US General toolboxes - anyone have one?

[slixtyfive]

I'm just curious as to the quality of the US General tool boxes sold through Harbor Freight.

Let me know if you have any experience with them.

[Toyz]

One of our local members recently purchased one. I am impressed by the quality and smoothness of drawer operation, especially when price is considered.
Paul

[LM14]

I looked at them real hard. They seem to hold up pretty well. Have a friend that has a couple different US General roller cabinets and they are good. The smaller carry-around boxes aren't nearly as good.

I ended up buying mine at Menards. Go to Menards web site and you can get them for about the same money, shipped free to the store. You can also choose from 4 different colors. The stores only stock the green ones but mine only took 5 days to get here. I liked the drawer layout better on the Menards boxes.

http://www.menards.com/main/tools-hardw ... c-9188.htm

Here's what I ended up with last month:



The turning point for me was I could use a Harbor Freight coupon for the base cabinet but the top would add way more. Also, the one at Harbor Freight I went to look at, some drawers didn't open smoothly and the latch wasn't positive. All my drawers are very smooth and the latches work great on my Menards boxes, plus they are blue! I got the whole deal at Menards for basically the same money. The big difference is when Menards has an 11% off store-wide sale. I got $115 back and used that to fill in a couple holes in my tool supply.

SPark

[slixtyfive]

SPark
So they applied the 11% on it even though it was special order?? I assumed that was only for 'in stock' items.

[LM14]

I guess it isn't considered a special order. When you look at them on the web site it will show if the discount is going to be applied. I already got my rebate and spent it!

I think they do it so they only have to keep the green ones in stores. Mine came from a Menards warehouse so they already had the blue ones there.

SPark

[foodstick]

I am not going to even throw out a price because it would get everyone worked up, but about 8 years ago Menards got this one time only shipment of some NICE 41 inch rollers and top boxes, nicely built with great rollers and ball bearing drawers..they were so cheaply priced ! The boxes were black with gold trim. I should have bought more..they had these incredible smaller rolling ones as well .. I forced a friend to buy one.I told hime he was crazy not to.

Then at the end they had a few left here and there, marked even lower. It was tough not to buy them all.

I always wished they had sold a nice 41 inch stepup box with full width drawers for the 41 inch..but they didn't.

[ras4434]

Only problem with a bigger box is the need for more tools....such hard decisions...more tools or slick parts.....well maybe both.....guess I really don't need to pay the mortgage this month.

[therealjoeshmoe]

go to home depot get a husky box.. they are good! may not be as heavy as mac but they are ball bearing drawers, if you watch u can buy it piece by piece and get a smoking deal, Ive got $250 in all three of my boxes and they were all brand new... if you dont have a home depot credit card get one you will save another 5 or 10% on your purchase.. then turn around and pay off the balance... thats what i did...

[LM14]

I guess after reading Joe's post, I forgot to mention that my top and bottom box both have grip latch drawers and everything is on bearing slides. The deep drawers have dual rows of bearing slides for heavier loads. The thin drawer in the bottom of the top cabinet is actually a stainless steel work surface that pulls out and latches. Didn't think I would ever use that feature bit I really like it now, it's at the perfect height for me.

When shopping for a box, check into the drawer load rating, that varies a lot from brand to brand. Also compare stiffness of the drawers, there is some real junk out there with name brands on it.

Also, after having my original Craftsman roller cabinet since '80 (the 27" wide one seen in the pic above beside my new blue boxes), and having a second one that is slightly bigger and all grip latch and roller slides, I am completely disappointed in the newest Craftsman boxes. In just the last 2 or 3 years they have cheapened them up drastically in the drawer thickness and latch for the drawers. I wouldn't recommend a Craftsman box at this time. They actually discontinued the better boxes and changed to something cheaper about 3 years ago as far as I can determine.

SPark

[PFM-64f100]

I have had my HF tool box (the big one) for 5-7 years now with no troubles. Only problem I have is not enough room but I have bought the extra boxes for it. Works great for me.

[DJ Bill]

I have the Husky box from Home depot, and am extremely satisfied with it. and it is LOADED. I also have the black tool cart for HF, and it is an excellent value for the money. As far as their other toolboxes go, the bigger ones are pretty good values, just make sure your box works well before leaving the store with it. Their 20 percent off coupons are not supposed to be used on the toolboxes so you have to wait for a killer sale or join the savings club to get a really good price. I joined the club when I got my black one, it saved me about $20 but I never did use the card for anything else and it expired.

Trust me, if you have more toolbox space than tools it won't be long before you fill it.

[JOSHF100]

Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.
I've had them for 3 years and they have held up fine.

[Mike391]

I have the 44" US General/Harbor Freight bottom roller. I've had it for about 3 years, and it's been great. I looked at new Craftsman boxes in Sears, and I honestly think the HF boxes are sturdier.

FYI, you can no longer use the HF 20% off coupons on toolboxes, but they go on sale pretty often. And they are a great value at the ~ $350 sale price. On another forum I'm on, a guy posed a picture of his girlfriend standing in the top drawer. Apparently no harm was done to the box (or the girlfriend).

I've also heard a lot of good stuff about the Menards boxes, but the closest Menards to me is over an hour away. So I went with HF.

[Greg D]

I have a Kobalt from Lowes.
All welded (not folded and riveted) stainless construction, very heavy duty wheels, power panel, comes with drawer liners.
Upper & lower boxes for under $1000.
VERY easy to keep clean!
I would and will buy another lower cabinet - to replace the craftsman POS my air tools are in.
They have more than one drawer configuration available too.
This one worked for the stuff I keep in this cabinet though.
This is the pair I have;

[slixtyfive]

Thanks for all the great feedback here guys! I really appreciate it.

scbolt - I was actually thinking of doing something like that also (just getting lower cabs and putting a bench top on them). Looks good!

Keep the comments/info coming if anyone else has any......

[therealjoeshmoe]

Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.
I've had them for 3 years and they have held up fine.

good lord!!!

[Hoofbeat Racer]

Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.
I've had them for 3 years and they have held up fine.

[quote="scbolt"]Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.

Damn, thats awesome. My wife wants a new kitchen, I wonder if she would go for that.

[62galxe]

Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.
I've had them for 3 years and they have held up fine.

Due to limited floorspace I may copy that idea. Are the boxes the only support for the top?

[JOSHF100]

Here are mine. I put them on a platform and built a solid top.<br abp="1584">I've had them for 3 years and they have held up fine.<br abp="1585"><br abp="1586"><br abp="1587">

<br abp="1588">Due to limited floorspace I may copy that idea. Are the boxes the only support for the top?

Yes the boxes are only sitting on a 2x6 frame. I took all the casters off to use them for other things.
Thanks for the compliments guys.