This is precisely why you don't drink the Kool-Aid for any brand. Research every tool, and only pay for the premium crazy-price brand if it really is better made!
I only buy Snap-On when they have a clear quality advantage over other brands, and only if that quality makes the tool substantially more useful or safer. Torx and Hex bits are a good example. Or some of their diagnostic tools, etc.
So thanks for pointing this out.
and to the original poster - remember, a tool box just holds the tools, any toolbox can do that, saving a lot of money with a much better value toolbox frees up a lot more money to buy ACTUAL TOOLS!
Good advice from Wild Cowboy, but no analysis or research will be found in this thread of nonsense*. I compared 40" boxes in another thread and found Snap On to be one of the heavier boxes available. Lista boxes are the heaviest; those things are tanks. The Waterloo Pro was comparable to Snap On.
My guess is the sheet metal gages are chosen based on processing requirements and minimum bend radii. If you want tight structural bends, you need thin metal. Snap On, probably like other truck box manufacturers, just uses more of it.
As for boxes not making you money, whoever started that rubbish? Of course boxes make you money. Every time you open a drawer and find the tool you want quickly, your box is making you money. Consider the alternative. No box, multiple boxes, sticky drawers, two handed drawer opening, etc. The only question is whether the premium box is worth the premium price. To answer that, we'd need to compare the boxes more carefully. Can the cheaper boxes actually hold as much stuff? Are the drawers optimized for mechanic tools? What upgrade, trade in, trade up, resale opportunities are there? How will they hold up over time, over rough ground?
*There's very little information on GJ about who actually makes the best tools, or even what the criteria should be for best. When it comes to tool boxes, in my mini review, I compared usable drawer area. Never seen that before. I found some surprises. A 36" wide classic 60 has nearly 20% more useable drawer area than a HF 44 and the Snap On weighs 75 lbs more. The KRA takes up less wall space, stores more tools, and stores more weight in each drawer. I wouldn't use this solely to compare boxes.
So again, I agree with Wild Cowboy, if you have any doubts (and I don't think you do or should) get real data, not hearsay from GJ.
