rail systems - Gladiator vs. Rubbermaid

[kartracer23]

Getting ready to put in a rail system for shovels, brooms, hoes, etc. It's a pretty narrow area so I won't be able to stack like 3 shovels on a long holder, they'll all need to be single.

Any advantages / disadvantages of the Rubbermaid Fasttrack vs. the Gladiator (I think it's called tool rail)? Reason I ask is that I was looking at them at Lowe's this morning and the hangers for the Gladiator system are about 1/2 (or less) of the cost of the Rubbermaid for the same thing. In fact, the cheapest Rubbermaid was still more expensive than the most expensive Gladiator. $5-$6 vs. $12-$15 sounds a lot better to me.

If the Gladiator are ok, I'd rather go with those and save $150-$200 on my set-up.

 

[jwhcars]

I went with the gladiator brand and it works very well !

 

[bdamico]

I just got the rubbermaid. Rubbermaid redisgned all its hooks to have a better rail latching system--don't know how it compares to gladiator or if that accounts for more costs.

 

[K04GTI]

I'm surprised the rubbermaid are more expensive. The gladiator stuff is good quality. I just got a bunch waiting to be installed.

 

[tjpavlov]

I have a lot of the Rubbermaid Fast Track and it has worked well. Look around for a deal on the kits. I scored mine at Costco. Each kit came wit five or six different hooks and two four foot rails. They were originally $29.99, then were marked down to $19.99. I grabbed five kits when they fell to $10 each. They were a fantastic deal.

I have seen some popping up at big lots recently.

Note that Rubbermaid generally sells four foot tracks and I believe eight foot. Two four foot ones holds more weight than one eight footer for some reason.

Check www.slickdeals.net for sales.

 

[matty d]

I have Gladiator Garageworks in my garage, and Rubbermaid Fastrack in a small laundry room. I have one small kitchen closet with Gladiator track and hooks. My thoughts:

Fasttrack hooks and railing are more sturdy. You can install the metal rails without having to worry about where the studs are; the Fastrack rails are installed using toggle screws which go directly into sheetrock. It feels rock solid and will not come off.

Fastrack lengths are set and theres nothing you can do about that. You can customize the length of Gladiator track by cutting it to size.

Fastrack hooks stay in place whereas Gladiator hooks may come off once in a while. I never had a problem with Fastrack hooks coming off the fit is tight and strong - if you accidentally bump into a Gladiator hook, it may come off (important for a tight space).

Fastrack looks a little better in my opinion. May be better for inside the home where appearance is more important.

Gladiator has a very diverse product line which extends into cabinets, toolchests etc. It is very garage focused. The hanging possibilites are more diverse, since they have a Gearwall system.

Im happy with both. If I wanted one or two rows to hang items in a small space inside the home, I'd go with Fasttrack. In a tight space, you dont want your hooks to come off.

In a garage situation, I'd go with Gladiator. More storage options, plus pretty cool chests, cabinets, lockers etc...

Here's my silly blog:

http://matthewsgarage.blogspot.com/

 

[bdamico]

Fastrack lengths are set and theres nothing you can do about that. You can customize the length of Gladiator track by cutting it to size.

Not at all true. I've cut a bunch of them to size with a circular saw with a metal disk. I cut the rail iwth the plastic cover in place. The plastic basically melts clean and the metal cuts like butter. No problem and it doesn't look I cut them. The ones in the pics were cut to length



I also agree they are really strong. I toggle bolted mine every foot or so and there is no deflection from the wall at all. The hooks are also really strong.

 

[kartracer23]

Thanks guys! I was really surprised at the price difference - but the Rubbermaid does have a more 'finished' look to it and the accessories have a little cleaner look. But I don't know that my broom cares that much, y'know?

I may figure out what all I need & price it out & see. If they're pretty comparable in function, I may just go with the Gladiator. This is for a back storage room in the garage (my yard tool area) so function (and price) are probably more important than look.

My next step is to figure out what to put below it to protect the wall (painted OSB) from shovels & such digging into it. I'd like to do diamond plate, but 16 ft. of that could get pricey.

 

[bdamico]

Thanks guys! I was really surprised at the price difference - but the Rubbermaid does have a more 'finished' look to it and the accessories have a little cleaner look. But I don't know that my broom cares that much, y'know?

