Tool boxes, fixed or mobile?

[mball]

I have a quick question. What do you guys consider in deciding if you should use Lista type fixed cabinets or tool chests on wheels? I currently have a Craftsman tool chest on wheels but I have seen some of the fixed cabinets like Lista, in the gallery and they look pretty awesome. I don't know if I can afford Lista, but there have to be some others that are less expensive and still good quality.

Any input would be appreciated!

Thanks!

Mike

 

[meissen]

I plan to get the Harbor Freight 13 drawer unit which is on wheels but then I plan to take the wheels off and have it be fixed with the ability to add wheels later. I already have a smaller rolling tool cart that I plan to use to put down tools and parts on while working on the car.

 

[Packard V8]

After fifty years with roller-bottom-middle-top chests, I've decided to put them up on blocks. They've gotten so heavy, they can't be readily moved anyway. It also is an anti-theft deterrent.

If one thinks back, tool carts did not become common until boxes got too big to move.

jack vines

 

[kursplat]

do you need the tools to go places with you? working in a shop environment and you could change jobs, or is this a home set up and fixed storage with maybe a shop cart will work?

 

[Jack Olsen]

It's a matter of personal preference -- and also of what type of work you're doing.

I personally don't like hardly anything on casters. It's usually not worth the effort of moving the whole toolbox or table for short jobs. And then the thing I've moved is in the wrong place the next time I need it. But my garage is very small. And I tend to work on something and get it done pretty quickly.

You can put Lista type cabinets on casters, though.

 

[mustangmccance]

it also depends on how big your shop is. I have 2 tool boxes on wheels but they never move. I hang my most commonly used tools up on pegboard on my walls. but I have a small craftsman mobile workstation that has 4 drawers and I mounted a vice to it. I do not store my tools in this cart but when I am working on a project not in my main work bay I load the tools I am using up on my little cart and move it close to my project. I keep the tools in that cart near my project until I am ready to stop working on that project. then I put the tools up and put the cart away. it stores in a small cubbyhole made just for it. this works well for me. but if you have a small shop there is really not much need for a mobile tool box.

 

[crewchief888]

i prefer my boxes on wheels, mush easier to move when i rearrange and reorganize.

 

[HemiRambler]

Lista all the way!!!! I have a number of them - they are top shelf - not cheap by any means but a SMOKING DEAL when compared to Snap-On or Mac etc.

Also the Lista's come with options - in terms of the base. If you get the "Fork Lift" base it's no problem drilling them for wheels. I mounted mine on wheels in the garage - which I only move - maybe every few years. Still I prefer the wheels.

I have some others in the basement - without the fork lift base (beggars can't be choosers) I plan on just welding up a perimeter frame and mounting the wheels and a brake to the frame - again I will rarely if ever move it but it's so much easier when you need to.

 

[mball]

Thanks for all the input. Now that you mention it, although my box has wheels, I never move it. I like the idea of making it difficult to steal and just having the mobile cart for my projects. More stuff to save up for!

 

[mball]

I plan to get the Harbor Freight 13 drawer unit which is on wheels but then I plan to take the wheels off and have it be fixed with the ability to add wheels later. I already have a smaller rolling tool cart that I plan to use to put down tools and parts on while working on the car.

Meissen, are the Harbor Freight boxes constructed well?

 

[Jack Olsen]

I got some Vidmars and used the space underneath them to store long stuff like pipe clamps and cheater bars.

I don't know if Listas are significantly better. But I like the Vidmars a lot.

That's a Harbor Freight box (painted Craftsman colors) to the right. I took the wheels off of it and turned it into a work bench -- kind of like the Vidmars.

 

[Alaric.H]

I vote for getting both.

 

[Ocho]

I got some Vidmars and used the space underneath them to store long stuff like pipe clamps and cheater bars.

Genius.

 

[mball]

I love the idea of the under cabinet storage. Nicely done Jack! I have never heard of Vidmars. I am assuming it is a good cabinet? Pricewise, how does it compare to the Listas?

