bags (the ones you get when you purchase cordless tools), surplus ammo cans or in small zippered Klein pouches. The larger tools (pipe wrenches, crescents, etc) are just left at the bottom of the box. The second large box hold all of the lifting and rigging material (come alongs, chain falls, slings, shackles eye bolts etc). Most of the chains and come-alongs are hung from the shelf while slings are held in a wheeled pelican case. Eye bolts and small shackles go in an ammo can, chain falls in 5 gallon pails. Again the larger stuff (ie shackles 7/8" and above, skates, lifting lugs etc just sit at the bottom of the box. The third smaller box holds all the welding stuff (leads, extensions oxyfuel set, welding rods etc).
I find the greenlee boxes are not as efficient as something with shelves or drawers but they stand up to frequent travels very well. If you have smaller containers to divide the stuff in the large chest, you can make it pretty efficient. You loose a lot of efficiency if yo have many guys working out of the same job box and don't respect whatever system you have.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

My gawd, you pack a lot. I worked for 35 years as a millwright in pulp and paper mills, sawmills, coal mines, food processing plants and the last place a wire mill. And I almost forgot, a chopstick factory. Construction, shutdowns and maintenance.

If you can find, on line maybe, the Japanese HIT 24" pry bar. I've had Proto and Mayhew versions, not nearly as handy. And OTC that was too long and heavy. Every time you use it , you will thank your lucky stars you found one and thank me.

Handy things in the carry bag. Jackknife style allen wrench set, try to find one that goes to 3/8".My Proto only went to 1/4" and that was a problem. 5/16" nut driver for hose clamps. I packed a 8" crescent wrench a lot.

I used a 32oz ballpeen, even for light ***** punching. A great tool is a 4# engineers sledge hammer, but with a ballpeen style handle.

From those wrenches I se you have to do some hydraulics that are in tight.

Bessey welding clamps work better than Vise Grips for welding.


Speaking of Vise Grips, I've had use for the chain and the big round.

If you mine is like most the company supplies 3/4" drive, but a 1/2" female to a 3/4" male adapter makes you life easier, a lot of the time.

 

[Downwindtracker 2]

Here is one of those pry bars. The correct name is ironworkers pinch bar https://bcfasteners.com/shop/jet-779232-jiwb-24-24-powerclaw-ironworkers-pinch-bar/

 

[74craig]

Great thread!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[turbowoodworker]

Subscribed!
More pics of those wonderful AK mountains. Where are you, behind Juneau, or?

 

[BarrelRoll]

I kept thinking Gold Rush reading your posts. Hope you keep posting about work and your tool set ups.

Gold rush cracks me up, we do more ounces in a week than they do in most seasons. Hard rock is a lot different than placer mining and it's almost impossible to permit/ finance a mom and pop hard rock operation

I've got a knaack with a similar shelf design....do you find it aggravating that stuff can move all around on the shelfs

My box will probably stay in the same spot till the day I move on so it's not an issue. If I was moving my box every couple months some dividers would come in handy. I like how my tool bag fits on the bottom, if the shelf came out all the way to the door it would be hard to fit it.

I've never worked in a mine but I have been contracting as a millwrights for a couple of years now. The setup I found works for me is greenlee job boxes. I have 2 30x48 and one 24x48. One of the larger boxes holds hand tools.

I'm full time at this place, the box doesn't move. If I was moving around all the time I could see the advantage of Knaack/ gang boxes and would be looking into a 112.

A normal roller cabinet works fine as long as it makes the trip since we aren't contracting/ moving all the time. The one box that was a mess when it got here the guy had the shipping company just pick up the box with wheels on still and didn't wrap it or build a crate. When it got here it was tipped over in a shipping container with broken drawers and sockets rolling around in the bottom of the container. I'm not 100% sure I'd trust a cheaper box to survive shipping full of tools but there's plenty that have in the various mine shops. I pulled most of the tools out of the top box, put a piece of plywood over the drawers, and wrapped the whole setup in lots of shrink wrap for the trip.

Subscribed!
More pics of those wonderful AK mountains. Where are you, behind Juneau, or?

Yep Juneau area, most days you can't see the tops of the mountains but I'll take the nice days when we get them.

 

[jeepnatv4life]

Barrell Roll any updates? your job/area sounds awesome

 

[BarrelRoll]

Wow I forgot about this thread, we bought a boat that first summer and life's been a blur since. I did start building a 23'6" Tolman Widebody the first winter we were here after we realized we needed more boat and it's still not done. We also bought a house in town with a 24x40 which has been nice and is very rare for up here. I'll finishing putting up some initial pictures of my box. I'll grab some current pictures and any day now my new box should be here. I'm out of room in the current box. Looking back at these pictures I forgot how much room I had in my box when I first started.

