Saving a Craftsman Tool Chest

[CNGsaves]

Gotta love the determination of guy saving old Craftsman toolbox . . .
. . . . using wire wheel on Craftsman corded drill . . .
. . . . . . and using Craftsman screwdriver !!!

Keep up the good work OP !!!

+1 that you'll have great satisfaction when it's done.

 

[Zeeman]

Thanks CN. Most of my tools are Craftsman. Vintage stuff like my dad had growing up. I got some work done on it today, and will post pictures as soon as they can be loaded. You'l see that I did have to give up the wire wheel in favor of a little easier method... media blasting.

 

[Zeeman]

Here are the pictures after the blasting cabinet. I did the lid and top with a big boy pressurized blaster. It clogged constantly til it ran out of dirty media.

 

[Zeeman]

Here's the piece I made to go in the big hole shown in the last picture.
My technique might not be textbook because I don't have a brake, but I got it done by mounting angle iron in my woodworkers vise, then bend an pound with a hammer.



It's getting close, but I had to keep fine tuning the edge where it meets up with the old metal. The flashlight is shining on that joint that I will weld and grind down smooth. Hopefully I'll get a new welder soon!

I had to take the new part back out several time to grind a little off here and there. This corner was not fitting flush, and I still have to cut the 't' shape for the drawer lock to slide through.

The lip at the back was too high, so back out it came to make it look a little better (match with the old lip).

Mr. T about to be cut out.

It needs a little filing, but it won't show much anyway. Not a museum quality restoration!

 

[RodneyW]

You're a better man than me for taking that one on.
I think you'll be much happier doing it the way you are now.
Rodney

 

[wrenchr]

looking good, welding will yield a much more satisfactory result. For you not us I to have a fondness for those tool boxes and have triple stack in the garage. Took some years to complete but was worth it. Considering restoring maybe next summer.

 

[Zeeman]

You're a better man than me for taking that one on.
I think you'll be much happier doing it the way you are now.
Rodney

I agree, welding is the way to go, and it had way too much rust to remove with sanding and wire wheel. Thanks for the post.

 

[Tynee]

How's the pitting after the blasting? Any tips to minimize warping? I bought a 20lb pressure pot and a box of walnut shells at HF the other day to try my hand on the SO box I'm working on.

 

[Zeeman]

Thanks wrenchr. I looked on Craigslist in California, and those guys have plenty of vintage gray and reds to choose from. Here, near Atlanta, they seem to show up rarely. My chances of finding a mid box are really slim. Some guys don't see the attraction to the old Craftsman stuff, but I sure do! Be sure to post a picture of your stack if you haven't yet. I'd like to see it.

 

[Zeeman]

How's the pitting after the blasting? Any tips to minimize warping? I bought a 20lb pressure pot and a box of walnut shells at HF the other day to try my hand on the SO box I'm working on.

Well, I think it looks much better. The pictures don't really show how much rust was taken off. It got much smoother, almost to the point where I think a filler primer and hammered finish might take care of the areas I was so worried about. I though I would have to put a skim coat on the whole top, sides, and everything, but now I probably not going to do that. I'll just pound out the major dents and fill. It will be a lot of work, but I tend to get carried away sometimes and spend way more time than I should on a project.

As far as warping, I did not experience any. I did the majority of it in a large blast cabinet with really fine media. I don't know exactly what the grit was. This was an expensive machine being run by a giant 220 compressor, so it was pretty easy except the two lights inside the cabinet did not do much good once the media started flying. Very clean though, not like the pressurized tank I used on the top and inside of the lid. Still not warping though, and no holes blown through. It surprised me that I did not have any blowouts, especially on the bottom. The metal in these things is a little thicker gauge than the cheap stuff today I guess.

 

[tym]

^ Lucky! Reminds me of a donor door I bought for my '69 Camaro project. Looked just a little surface rusted, but after my body guy media blasted it, it looked like Swiss cheese. Wound up re-skinning the original door for 5x the price. LOL.

 

[wrenchr]

Thanks wrenchr. I looked on Craigslist in California, and those guys have plenty of vintage gray and reds to choose from. Here, near Atlanta, they seem to show up rarely. My chances of finding a mid box are really slim. Some guys don't see the attraction to the old Craftsman stuff, but I sure do! Be sure to post a picture of your stack if you haven't yet. I'd like to see it.

I have the intermediate now, just acquired it this past summer. I will get an updated pic soon. it is tall with that 3rd box now.

 

[Renchi]

This thread is great! Please keep the updates coming, Zeeman.

 

[thehorse13]

A dremel tool would work wonders on the rough edges of the metal cut out. It would also be 100x faster than a hand file.

 

[Zeeman]

I have a dremel, but not too many attachments. Making right angles look good with a dremel, I don't know how that would work in small areas. Which attachment would I use?
Thanks for the reply.

 

[Zeeman]

This thread is great! Please keep the updates coming, Zeeman.

Will do. Thanks.

 

[Zeeman]

Wrenchr, that looks good. I wonder now how old my box is. Several things are not the same as most of the ones I see Like:
The badge is metal on mine not plastic
The top corners don't have the rounded tab that goes onto the front where the lock is
The inside of the lid on mine has a sheet metal rectangle piece, not the rods
My handles are loops, not the aluminum recessed type
Where the sides wrap around the front is thinner on my model

Any ideas on the age? I don't see a date stamp, but it could have been blasted away.

 

[wrenchr]

My bottom and top are from the early 70's while my newly acquired mid box is from 67 if memory serves me right.

 

[Zeeman]

Thanks. My bottom is '72 I believe. I think by chest is older.