 

[Jack Olsen]

Lista, Vidmar, Equipto, Lyon, New Era -- I believe they're all pretty comparable. But I'm not an expert. They're all ridiculously expensive new, in my opinion, and remarkably expensive used.

For example, this Vidmar set will set you back $3,600 new at the discounter Drillspot:

And just one of these Listas will cost $1,200 at the same place.

Still, they're pretty great once you own them. Very strong. You can pull the drawers out all the way and then stand in them. They they glide back in nice and smooth on their rollers.

I would never in a million years pay full price for them, though.

And I can't say that I could put up with their standard colors, either. Got to be green.

 

[tool whore]

Just picked up one of these 4 drawer carts today. Had a coupon for $100 from road and track (dentists' office), was about to expire. Box is super heavy for a cart. I have not put it together yet, but I climbed all over the display (testing purposes).

http://www.harborfreight.com/hand-t...b-capacity-four-drawer-roller-cart-95659.html

 

[Concrete B]

I personally like everything on wheels. my garage is small, and I'm always adding tools, so I need to be able to make room on short notice.

 

[35mastr]

I prefer rolling. Easier to move if need to be rearanged. Not to mention being able to clean the whole shop. Like washing the floors,Sweeping,Ect.

 

[wantedabiggergarage]

Also, you don't want them directly on the floor if you have moisture issues (rain, snow, frequent mopping).

 

[mball]

Wow! Those things are pricey. I will have to continue to check out Craigs List and other sources.

As I live in the land of salt during the winter months, I know I definitely have to keep them up off of the floor.

Good arguments for both wheeled and non wheeled. Hummm. Decisions, decisions.

 

[ddawg16]

Automotive tools....roll-around....everything else, fixed.

I can't always get the jeep into the garage....at it is, I only have about 1" of clearance with the top off...with the rag top on....no fit....

 

[Stuey]

Fixed. I've found that I don't move them around much, and I don't store much beneath my units that do have wheels.

 

[meissen]

Meissen, are the Harbor Freight boxes constructed well?

I don't own one yet but the one that I've looked at in the store seems well built. Plus there's a pretty good following in this thread: http://garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1146000#post1146000

 

[chief ben]

I have Both, Fixed and some on Wheels, I don't move them to much, other than to clean under them, This Big Red one I built over 20 years ago when I worked for other shops and put it on wheels just so I could move it easyer from place to place, Working for other shops didn't last very long and I went to work for my self, But what I like best in my shop is my Rolling Work Bench
It is on wheels, has Light on top, some draws, and a vault,
And Just About Every Tool I Need,

 

[sberry]

One on wheels, one fixed and have a couple carts and benches where things reside. Another old box for misc stuff,,, pullers, some specialty things etc. A couple racks and carts in use too. I make almost everything movable, can use a pallet jack. Had to raise the shelf on the parts washer about an inch for it to fit.

 

[corvairdad]

I struggled with squeezing two Corvairs into my 20X19 garage because I also needed to fit my workbench, compressor, storage shelves, and rolling toolchest stack.

. I've given up and have gone to a single angled bay. This has allowed me to roll my toolchest right next to where I'm working. Makes it so much easier than walking back and forth for the right tools.

 

[SpiderGearsMan]

my kia tool boxes are vidmar
built like file cabinets

 

[SpiderGearsMan]

I struggled with squeezing two Corvairs into my 20X19 garage because I also needed to fit my workbench, compressor, storage shelves, and rolling toolchest stack.

. I've given up and have gone to a single angled bay. This has allowed me to roll my toolchest right next to where I'm working. Makes it so much easier than walking back and forth for the right tools.

hey , my mom had a monza 60 with a fake grille

 

[m.james]

I have a quick question. What do you guys consider in deciding if you should use Lista type fixed cabinets or tool chests on wheels? I currently have a Craftsman tool chest on wheels but I have seen some of the fixed cabinets like Lista, in the gallery and they look pretty awesome. I don't know if I can afford Lista, but there have to be some others that are less expensive and still good quality.