Our 1st boat, 1997 17' Alumaweld Stryker



The boat in progress, this started out as a pile of plywood December of 2020



On to the tools

Top Drawer, Machinist Type Stuff
-Irwin Extractor kit with EZ-Outs, left hand drill bits, stubby extractors
-Snapon 3/8" impact driver
-Mititoyo 6" caliper
-12" Combo square
-#7 1/2 EZ out for 1/2" pipe
-Hack Saw
-Temp gun
-Chalk Line
-Metric/ standard tape measure



American Wrench Drawer
-Gearwrench up to 1"
-Snapon Hex Keys to 1/2"
-Williams Supercombo wrenches 13/16"-1 1/8"
-Gearwrench 3/4" ratchet



Metric/ Misc. Wrench drawer

-Williams stain metric wrenches 6mm to 24mm
-Gearwrench oil filter wrenches, all 4 sizes they offer
-Williams angle wrenches in a roll up to 1 1/4"
-Stanley stubby wrenches



Power tool drawer

-M18 1/2" impact
-M18 1/4" hex driver, the black friday cheepie
-M18 non fuel older 4 1/2" grinder
-M18 Hammer drill
-A couple Milwaukee bit kits
-Random Grinder Wheels

 

[BarrelRoll]

Right side of the top box

Punch, Chisel, & File Drawer
-Mayhew pin punch kit
-Nicholson file roll
-Snapon Chisel handle
-Nicholson File Card
-Nicholson thread files, metric, standard, and pipe threads
-Brass drifts
-Various punches & chisels



Junk Drawer

-K cups for when we run out
-Scissors
-Battery terminal cleaner
-Pipe cutters
-Blow gun
-Lighter
-Tire Chuck
-Knipex Cabinet Key
-Mirror
-Razor blades



Ratchet Drawer
-Snapon standard length 3/8"
-Snapon on 1/4" ratchet with a 3/8" drive
-Snapon long handle soft grip 3/8"
-Icon long handle flex head 1/2"
-Snapon standard lenth 1/2"
-Snapon Sliding 1/4" T-Handle
-Proto 1/4" ratchet
-Extensions, wobbles, and adapters a mix of everything from parts store brands to snapon and GP 1/4" through 3/4" stuff



Air Tool Drawer
-IR composite 1/4" straight, 90 degree, and cut off tools
-IR air hammer
-CP needle scaler
-Drill index
-China freight transfer punch kit
-Westward 1/4" carbide burr kit
-Torch Striker
-Torch tip cleaner
-Misc die grinder stuff




Top of the Box
-Gloves
-Gum
-Random steel drops & hardware




Side Locker

-MSA hardhat
-Snapon 1/2" breaker bar
-Mayhew pry bars
-Wilton 24" 6lb hammer
-Kobalt aluminum pipe wrench
-Cutting torch
-Spare lubricants and cleaners for when we run out





That's everything after my first hitch. I'll have to get my box cleaned up and some current pictures now that I've been here 2 years

 

[Ton ton]

Barrel roll, thank you for the show and tell. Always fun to see what the industrial guys use for hand tools.

 

[Kent_B]

I just binged the whole thread. Barrelroll, your boat build deserves its own thread,

 

[BarrelRoll]

Here's some updated pictures. If you can tell a lot of the stuff we work on in covered in slurry (mud), rock dust, grease, hydro oil or a combo of everything so it's hard to keep things clean and it likes to rust tools. Our most common bolts here are 5/8" with a 15/16" head. We also deal with a lot of broken off bolts which I sometimes enjoy the challenge of getting them out. I spent a lot of money at the beginning of the year on tools to extract broken and stripped out bolts, most of which I thankfully haven't used yet. My box moved a whopping 50' to a more prime location than in the path of traffic and I was able to grab a bigger locker when someone retired.

I'll try and start with the same order as I originally posted and make some comments about what's changed/ what works and doesn't.