I may figure out what all I need & price it out & see. If they're pretty comparable in function, I may just go with the Gladiator. This is for a back storage room in the garage (my yard tool area) so function (and price) are probably more important than look.

My next step is to figure out what to put below it to protect the wall (painted OSB) from shovels & such digging into it. I'd like to do diamond plate, but 16 ft. of that could get pricey.

I've got the same problem with bike pedals, tires, and ladders. Dunno what to do yet. And don't underestimate anger resulting from hooks that don't stay on. That would seriously piss me off after all that work.

 

[JTG]

My next step is to figure out what to put below it to protect the wall (painted OSB) from shovels & such digging into it. I'd like to do diamond plate, but 16 ft. of that could get pricey.

How about plexiglas? I've seen that used with good results. It's easy to clean and since it's clear maintains the same look of the wall.

 

[Stee6043]

I recently installed both the Gladiator rail system as well as the Craftsman "Versatrack". My primary purpose was to hang cabinets but I also used a number of the hooks and accessories available for both. I personally liked the look of the Craftsman track better and I believe cost was about the same for both if I recall correctly. Both cut easily with a mitre saw and installation was very simple. I'd recommend either rail system.

 

[kartracer23]

How about plexiglas? I've seen that used with good results. It's easy to clean and since it's clear maintains the same look of the wall.

Thought about that - but it might be cheaper to gold plate it...

 

[kartracer23]

I recently installed both the Gladiator rail system as well as the Craftsman "Versatrack". My primary purpose was to hang cabinets but I also used a number of the hooks and accessories available for both. I personally liked the look of the Craftsman track better and I believe cost was about the same for both if I recall correctly. Both cut easily with a mitre saw and installation was very simple. I'd recommend either rail system.

Hmmm..didn't know Craftsman had one. I'll have to check into it.

 

[matty d]

thats real cool you cut your Fastrack to size; when I looked at the metal track and plastic didnt want to bother...lazy me!

 

[JimVonBaden]

How about plexiglas? I've seen that used with good results. It's easy to clean and since it's clear maintains the same look of the wall.

I've used galvanized sheet glued to the wall to good effect.

Jim

 

[ChristopherLutz]

I don't have much to add here...but, I have been putting up Gladiator stuff in my garage for the last month or so. A couple of thoughts:

- Go to Sears (if you can) for your Gladiator stuff. They generally have more inventory on hand, and - the prices are much better than Lowes. (I just bought the 24'' WELDED cabinet at Sears for $111...cheaper than the RTA version at Lowes)

- Sears also has the craftsman display right next to the Gladiator display, which makes it easy to compare. On my last trip, I discovered someone was testing the craftsman hooks on the gladiator rail. They worked. I don't know if that knowledge is worth anything - but, I thought it was interesting.

- If you're concerned about *the wall* you might consider installed Gladiator Gear WALL vs. track. I just did two sections of my garage. Not only do you have many, many more options on locations, but if you do hang a shovel or something with dirt, it will wipe off the gear wall. (for what it's worth, the wall was $99 for 16 linear feat at Sears)

- Gladiator does require their product to go into studs - but, that's because they want you to be able to hang cabinets, etc. If you're just hanging mops and brooms, I don't see why you couldn't also use sheet rock anchors for Gladiator.


As a final thought (for everyone here)....As I've been making this investment (now $600 into just the Gladiator wall alone) I've been nagged by this thought:

"I sure hope Gladiator keeps making their stuff"

I saw Lowes just introduced a "Lowes Branded" version of cabinets and rail system. They pushed the Gladiator stuff down the aisle and now, carry far less Gladiator product.

 

[FLgarageDreamer]

I personally like Gladiator (I have both rail systems). With the Gladiator I don't have to pre pick a spot where something will go. I just line a wall and now everything is modular no worrying about how something will hang.

 

[kartracer23]

So last night stopped by Sears to check out their system. I think I'll be going with a 'combo'.

Rails: I wasn't real thrilled with the Craftsman rails-they're polystyrene. When the ones just sitting in the bin have big chips out of them, that concerns me. The Gladiator rails are much more substantial-maybe a type of coated MDF or something.

