Best inexpensive tool cabinet?

[5030]

Hard to beat the US general cabinets for price.

 

[ponytug]

Home made.

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@Larry Caldwell I don't know which is more amazing, your rack, or the collection of vice grips. Wow.

@Muhammad
@Steppenwolfe x2 on the used / estate / auction route. I have picked up a couple of tool chests at pennies on the dollar, and always with great additions to the tool collection for free.

I also have some old metal lab benches that are great for storing bulky tools / chargers, etc. plus you get a nonflammable work surface.

Good luck on getting things organized.

All the best,

Peter

 

[BoylermanCT]

I outfitted my garage with NewAge Bold 3.0 Cabinets. Cheaper than any other cabinets I could find. I am finishing up my new pole barn shop this Spring, and will be buying more for the shop. Before and After.

 

[JethroB]

I plan to make a workbench using a couple of 24”-30” inexpensive pre-made cabinets w/drawers like mentioned earlier. Formica or plywood top is still undecided. HF sounds good too.

 

[mikester]

These seem to go on sale once in a while for around $200. Cheaper than trying to find one used

https://www.homedepot.ca/product/husky-46-inch-9-drawer-mobile-workbench-with-solid-wood-top/1000682125

 

[mwemaxxowner]

It's not great for organizing many small hand tools, but I've found I like taking old metal filing cabinets for tool storage. I have managed to find an assortment of them absolutely free that businesses were throwing out. It's working really well to keep my power tools, hammers, caulk, caulk guns, nails, screws, etc.

 

[Egon]

Picking a cabinet for tool storage will depend on the amount and type of tools and ease of accessibility for those tools. It may require more than one cabinate.

Perhaps shelving for the larger portable tools like power saws. A proper mechanics chest for the wrenches etc. Then another chest for smaller woodworking tools like hand saws, chisels etc. And do not forget the small portable tote for when you need tools somewhere else.

Also add in a work bench which can include lots of storage.

Evaluate the storage area and make plans for different scenarios. Then pick the one you want.

 

[shooterdon]

BTW, I used to build my own but with the cost of wood, buying steel cabinets is a better option. I have a full wood shop and still bought my last two tool cabinets.

 

[forgeblast]

Honestly I really poured over reviews before buying my harbor freight one, but its awesome. Went together easy, the wheels are strong, and the drawers slide out really easy. I would not hesitate to get a few more, they go on sale a lot and they started doing a lot of new colors too.

 

[JethroB]

I have good intentions of getting organized, but my fallback seems to be 5 gallon buckets and plastic dish pans. Habits I picked up from my dad.

 

[Muhammad]

I have good intentions of getting organized, but my fallback seems to be 5 gallon buckets and plastic dish pans. Habits I picked up from my dad.

Yeah I've got plastic bins with mixed tools. It's somewhat difficult to find drill bits with this system.

 

[arto98607]

Title says it all for the most part., I'm in the market for a tool cabinet to get organized.

I have a mixture of small hand tools and power tools and would love to be able to store everything in a uniform setup that saves spaces and keeps things organized.

I currently have open shelving that I'm not very good with... I need drawers and some closing door cabinets for things like worm saws or my little welder.

I've seen tool cabinets all over the place, and some seem to be of pretty decent quality for the price. Then there are built in setups too, maybe a possibility in addition to a rolling cabinet.

What tool cabinet and shop organization setup do you have and would you buy it again?

I bought my second tool chest many years from Costco when they first had the large model Hammerhead stainless steel chest at a great price.

As someone already mentioned, I would look for used tool chests on Craigslist, Nextdoor for sale, Facebook marketplace etc.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

I have good intentions of getting organized, but my fallback seems to be 5 gallon buckets and plastic dish pans. Habits I picked up from my dad.

Folgers Tool Holders.

 

[Rich B1]

If you want new, it is hard to beat the HF US General line of tool boxes. Mine has been awesome. I did a lot of research and looked at a lot of mid-range boxes and it was hard to even equal let alone beat HF.