My tool Box pocket

-Williams 2.5" flat head tweaker, being longer than the snapon it doesn't hide in my pocket as easily. I've got a Snapon straight pocket pry bar on order, tweakers last a month or 2 in my life before they are lost or broken
-Small Knipex Cobras, I like them better than the chanellocks though the fine adjuster teeth don't like rock dust
-Utility knife
-8" proto adjustable
-Torch Striker

Not shown though in my pocket is a 12' Stanley tape



Tool Bag, it's always a struggle on what to carry keeping it light enough though having enough stuff to not have to drive half way across the mine when things don't go as planned. This thing goes all over the mine with me. Sometimes I won't use something for 4 months and then it will save the day. If anything I think it's gotten lighter than when I first started. The Klien bag is awesome though I wish it was slightly bigger, there's not much extra room to throw in more tools.

-Wilton 3lb 12" hammer, it's been chunking slightly and doesn't seem to hold up as well as the older hammers some of the guys have, it may have needed to be "work hardened" because it's been nowhere near as bar
-Wire brush small and large
-Williams supercombo wrenches 5/16-3/4" and 15/16", these are great made in USA wrenches, no issues and I think they feel great
-Knipex Cobras
-12" Proto and 15" Ridgid adjustable wrenches
-Canellock flush cuts, I bought everyone on the crew a pair of cheapie flush cuts for Christmas because no one owned a pair
-Proto Side cutters
-Williams hard handle screw drivers, 3 flat heads, #2 phillips, pretty nice screw drivers for the money and it doesn't hurt too much if one gets lost. I like the hard handles for what we do much better than the soft handles.
-Proto straight jaw vise grip knock offs, the only knock offs I've seen that are decent
-6" Nicholson file
-Magnet on a stick
-Mayhew 3/4" brass drift, currently banana shaped with a snapon on order
-Snapon punch and chisel set, I just picked up up on sale last round of days off. I'm going to see how carrying the whole set works, I've lost a couple of others loose in my bag when it's been dumped over. My guy will warranty punches and chisels which is nice because they do get destroyed here
-Mayhew 5/8" x 12" chisel, this thing comes in handy
-2x Mayhew 14" lineup bars, I use these all the time and they aren't super expensive when one disappears
-10" pipe wrench
-Standard and metric allen wrench sets to 3/8" & 10mm
-Electrical tape and teflon tape

 

[nadogail]

Pretty good set of tools for general machine maintenance.

 

[BarrelRoll]

Bottom Box, Left Side, not much has changed here
-Grey Pneumatic 1/2" standard deep set, this set holds up great, going up to 1 1/2" is really nice, the blow molded case does have a busted corner though doesn't let sockets out. This set is my go to for every day use
-Grey Pneumatic 3/4" standard shallow set, I don't use it a ton though it's much nicer walking right up to my box and finding a socket than digging though the communal tools
-Irwin metric and standard tap set to 1/2" & 12mm, the taps are ok, the tap handle with a 3/8" square is nice. It doesn't leave the shop much though is nice when working on mystery sized stuff
-Miller welding helmet, no complaints working in the mud and rock dust
-3/4" IR composite impact
-1/2" M18 impact that only works on the low setting
-Welding rod holder
-Estwing chipping hammer, I really like it
-Pony spring clamps to 3" I haven't used yet
-Proto snapring plier set




Bottom Box right side drawers, these drawers are full full for the most part compared to the initial pictures

Top Drawer, Screw Drivers
-Kobalt min screw driver set, I don't think I've ever used it here
-Snapon mini pick set, 1 is in my tool bag
-Misc. screw drivers, I have a full set in the box in addition to my bag
-Performance tool long pick set, typical Chinese stuff I bought on a whim and haven't used yet
-Ring handle picks, 1 has a 90 degree flat end which is really handy for packing, they are from mcmaster carr and I don't know what brand they are, maybe CS osborne and awesome tools
-Hyde ridged scrapers, these work much better for actual scraping than the flexible ones
-Proto radiator pick
-CS Osborne Pry bar style packing pullers, having the rings on the pullers with the pry bar works really well for tough packing you can't get any leverage on. I also have a bunch of tips including wood screw style which works perfect for some hydro chevron seals we do on occasion, machine screw thread, and brushes for cleaning out bores
-OTC seal puller
-Gearwrench impact style screw drivers, I haven't gotten a chance to try these yet
-Milwaukee insulated screw drivers



