Miller6386
Well-known member
Hey folks, Never heard or seen this forum until the last week or so. (Get comfortable this may go on for a while.) I will start by saying I am 30 years old and have been wrenching for YEARS. Tore my tricycle apart at 4 and was changing oil in my parents cars at 8 or 9. I am a Maintenance guy at a shop here in MI. I am the ONLY maintenance guy in the 400'000 sq ft. building and they haven't had a maintenance department in the entire time they have been around... (About 10 years now) So there is TONS AND TONS AND TONS to do. I have a maintenance background and have always done all of my own repairs... I have a VERY CHEESY Kobalt 4 drawer bottom chest with the stainless steel 3 drawer Kobalt top... This was just a unit I bought a few years back when I was in Tennessee doing some work installing some heat treat furnaces... In all of my past maintenance positions I could get by with just my "electricians" bag with basic wrenches and nut drivers and a full set of screwdrivers..... I have had MANY tool sets over the years and they always seem to get left behind during break ups so I am starting pretty much from scratch again... I have all the basics plus a handful of welding grips and BFH's. I was brought to this site in my search for a new toolbox. I have been reading reviews on 2 units that I pretty much have it narrowed down too. The Masterforce 41" from Menards and the US General 44" from Harbor Freight. I really really like the HF one EXCEPT it doesn't have the latching mechanism for the drawers.. That is the key selling point (or more leaning point) to the Menards one. I just like the thought of that latch system.... WHY??? I have no idea I just get kind of OCD once I see something I like.... My box will get rolled around VERY VERY little as I have a large table I built to roll around the shop when needed.... So the latches are most likely overkill but I just like the thought of having to "lift" the handle to open the drawers.... I know I am sold on the Menards upper box as it has the pull out work area... Which is nice for tearing apart quick projects. I have a ton of tools I will be buying this weekend and I know that the box I have now will not hold anymore as I already have no room. I have read some GREAT reviews here on both units and am still very very torn... I am hoping that a hands on with them will make the decision simpler as I have only shopped online..... I also have another option as there is a Snap On guy who comes in to the shop but he was supposed to come in yesterday but didn't make it... Some of the assemblers at work have told me he sometimes has good deals on trade in units.... (Did I mention I have only had this job 3 weeks now?) Well in my time there I have found many many tools that would come in very handy but I do not have... So I will be ordering a new multimeter. My Fluke took a nasty fall from a scissor lift and didn't survive so I am looking at an Extech kit from Lowes.. I will also search here for reviews on those.... But now that I can post on this here site I am going to make my rounds for an hour or 2 and see what I can learn and contribute.