Tool cart design advice

[Broseidon]

I'm currently attempting to design a stainless steel tool cart that i can set my tool chest on top of and move around on my construction sites. Normally it would be no problem and id just buy one off of U-Line like this one https://bit.ly/35gCPeg but the issue is i move from site to site pretty often and I don't have a truck so whatever tool cart i design has to be able to fit into the trunk of my 2014 corolla. So far what i have is using fittings from my line of work to essentially make it clamp together but i am just worried about the structural rigidity and it being unstable due to it being top heavy from my tool box. So far my design (picture of my rough sketch attached) has the material for the shelving being made of 20 gauge 304 stainless sheet metal. the supports are made of 1 1/2 tubing with a wall thickness of .065. I'm not worried about the clamps or the tubing in my design since i use them for work and know they will be more then strong enough, but i am more worried about when i weld my tubing to my sheet metal that it wont be able to shear or be unstable and wobbly. The overall height for the cart i was thinking to be 42" tall with a width of 20" and length of 32" not including the push/pull handle. If anyone has any information or experience with designing something like this and can offer me any information id greatly appreciate it.

 

[Broseidon]

I forgot to mention that the castors I'm intending on using are the Haul-Master 8" Pneumatic castors from harbor freight. I'm not set on using these castors 100% so if anyone has any better suggestions id be happy to hear them.

 

[Firebrick43]

We made chassis/frames for boxes around our plant and it was 40 acres so lots of miles on them.

First, pneumatic casters ****.
Don’t do it.

If you feel like you need softer movement get spring loaded casters

The best and most durable we found was to build a frame with six inch casters in the corners. Place a washer on each bolt between the caster and frame mount.

Then weld to the frame a center axle with 8” roller bearing wheels with steel center/hard rubber tires. Wheels will be outboard the sides. Now remove the washers and the box rolls very nice even over uneven terrain, spins on a dime. All the weight carried on center wheels, casters are just to balance. Washers are just to get the right lift on the casters while welding.

 

[spike99250]

A little more info would be handy, such as what type of work do you do, what size or type and how heavy is your box.

I built one with square tubing. it has three shelfs with 1/2" plywood on them.
I am a Union Carpenter and use this on big jobs. The problem is it is heavy as heck and I only bring it out if I know I am going to be there awhile.

I bought a used 24 wide plastic Uline cart to take to smaller jobs or places without an elevator in for the reason of carrying up and down stairs.

I also have a small collapsible two wheel dolly if I just need to take a box for a day or two.

I thought about one of the convertible dollies but haaven't needed it yet

No pneumatic tires,learned the hard way, got two hours out of brand new ones before the flats started.

 

[Broseidon]

My box is pretty much some version of the Kennedy 520, and once o have it fully loaded with tools it’s going to be around 100 pounds max. I’m a welder as a professional so I’m just trying to figure out if I should order extra material to make some kind of cross supports or something to ensure it’s stiff enough.

 

[danski0224]

I like 4 swivel casters.

The stainless cart in your link has 20 gauge shelves and is rated at 150 pounds or so per shelf.

What kind of fittings are you using that come apart?

 

[Broseidon]

They are 1 1/12 sanitary Ferrells with a tri clamp to hold it together. They are really wrong and won’t have any issues holding together under stress.

 

[Sawdust_]

What the heck is a "sanitary Ferrell with a triclamp" Never heard of such a thing and I guess Google hasn't either.
Can you post a picture?

 

[jimkinney]

Try sanitary ferrule tri clamp

20ga seems thin to me.

 

[Broseidon]

Try sanitary ferrule tri clamp



20ga seems thin to me.

I looked up some other carts and most of them are using 20ga so I figure that would most likely be enough. To do what I need but I could easily go up in thickness or add like a 1/4 flat bar frame for it to sit on

 

[spike99250]

I think I would look into the convertible dollies/hand truck with solid tires.

 

[tatra]

Probably too small and light duty but at Costco I’ve noticed the sample carts there are collapsible three shelf carts made of stainless . Also would a pack out type of tool storage work ?

 

[danski0224]

Try sanitary ferrule tri clamp

Aha.

That would make a pretty neat knockdown cart.

High risk of theft of said cart, too...

 

[Broseidon]

Probably too small and light duty but at Costco I’ve noticed the sample carts there are collapsible three shelf carts made of stainless . Also would a pack out type of tool storage work ?

Pack out boxes would technically work but the tool box I’m putting on the cart would hold my hand tools and then I have a lot of miscellaneous tools that we pull from a gang box to load a tool cart up with that just wouldn’t really work with a pack out set, and as for the cart being liable to theft I’d most likely put a Milwaukee tick in it somewhere so I can always track it, along with one in my tools. Besides luckily most of the sites I’m on are highly monitored medical facilities or pharmaceutical labs so they have cameras everywhere so if someone was to steal my cart it would be caught on camera most likely.