Pliers drawer
-Big Knipex Cobras, I love these and used them on Atlas Copco air compressor filters that refuse to come out along with a lot of other tasks
-Proto large groove joints, they haven't left my box since I bought the big Knipex
-Snapon retaining ring pliers
-Mini needle nose
-Smaller engineers for rounded off bolts I haven't tried yet
-Lincoln brand welpers, I liked them the best out of all the options out there
-Channel Lock Filter pliers large and small, they work great once the Knipex break the filter loose
-Vise grip welding clamps 6" and 9"
-Vise grip sheet metal clamp and duck bills
-Klein right hand sheet metal sheers
-Scissors, unknown brand, use them once in a while for CAD (cardboard aided design)
-Klein cable cutters
-Proto multi electrical tool
-Milwaukee electrician's pliers
-12" Knipex Cobras
-9" & 6" channellocks, I haven't used them since I bought the knipex
-Husky slip joint pliers
-Engineer linemans with the jaws for removing stripped bolts, the 1 time I tried to use them they didn't succeed on a domed tamper proof bolt
-Mystery brand linemans
-A bunch of vise grips including the big round jaws
-Knipex needle nose
-Gearwrench 90 degree needle nose I used for cotter pins once in a while




Big standard wrench drawer
-Williams wrenches 1 3/16"-2", I really like the high polish super combos
-Williams 18" chain wrench, it's made in China and I wouldn't buy it again
-Proto 15" and Ridgid 18" adjustable wrenches
-Williams hook spanner wrenches in the blue roll, these are nice and made in USA, great value for the money




Angle Wrenches and Extra tools
-Harbor freight angle wrenches to 2", I think 1 has left my box once
-Ridgid 14" angle head pipe wrench
-Parts Store 16" pipe wrench
-Williams strap wrench with a broken strap I've never fixed
-Oriley metric ratcheting wrenches with a gearwrench 17mm throw in, I used the 17mm to adjust pump packings a lot
-Duplicate/ old tools I've replaced like my IR air hammer, channellocks, allen keys, screw drivers, spare 15/16" 1/2" deep socket, spare 15/16" gearwrench




Socket drawer, not a ton has changed in here though it's over flowing. 90% of the time I'm using my GP 1/2" standard impact deeps for what I do.

-Husky/ Pittsburgh 1/2" deep impacts, no issues though I don't use them often, 36mm GP deep I used for 1 particular job on a concrete pump otherwise I mainly use them on Atlas copco compressors.
-1/2" 12 point metric shallow chrome sockets
-3/8" 6 point snapon shallow and deep metrics
-GP metric allens to 19mm
-Turbo sockets 3/8" shallow and deep, 1/2" deep to 1", use them for the first time last night and they seem worth the money
-E-torx sockets that haven't left my box
-Non impact allen sockets to 3/8" & 10mm
-Non impact torx sockets
-3/8" 6 point shallow and deep snapon sockets
-1/2" chrome shallow standard gear wrench sockets, the chrome on the 15/16" started to chip pretty early on
-1/2" Gearwrench X drive swivels, they are nice though really loose feeling
-GP 3/8" and Sunex 1/2" square sets for pipe plugs
-GP impact torx sockets to T60
-GP tamper proof torx, I've run into enough on random things I picked up a set
-Koblat 1/4" set with an icon ratchet shoved in the case. I like the the blow molded case to carry around and am not afraid to put them on an impact driver
-Snapon 3/8" crows feet




Hammer drawer, I really try to not be hammer happy and stay away from beating the **** out of everything if I can avoid it

-Kobalt 4 pound hammer, I mainly use it when I bring something back to the shop and my wilton is across the mine
-Proto deadblow, maybe 16oz
-Wilton 4lb deadblow, the head hasn't started to come apart though I don't use it often
-Claw hammer & catspaw for opening crates
-Vaughn 16oz ball peen
-Crlyle angle head pry bard that's stripped out
-Several Mayhew lady foot/ rolling head pry bars
-Mayhew chrome pro bar bars, it's not a hard chrome and still rusts, I'm not impressed with them. I don't like the mayhew dominators because every nook and cranny on the dominators gets full of goo
-Band clamp tool
-Hydraulic seal shrinker tools for installing seals in cylinders

 

[BarrelRoll]

Top Box time, I need more room

Top drawer, machinist type stuff
-6" dual grit stone
-Irwin extractor kit with EZ-Outs, left hand bits, and stubby extractors. I've replaced a couple of the irwin bits with bit from McMaster Carr when they dull or break
-Snapon 3/8" impact driver
-Sock it out stripped allen extractors under the impact driver I haven't gotten to use them yet though Don at Sock it Out spent the time to talk with me and answer my questions before I ordered
-Chain stretch gauge ruler
-EZ outs #7 1/2- #11 for pipe 1/2" to 1 1/2"
-Lyle stripped torx extractors
-Chinese dial indicator tip set
-3-2-1 blocks hiding under in the indicator tips
-Stanley 12' and several other assorted tape measures
-Carbide deburring tool
-Starret automatic center punch
-Chalk line
-Misc. extra dies and ez outs
-12" Stanley combo square
-Mititoyo 6" caliper
-Countersinks
-Center drills
-Feeler gauges
-Proto straight flute EZ outs
-Pipe fitters wrap a round
-Carbide tipped drill bits, I haven't gotten to try them yet on a broken off bolt
-BSPP and BSPT taps, fricken European junk loves using them
-NPT taps
-Klein magnet torpedo level