Hooks: I played with the Gladiator hooks for a while and the looseness in the rails concerned me. As others have mentioned, if you bump them they can come out. It felt like if you were taking something off a hook and it caught a bit, the hook would come off. That would frustrate me to no end. Then I went over and looked at the Craftsman hooks. Hmmm...They have a little quarter turn lock at the bottom. Take one over to the Gladiator system and they slip right in...and LOCK! Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner.

The Craftsman hooks were a little more than the Gladiator (50 cents to $1 ea.) for the same style, but the lock would be well worth it. And still a lot less than the Rubbermaid. And a lot more options of the Craftsman hooks than Rubbermaid or Gladiator. So I'll be doing the Gladiator rails + Craftsman accessories.

If you have Gladiator & have an issue with the hooks coming off, take a look at the Craftsman hooks - problem solved. And thanks to everyone for their input. This is one of those little things that if it doesn't work right frustrates me so I like to get it 'right' from the beginning.

 

[Matt M PA]

I used slatwall in my attached garage, and was thinking that one sheet of slatwall could be cut into strips, then attached...similar to the systems discussed. Just cut in one of the slats.

If you're concerned about the wall beneath...perhaps the inexpensive fake tile board could be used. That's what I did beneath the slatwall as its easy to wipe off.

 

[Stee6043]

So last night stopped by Sears to check out their system. I think I'll be going with a 'combo'.

Rails: I wasn't real thrilled with the Craftsman rails-they're polystyrene. When the ones just sitting in the bin have big chips out of them, that concerns me. The Gladiator rails are much more substantial-maybe a type of coated MDF or something.

Hooks: I played with the Gladiator hooks for a while and the looseness in the rails concerned me. As others have mentioned, if you bump them they can come out. It felt like if you were taking something off a hook and it caught a bit, the hook would come off. That would frustrate me to no end. Then I went over and looked at the Craftsman hooks. Hmmm...They have a little quarter turn lock at the bottom. Take one over to the Gladiator system and they slip right in...and LOCK! Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner.

The Craftsman hooks were a little more than the Gladiator (50 cents to $1 ea.) for the same style, but the lock would be well worth it. And still a lot less than the Rubbermaid. And a lot more options of the Craftsman hooks than Rubbermaid or Gladiator. So I'll be doing the Gladiator rails + Craftsman accessories.

If you have Gladiator & have an issue with the hooks coming off, take a look at the Craftsman hooks - problem solved. And thanks to everyone for their input. This is one of those little things that if it doesn't work right frustrates me so I like to get it 'right' from the beginning.

I think you'll be happy with your choice. For what it's worth, however, I ended up with (4) sets of Craftsman rails and perhaps (8) of the Gladiator. I had zero damage to any of the Craftsman product but I found (3) damaged Gladiator rails as I started unpacking everything. It was only on the ends and I ended up cutting a lot of my rails so it did not bother me. But in my experience Craftsman won in the "out of the box quality" category.

And they are both a similar plastic material as far as I can tell. I do think the Gladiator profile has thicker webbing which does make them "heavier". But both cut exactly the same and I found both the be equally easy to work with. Like you found though...the Craftsman hooks do lock! I like that too.

 

[melliott28]

I have the Craftsman Versatrack and RubberMaid Fastrack. I like the RubberMaid and I've found it work best for things such as garden tools, hoses, and extension cords. But the accessories are on the expensive side. I use the Craftsman Versatrack in conjunction with pegboard, which works really well for hanging a variety of things.

If I were to start over, I would just use the Craftsman Versatrack because it can be used in a number of different ways - it can be cut to size, used alone or with pegboard, has number of different accessories (many of which lock onto the rail), and it often goes on sale for about $8 per rail. Also, Home Depot sells the same exact product under the Husky name, with all of the same accessories, so that is an additional source for accessories.

 

[kartracer23]

So I've got another question:
Since the wall I'm going to mount this to is open right now, figured I'd throw in some blocking to mount this to since it's a non-load bearing wall & 24" OC. What height should I mount it? Since it's a narrow area, I'm thinking fairly high so the heads of the tools (shovels, brooms, rakes, etc.) are above bumping your head on. Maybe 6 ft.? 6.5 ft?