 

[PelicanPines]

Seriously good thread... it's so something I would have saved from the garbage... would NOT have done such a wonderful job fixing it... My solution would have been BONDO and spit.

My goal would have been to make it functional and use it... not a full fledged restore.

My baseball cap is off as I bow in your general direction.

 

[stg454]

Any recommendations on a color match for the red? I have a three piece box from the '90's that the finish on the top box got rusty after being in storage for over a year. I'd like to refinish it if I can find a matching color for the red. My box is red with black drawers.

 

[Tynee]

Any recommendations on a color match for the red? I have a three piece box from the '90's that the finish on the top box got rusty after being in storage for over a year. I'd like to refinish it if I can find a matching color for the red. My box is red with black drawers.

I understand a lot of guys use Rustoleum Sunrise Red, at least on the SO stuff. I looked at a rattle can of it last time I was in HD, but haven't sprayed any yet to see what color it actually is.

 

[Zeeman]

Pelican, Oh I've spit on it, or at least wanted to several times. Not having a welder is holding me up, so I'm on the hunt for a nice/cheap one as I type this. Thanks for the complement. You might want to hold your bows til you see the final product though.

 

[Zeeman]

Any recommendations on a color match for the red? I have a three piece box from the '90's that the finish on the top box got rusty after being in storage for over a year. I'd like to refinish it if I can find a matching color for the red. My box is red with black drawers.

I used the sunrise red on my bottom cabinet drawers. You can see a picture of it in this thread. Some people use the safety red, so I guess it's just whatever looks closest to you. The red was faded on my drawers, and the sunrise red did look more red than the orangish color on the original drawers. I think that if you stick to one color combination you will be fine. In other words, if you get more Craftsman boxes, just make sure you paint them the same color. I'm not doing a perfect restoration, so sunrise is close enough for me. There are other threads here on GJ that discuss the topic. Good luck with your project.

 

[wrenchr]

Pelican, Oh I've spit on it, or at least wanted to several times. Not having a welder is holding me up, so I'm on the hunt for a nice/cheap one as I type this. Thanks for the complement. You might want to hold your bows til you see the final product though.

HF flux core mig would do the job, you can get one for around $100.00.
The stick welder would work to.

 

[Zeeman]

I'm hoping Santa will bring me one early. I'm looking at the Lincoln that will take gas, but still be 110 volt. I can stick weld OK, but I've actually never tried mig. I have been tempted to get a cheaper one, but just can't make myself do it. I don't want to regret my decision if it's not really a good machine. Would probably work though, you're right.

 

[Zeeman]

I've done a little more since I last posted. I think I got what I wanted to get accomplished with the two real bad spots on the left, front, and bottom. I got a new Lincoln welder, but did not have any gas. I am a real, hands on learner, so I just went at it. I **** at welding as you will see from my pictures. But, In my defense, I was welding some really thin (22 guage) sheet metal to rather rusty stuff. This is my first attempt at flux core welding. Here is what I started with.

Here is the bottom in place. I know it's ugly, but some filler and drawer liner will fix that right up.

Here's a few pictures of the sie and front befoe and after

 

[Tynee]

Hats off to you for jumping in and trying it.

 

[Zeeman]

You can see my blow outs in the next picture. there was nothing backing up the bottom where I was trying to weld.

 

[Zeeman]

I was constantly worried about whether all the heat I was putting into the chest would warp some metal, or make the lid not fit any more. Both front corners lined up pretty nice, and the lid fits flush with the front. I welded the bracket that holds the middle drawer, and that seemed to stabilize the whole thing. The center drawer should not sag nearly as much now.

 

[wrenchr]

Looking good Zeeman!!!

 

[Zeeman]

Hats off to you for jumping in and trying it.

Thanks. I'm glad I don't have to make a living welding!

 

[Zeeman]

Thanks Wrenchr. Another month or so, and I'll be putting my tools in it. Maybe.

 

[wrenchr]

Any scrap copper flat stock laying around? If so clamp it where you are welding, behind. I'm a novice welder as well and that helps me with the blow through. I have one from eastwood with magnets on it.

 

[Zeeman]

I have heard of using copper as a heat sink, but I don't have any, and could not get behind where the blow out was. It's a double wall side there. I just need to practice a lot, and get some copper.

 

[Stadger]

Very impressive. With all your blood, sweat and tears in it, are you gonna replace the label with one that says ZEEMAN?

 

[PelicanPines]

Very impressive. With all your blood, sweat and tears in it, are you gonna replace the label with one that says ZEEMAN?

At a minimum... badge it "Remade in USA".

 

[Zeeman]

Very impressive. With all your blood, sweat and tears in it, are you gonna replace the label with one that says ZEEMAN?

No. I'll just use the original metal one. It looks similar to the plastic 'V' with Craftsman above it like I have on my other chests. Sorry I don't have a picture yet. Thanks for the encouragement.

 

[Zeeman]

At a minimum... badge it "Remade in USA".

Now, you might have something there. I guess I could make up something to personalize it. Let me think about that a bit. Thanks.

 

[thehorse13]

For your first time welding with a MIG setup, you've done well. I've seen waaaaay worse first tries than this. I believe the Lincoln rigs have the heat and line speed chart right inside the cabinet door just like the Hobarts. Setup your welder according to the chart and you should have a good starting point for creating solid welds.

Get yourself a bottle of gas and keep practicing. When dealing with patching sheet metal, the key is not to overheat the work area. Try tacking the metal on opposite ends. For example, tack the bottom left, then the top right. Always try to tack farthest away from the previous tack weld.