Standard Wrench Drawer
-Williams Supercombo wrenches 1/4", 11/32", 13/16-1 1/8"
-Snapon allen keys to 1/2"
-Gearwerenchs to 1 1/8", I leave the 1" in my box because I never use it and usually throw the rack in my bag along with the 1 1/8"
-Gearwrench 3/4" ratchet I almost never use
-Amazon special barrel wrench



Metric Wrench Drawer, I don't think anything has changed in this drawer
-Williams Stain metric wrenches to 24mm, they are made in Taiwan, decent quality though the box end head is a little big
-Gearwrench oil filter wrenches all 4 sizes, no complaints though I don't use them daily
-Williams Standard angle wrenches to 1 1/4" in the blue roll. I hate these, they are made in USA though the fit and finish is horrible, the edges on the ends are sharp enough to almost cut you, they don't feel nice in your hand. Not worth the $300 I have into the set
-Stanley standard stubby wrenches.



Power tool drawer, not much has changed in here
-M18 1/2" drive impact, I'm on my second, they don't like mud and water, the 4 power levels are nice though is usually the first thing to give us issues
-M18 1/4" hex driver, it's a black Friday special and still holding up decent
-M18 1/2" hammer drill, I'm on my second, my first lasted 5+ years
-M18 grinder, this thing is 10 years old and still kicking, the fuel are much better though it works when I need it
-Milwaukee bit kits
-Irwin extractor nut drivers I haven't had to try yet
-A horde of grinder wheels for when we run out



Punches and Chisels, not much has changed
-Nicholson file set
-Mayhew roll pin kit
-Snapon roll pin holders
-Snapon chisel handle
-Assortment of snapon and mayhew punches and chisels
-Nicholson file card
-Klein bull *****
-Nicholson thread files
-Random Nicholson files
-Williams wedges, they haven't held up great



The random overflow junk drawer
-Blow gun
-Tire chuck
-Rope for slurry pump liners
-Tubing cutters
-Razor blades
-Mirror
-Battery terminal brush
-Lighter if an operator hasn't borrowed it and not returned it
-Klein digital angle finder
-O-ring cutting jig
-Chain puller and breaker
-V-Blocks with clamps, I need the next size up for checking pump shaft runout when rebuilding barrels
-String line for aligning pullies
-Flash light
-Button head grease gun end
-Extra wire brush
-Magnet for resetting Atlas Copco Air dryer lights



Ratchet Drawer, I've been buying some more snapon stuff and really like the plastic hard handles in power blue when I can grab them off the truck
-1/2" Snapon short and long chrome handle ratchets, the long handle is much finer tooth
-1/2" Icon Long handle flex head soft grip, hopefully getting replaced with a snapon shortly
-3/8" snapon standard length
-3/8" snapon long handle soft grip hopefully getting replaced with a hard handle if it's still on his truck after this hitch
-3/8" snapon flex head long hard handle
-3/8" snapon in a 1/4" body
-1/4" ratchets, 1 is a proto 1 is a junk Kobalt
-GP 3/4" extensions, wobble, & adapters
-GP 1/2" extensions, wobble, & adapters
-Chrome extensions, wobbles, adapters lots of different brands
-3/8" Icon wobble extension set



Air tool drawer
-Snapon air ratchet with quick connect, I'm trying to swing a hammer less and use an air hammer more though haven't really gotten to put it to the test
-IR 1/4" straight, angle, and cut off composite grinders
-CP needle scale/ chipping hammer that gets used a lot and has worked good
-Westward carbide burr set with several others thrown in
-Snapon 6 piece replaceable end air hammer set I haven't used yet though will come in handy for barrel rebuilds
-China freight transfer punches
-A bunch of air fitting adapters
-Welding helmet lenses
-Torch tip cleaners
-A lot of random wheels, wrenches, ect for die grinders