 

[DanMasshardt]

Has anybody installed the lowe's kobalt k-rail? Looks like good prices. I'd like to hear from someone who's bought it though.

 

[Melvin]

I have a chanch to get some slotwall 4 x 8 sheets for $20.00 each will
the gladiador or rubbermaid hooks work the slotwall.

 

[Topdwnz]

So last night stopped by Sears to check out their system. I think I'll be going with a 'combo'.

Rails: I wasn't real thrilled with the Craftsman rails-they're polystyrene. When the ones just sitting in the bin have big chips out of them, that concerns me. The Gladiator rails are much more substantial-maybe a type of coated MDF or something.

Hooks: I played with the Gladiator hooks for a while and the looseness in the rails concerned me. As others have mentioned, if you bump them they can come out. It felt like if you were taking something off a hook and it caught a bit, the hook would come off. That would frustrate me to no end. Then I went over and looked at the Craftsman hooks. Hmmm...They have a little quarter turn lock at the bottom. Take one over to the Gladiator system and they slip right in...and LOCK! Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner.

The Craftsman hooks were a little more than the Gladiator (50 cents to $1 ea.) for the same style, but the lock would be well worth it. And still a lot less than the Rubbermaid. And a lot more options of the Craftsman hooks than Rubbermaid or Gladiator. So I'll be doing the Gladiator rails + Craftsman accessories.

If you have Gladiator & have an issue with the hooks coming off, take a look at the Craftsman hooks - problem solved. And thanks to everyone for their input. This is one of those little things that if it doesn't work right frustrates me so I like to get it 'right' from the beginning.

Was wondering whether you tried the Husky hooks from Home Depot. They look identical to the Sears Versatrack hooks with the locking mechanism. I'm thinking about doing the exact same thing you did and put the Gladiator track with the Sears or Home Depot hooks.

 

[tuner4life]

This thread:

http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=160166&highlight=rake+shovel+storage&page=2

Start reading at post #22. Found a really good setup at Menards that seems very solid and is fairly cheap.

 

[N00dle]

I know this is an old thread but I just installed a 4' section of the Gladiator Geartrack in my garage and I think I may have split one of the studs.

Of the 6 screws installed one just started spinning once I got it all the way in. I was getting resistance all the way to the end though.

Should I pull the whole thing of and adjust it up a 1/2" or so and redo the screws. The top side of the track with the messed up screw has about a 1/16" gap where the rest is all pressed flush to the wall

 

[bknudtsen]

I know this is an old thread but I just installed a 4' section of the Gladiator Geartrack in my garage and I think I may have split one of the studs.

Of the 6 screws installed one just started spinning once I got it all the way in. I was getting resistance all the way to the end though.

Should I pull the whole thing of and adjust it up a 1/2" or so and redo the screws. The top side of the track with the messed up screw has about a 1/16" gap where the rest is all pressed flush to the wall

Are you sure that the screw didn't just snap?

 

[N00dle]

Are you sure that the screw didn't just snap?

Actually no. I didn't back it out so I don't know. I bought some SS ones to use and never thought that could be an issue.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

 

[jam0905]

Has anybody installed the lowe's kobalt k-rail? Looks like good prices. I'd like to hear from someone who's bought it though.

I have installed 2 sections of KRail and it's working pretty well. I used the KRail screws and installed them on studs. One is holding light shovels and stuff, the other is holding two adult bikes, and gas weedeater, and an electric hedge trimmer. They are good to go IMO.

 

[jmiller_2308]

I've tried a few of these storage systems and have never been too impressed at the value vs. cost. I think if you have a saw that you can have a ton more options if you build stuff yourself.

Two options I'm considering for a garage addition (hopefully it happens) are:

1) A bit easier to use but probably as expensive as the options discussed above would be to use slatwall. The sheets aren't that expensive and you can often find stuff on craigslist for super cheap but I suspect that by the time you buy all the special hooks it may add up.

2) Create your own hanger system and buy whatever hooks you want. The hooks could be a lot less expensive simply because you aren't locked into the manufacturers hooks. The hanging system in this video looks pretty straight forward, inexpensive, and relatively easy to do. http://www.familyhandyman.com/video/v/72325436/custom-garage-storage.htm

Jeff

 

[jam0905]

JMiller, I think you just changed my life.