Any input would be appreciated!

Thanks!

Mike

My experience if something is out of you price range just a little bit and it something you want don't settle for less. Either wait out for a sale or save a little here and there. Quality over anything else will always make you happy.

 

[Krokodil]

Nice storage idea below the cabinet Jack!

 

[mball]

I do agree with buying quality. It only takes a little more to go first class!

 

[taylorguitar]

Following this thread and my thinking of taking the casters off my tool chest, I have been looking for pics/ideas of how people have mounted them to the floor. I don't want to put it in a table configuration, but don't want to just remove the casters and set on the floor either. Any advice or redirection appreciated...

 

[Sweet Old Bill]

I never attached wheels to my 41" box, i just laid some 2x4's on the ground & set the box on top of those. KISS Keep It Simple, Stupid. (no offense meant)

 

[MeentSS02]

I debated this for a long time, but in the end, I realized that the mobility of a tool box would not be worth it to me...well, that and I wanted a decently sized work bench, a compressor, and tool storage that all had to fit in a confined area. Going with fixed tool boxes that act as pedestals for a work bench seemed like the best solution to my problems in MY garage, so that's what I went with. That said, I'm just starting my garage build (we just bought our first house a couple months ago, so this is my first attached, not rented garage), so I don't have anything yet except for a work bench that was already here when we moved in that provides no tool storage, and takes up all the room that could be used for said storage. My Lista cabinets (two of them) arrive tomorrow, so I'm anxious to see how that works out.

 

[MeentSS02]

Oh...and I forgot to mention that I primarily work on my car in my garage, and for me, just throwing the tools I need on a plastic roll around cart from Harbor Freight gives me the mobility I need when I'm really digging into things (including transmission/clutch swaps, work on the rear axle, and soon to be a replumbing of the entire fuel system). Rolling an entire tool box in my garage just wouldn't work well in the confines of that space.

 

[csp]

Following this thread and my thinking of taking the casters off my tool chest, I have been looking for pics/ideas of how people have mounted them to the floor. I don't want to put it in a table configuration, but don't want to just remove the casters and set on the floor either. Any advice or redirection appreciated...

I built a frame out of 4x4's for mine to sit on.

I also took a piece of plate steel and drilled holes in it which correspond to the caster bolt holes. I drilled a center hole in the plate and welded a nut to the backside, then threaded in a machine base pad. This allows me to level the box since my garage floor is at a slight slope. My toolbox serves as a base for a stainless countertop, so I wanted it plumb and level. The 4x4 base brought the height up to a comfortable working height also.

I have a smaller box which acts as a cart to take tools to a project.

 

[larry_g]

What one needs to do is look at cost per cubic foot or square inch of drawer space that is needed. I've seen some of these high end tool boxes and find that a lista (or competitor) will be cheaper. Lista makes a rolling box as well as stationary. Do your research and figure out what you need and want. Having both may be what is needed. I desire both as I want to use some cabinets for bench pedastals and the rolling tool box for moving to a rig undergoing maintenance or repair.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[taylorguitar]

What one needs to do is look at cost per cubic foot or square inch of drawer space that is needed. I've seen some of these high end tool boxes and find that a lista (or competitor) will be cheaper. Lista makes a rolling box as well as stationary. Do your research and figure out what you need and want. Having both may be what is needed. I desire both as I want to use some cabinets for bench pedastals and the rolling tool box for moving to a rig undergoing maintenance or repair.

lg
no neat sig line

lg, i appreciate the advice, but i already have the perfect box for my needs. wouldn't change it if i had $1M to spend. I just don't want to set it on the floor and I don't want a wooden base for moisture and termite reasons (mostly moisture). I am thinking about bolting it to a metal base using caster holes.

if anyone has done that it would be good to see and read about it.

thanks