Top of the box, this has turned into overflow till I get my new box
-Bluepoint heavy duty oil filter wrenches for bigger industrial sized filters, these are great, I tried an Amazon cheapie and it didn't last through 1 service
-Snapon 1/2" extra long flex head hard handle
-Ken Tool twist socket set, same as bluepoint 110STSYA, I used it the other night on a stripped nut I couldn't get a socket on though could get a wrench on
-Ridgid straight extractor set with drill guides
-Rennsteig straight flute extractor set
-Columbian 6" c-clamp
-6" & 12" Johnson Speed Squares
-Random drops of steel
-Misc. Hardware
-Hack Saw
-25' Tape
-Air muffler on a Chicago coupler for air compressor services
-Lyle 4 way chuck keys
-Welding gloves
-Knee pads, I wish I bought these years ago, they are a life saver for kneeling on grating and stuff full of rocks
-Ryobi temp gun that no longer works

 

[BarrelRoll]

Here's the backside of my locker
-Face shield on a hard hat
-A couple cutting shields
-Milwaukee M18 light, this thing is amazing, we are always working in the dark, on high power it doesn't last long though mid power lasts over a 12 hour shift



My locker is a bit of a disaster and a catch all

Lower left side
-Mayhew pry bars, I have 1 of most sizes, the 38"x7/8" is a nice size
-Crlyle 24" pry bar, not a bad plastic handle bar
-36" Ridgid bolt cutters
-Snapon 1/2" breaker bar
-Icon 3/4" breaker bar
-Wilton 24" 6lb hammer, the head chunked pretty good, it's either a horrible size or just perfect depending on the job
-Carhart bibs
-Welding leads
-Cutting torch on quick connects
-Locks
-Tape
-Rigging stuff
-Hearing protection
-Zip ties



Right side
-Milwaukee M18 fan, this thing is awesome for ventilating welding and working in chutes
-Random fluids and sprays
-Plates, coffee, silverware
-Coffee in hiding
-gum
-Pens, markers, note pads
-Gloves, the dish gloves come in handy for a vacuum we have to clean out that's full of ice cold water and mud
-Air hose
-Hydro caps and plug




Top

-Noga indicator base
-Mitotoyo 0-1" indicator
-Non hidden coffee
-Expensive hat that came with a free tool box
-Hard candy
-Pile of papers I should really put in a file box
-Ear plugs

 

[BarrelRoll]

This brings me up to date as of April 2022.

Here's what's on order
-Snapon brass drift set
-Snapon 1/4" hard handle long flex head ratchet
-Ridgid 37 degree flare tool
-Titan disposable matco knockoff bolt extractors for ratcheting wrenches

The big thing that's on order, 54" Master Series KMP 1022 and a KRL 791 top box. The bottom was on the truck and he made me a good deal on it, the top was made to order and was supposed to be here a while ago. The color combo really grew on me and is pretty unique. I'm hoping this thing is enough room to last me the rest of my career. I was out of room in the Knaack, he gave me what I paid for them in trade in which was a lot easier than trying to sell it. If I was contracting and moving all the time the Knaack would have been nice. My box never moves and some mines have width though usually never depth or height requirements so that's why I went with the 54" mater with a top box. Also most boxes had a lot of 2" deep drawers which many of my tools don't fit in. The lack of shallow drawers should really help maximize drawer space. The 2 other mechanics next to me who are also younger have snapon boxes on order, a green 40" cart and a grey with orange trim 73" master series, it'll be easter egg row haha.



Here's the view out the crew boat headed to work



Random Alaska Pictures

 

[bigjeff94]

I really like this thread. My whole career has been spent in the Mining Industry, mostly Cement Plants. Setups like these are way more what I am used to then most of the automotive boxes we usually see on this site. I love to see what the guys are using at different sites.

 

[BarrelRoll]

Updates coming soon

 

[PhantomEB]

Waiting waiting!

 

[BarrelRoll]

3 out of the 4 pieces of my new tool box finally came in, it's been an ordeal.

Back in Novemberish of 2021 I struck up a deal with the snapon guy for a 54" Master Series bottom box and matching top box. It was going to be a better deal to buy everything at once so I waited to take delivery of the bottom box till the top was here. In May of 2022 when the top box was supposed to come in my dealer found out they canceled the order and either weren't offering the top box any more or the top box they currently make won't fit the bottom box.