For used watch Craigslist and FB Marketplace. Always deals showing up

 

[TractorGuy]

I think Home Depot's Husky has HF beat. I bought three of the 46" models this year to replace my old MAC boxes. $350 apiece.

Husky 46 in. W x 24 in. D 9-Drawer Gloss Black Deep Tool Chest Mobile Workbench with Hardwood Top H46MWC9V2-C

The all new Husky Extra-Deep 46 in. 9-Drawer Mobile Work Bench has arrived. This black tool chest with wheels work bench is 24.5 in. D, which creates 36% more storage capacity than traditional 18 in. D units. The extra-depth on the Husky 46 in. tool chest also means there is a much larger solid...

www.homedepot.com

 

[newbury]

Title says it all for the most part., I'm in the market for a tool cabinet to get organized.

<snip>

What tool cabinet and shop organization setup do you have and would you buy it again?

And for shop organization I'm heavily into pallet racking. Here is where I try to put a few of the numerous pictures I've uploaded to TBN showing my pallet racking

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but this new system HAS NO ORGANIZATION for attachments. So it was a pain just to dig up those.

Pallet racking is available in all sizes, putting it together is like tinkertoys or Lego. If you need to reconfigure it it's a 1 man job and I've done it several times.

 

[quicksandfarmer]

I would pick a wall and get a HF stack or two and the rest of the wall I would load up with heavy duty kitchen bases. Get some overhead cabinets to match.
You would have a 24" work base that way to work on using a Formica top..
That would give you a place for sockets and hand wrenches etc. and a place for chainsaws and larger items.

I'd like to hear more opinions on kitchen-style bases. My concern is that tools tend to be a lot heavier than cooking implements or pots and pans and that even sturdy cabinets would be overloaded. Also, for something heavy and bulky like a power saw bending down and pulling it out of a cabinet is an awkward motion.

 

[ponytug]

FWIW: I put heavy items like air tools, saws and routers in drawers. No lifting, no bending. Lighter stuff goes lower down.
My only two cents on kitchen bases is make sure that the drawer slides are heavy duty and come all the way.

All the best,

Peter

 

[Tomtint]

I have a number of tool boxes. One that is at my house is a KOBALT that I bought at Lowes. It's a 6' tall 6' wide stainless steel setup. Decent quality fairly large and it was like 2k. At my shop I bought a used Snap On chest that's 90" or so wide and pretty deep. Obviously the quality is superior, but it was used..a few slight blemishes but I only paid 1500.00 for it. I then hung a HF side box on the side of it to hold cans and some other larger things. Put a HF rolling chest on the other side as well. The rolling chest from HF is like 300.00 and takes about 1 hr to assemble. Quality is what it is. .. for light use it's fine. Heavy usage would turn it to scrap metal in short order. As stated win earlier posts.. keep chcking Craig's list. I think if you pay a littl more for quality..you wont have to buy it again and spend more again.

 

[EddieWalker]

I had a Craftsman rolling toolbox a few decades ago and it was OK. I wouldn't buy anything Craftsman today. I did not like having my tools in there. I tend to put things down and forget where I put them, so I was always looking for my tools.

When I built my current shop, I remembered that Auto Shop in High School had all their tools on a wall so you could see every tool. What was really good about this is that you could also see if a tool was missing!!! I have all my tools on display so I can see if one is missing. All my wrenches are on a screw, with metric on one side, standard on another side, and every size next to the bigger size. If I have two or three of the same size, I use a longer screw. Same with screwdrivers, wrenches and everything else. Sockets are in a tray on my workbench so I can see if any are missing.

Other tools like sanders, PEX, Copper, sheetrock and so on are all in individual plastic tool boxes with what's in them written with permanent markers so I can see what's there and grab the correct toolbox for the job I'm doing.

All my shelves are open so I can see what's there, and how much I have to use. Nail gun nails are all sitting on a shelf, just like light bulbs and spray lubricants. I can stand in front of my bench and see everything without moving.