It was back to the drawing board as far as tool boxes go. I decided to get away from a master series and look into epiqs. After doing some digging I discovered you could bolt 2 36" epiq end cabinets together and they offered a 36" hutch and 36" upper drawer section. I liked the idea of a hutch though needed more storage than just a bottom box would offer so this combo was perfect. I ended up waiting for this combo to go on special at the sanpon expo in August. Well long long story short my dealer went from a company employee to buying his franchise right around Christmas when 3 of the 4 pieces finally made it here. After the buyout was complete he found out they canceled the order for the undelivered piece so I took delivery of the 3 piece the other day. I'm still waiting on the top drawer section.

I moved everything out of my Knack into the snapon. It's full ful and a mess, I'm really happy I went with a bigger box, the drawers are roughly 30" wide so I have more drawer room than a 54" master series by a long shot. Hopefully the top box gives me enough room. The power drawer is huge though I need to run power to the box and move air tools to another drawer so I can get chargers into the power drawer. I also ordered a bunch of tool box widgets and other organization stuff. I'll get some pictures of tools once the box is a bit more organized. I've added a ton of tools to it including a snapon puller cabinet worth of pullers.

Here's a picture of the box




The super sized power drawer

 

[Ton ton]

3 out of the 4 pieces of my new tool box finally came in, it's been an ordeal.

Back in Novemberish of 2021 I struck up a deal with the snapon guy for a 54" Master Series bottom box and matching top box. It was going to be a better deal to buy everything at once so I waited to take delivery of the bottom box till the top was here. In May of 2022 when the top box was supposed to come in my dealer found out they canceled the order and either weren't offering the top box any more or the top box they currently make won't fit the bottom box.

It was back to the drawing board as far as tool boxes go. I decided to get away from a master series and look into epiqs. After doing some digging I discovered you could bolt 2 36" epiq end cabinets together and they offered a 36" hutch and 36" upper drawer section. I liked the idea of a hutch though needed more storage than just a bottom box would offer so this combo was perfect. I ended up waiting for this combo to go on special at the sanpon expo in August. Well long long story short my dealer went from a company employee to buying his franchise right around Christmas when 3 of the 4 pieces finally made it here. After the buyout was complete he found out they canceled the order for the undelivered piece so I took delivery of the 3 piece the other day. I'm still waiting on the top drawer section.

I moved everything out of my Knack into the snapon. It's full ful and a mess, I'm really happy I went with a bigger box, the drawers are roughly 30" wide so I have more drawer room than a 54" master series by a long shot. Hopefully the top box gives me enough room. The power drawer is huge though I need to run power to the box and move air tools to another drawer so I can get chargers into the power drawer. I also ordered a bunch of tool box widgets and other organization stuff. I'll get some pictures of tools once the box is a bit more organized. I've added a ton of tools to it including a snapon puller cabinet worth of pullers.

Here's a picture of the box




The super sized power drawer

It's always a pleasure to what kind of setup industrial mechanics use. I appreciate the photos.

 

[gizardlizard]

I’ve been a journeyman millwright for 33 years. Cheers to you brother. People often ask me what I do. I used to say, Jack of all trades and master of none. Now, I say “I’m not good at any anything…..I’m great at EVERYTHING” lol

 

[BarrelRoll]

I’ve been a journeyman millwright for 33 years. Cheers to you brother. People often ask me what I do. I used to say, Jack of all trades and master of none. Now, I say “I’m not good at any anything…..I’m great at EVERYTHING” lol

That's the truth. In the last 4 days I've worked on a leaky sand pump at a water treatment plant, troubleshot an overheating rotary screw compressor that was shut down and effecting underground drilling, found a stuck open solenoid on a bag house cleaning system that was dumping all the lab's air pressure, welded up and re hiltied some handrail, and done some pm's. It's always something different and my tool box full of specialty stuff definitely gets me some of the better work compared to the guys with large hammer drawers.

 

[Zewnten]

I like your setup. I went in a bit different direction with 2 lista 60" tall by 30" wide side by side, lockers on the ends and a cabinet above. Built a frame to hold it all together as one piece with some big casters from ebay. Now that I'm in the field it'll just hold odd ball stuff.

 

[BarrelRoll]

Here’s a mega update. My top box is supposed to ship May 11th. The new boxes were completely full and a disaster to the point I didn’t want to take pictures. I tried tool box widgets, they just took up too much room, nice pieces just needed 4 drawers to fit all my wrenches. I ended up going with a piece of wire wrapped around a pipe to make a spiral, this worked great. For little stuff I bought a bunch of these interlocking plastic trays off Amazon, they could be ⅛” shallower, they rub on the bottoms of the drawer above it when they are in the shallow drawers, if I was 100% set on layout trimming the drawer liners where they are sitting would probably be enough room. It’s pretty much full with a couple things double stacked. Hopefully I’ll have room to grow once I get moved into the top box.

I’ve been buying a lot of blue tools from snapon when they pop up on special to replace older cheaper worn out tools. My dealer has me figured out, when something blue is on sale he sends me a picture as he’s putting it on the truck and I usually can’t resist. I’ve also been replacing broken tools with snapon and Tekton for ease of warranty.

My big purchase this year was pullers. I’ve used a bunch of different pullers. Snapon has always been good quality and is super easy to warranty, they just aren’t cheap. For years I’ve pined over the snapon puller cabinet you see in some shops. I picked up every piece in the cabinet besides a couple pucks off ebay for less than ½ price of retail. I now have every snapon bearing splitter besides the biggest one they offer, 2 slide hammers, strong back style puller, and the small puller set. I’m good on pullers till I decide I need a hydraulic puller or the biggest splitter.



New tools by drawer

Top Left
Wrench drawer
-Bucket lid puller
-Tekton 25-32mm wrenches



Wrenches & Extractors drawer, I don’t think there’s anything new in here



Power Tool Drawer
-Right angle CP air drill
-Snapon long air chisel and punch



Angle wrenches & Misc. Stuff drawer
-Next sized up chain breaker
-Masterlink clip tool
-Snapon brake spoon
-Mity vac coolant pressure tester
-Snapon ½” flex head beam torque wrench
-Ridgid 37 degree flaring tool
-Ridgid hand tube bender



¾” Drawer
-Milwaukee packouts for hydraulic fittings for putting in line t-’s for testing and misc. Adapters
-Snapon ¾” breaker bar head, waiting on the 36” handle

 

[BarrelRoll]

Mega update part 2

Sockets
-½” drive shallow snapon impact sockets off e-bay
-Tekton ¼” drive standard and metric shallow and deep set
-Tekton ½” drive shallow metric impact sockets
-Tekton ½” drive 11/16”-1 ¼” Crows feet
-Magnetic 15/16” socket
-Snapon adapter set



Ratchets, Non Precision Measurement, & Junk
-A bunch of blue handled snapon ratchets
-Snapon ½” stubby flex ratchet, it’s the length of a standard ⅜” ratchet and super handy for tight spots once the bolt is broken free
-Stencils



Screw drivers & files drawer
-Snapon long mini picks
-Snapon mini pick/ screw driver/ torx/ seal tool set
-Gearwernch impact screw drivers
-Screw driver magnitizer
-2 sizes of needle files for threads



Pilers drawer
-Snapon super duper needle nose
-Spring clamps 1”-3”
-Lubelocker grease fitting assortment
-Hobart ground clamp magnet
-16” internal snap ring pliers



Hammers, punches, & pry bars
-Snapon curved end end striking pry bars
-Snapon 24” straight pry bar, this thing is awesome, I’m find a lot of uses for the straight bars
-Snapon 24” indexing head pry bar
-Snapon roll pin holders
-Snapon 40 ounce hammer
-Snapon 32 ounce bronze hammer
-Sanpon bronze punch set
-Snapon straight and curved pocket pry bars



Machinist Stuff
-Shars .0005” test indicator (awesome for checking for soft foot)
-Lylse tap sockets to 1”
-Snapon deepwell thread restorer set
-Snapon feeler gauge set with handles
-30mm China tap and die for fixing concrete pump nose cone bolts
-Rotary thread and gland seal repair tool



Pullers galore
-Snapon bolt grip puller
-Snapon 2 and 3 jaw pullers
-Snapon Rear Axle Puller Slide hammer
-Snapon Small Slide hammer set
-Snapon CJ 240 light duty puller set (same thread as the small slide hammer)
-Snapon on bearing splitters from the smallest to 6 ½”, I’ve been waiting for the CJ 953 (8”) to pop up on e-bay
-Snapon a80a ratcheting stud puller
-Snapon a36a stud puller
-Snapon race driver set
-Snapon CJ840C bar puller set with adapters
-Proto puller





On the side of the cabinet
-Snapon magnets, the big one he sold me on it when the video of it holding a cylinder head was posted. These prevent a lot of lost tools. I'll put a couple tools on the yellow one and carry it across the mill under my arm like a folder.



Next update will be in a couple days, my tool bag, pocket, and locker, there’s new stuff in there as well.

 

[zkdiesel]

Damni Andy. I can’t believe you of all people bought such quality tools. Especially for some guy using a high lift jack handle as a hammer for years