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Hey guys, this has probably already been discussed, however I’m new to the forum and want this straight from other guys in the trade. I have several thousand dollars in Snap On and Mac tools, and no more room in my current box. Seeing that I’m starting my second year in school on Monday I want to take advantage of my student discount, suck it up and buy a box that will last me the next 20+ years hopefully. So here’s the question, Snap on Masters series, or Mac Macsimizer? ( any other options? ) Any advice is MUCH appreciated.
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[quote=”nickwarner” post=134862]Last time I changed shops I had a flatbed wrecker winch my box on and haul it for me. Easier than trying to move the pig in a pickup or trailer.[/quote]
I’m way too nervous to be having a flatbed move my tools anymore even though it’s a common practice. I’ve had it done before when I had a few smaller toolboxes strapped together. It’s rough to have to bring up multiple boxes separately and on the 3rd one you’ve got the bed fully tilted to the ground with 2 boxes tethered up at the front of the bed waiting to suddenly come rolling on down to you.
The real ticket with this is renting a Penske box truck with a liftgate. It’s rated to 3,000lbs which means it can handle 4,500 under ideal conditions (not winter), which means only really big boxes will have to be unloaded reduce weight to an acceptable level. You can get a 26ft commercial box truck with hydraulic brakes so you don’t need a CDL, and it costs about $150 for 24hrs with walkaway insurance. Last time I had a flatbed do it, they were charging a $150 flat-rate for toolbox moves. It feels so much better to strap your toolboxes to a wall of a truck than only to a floor, although the liftgate operation can be sketchy if the operator is not a smooth operator.
I’ve had a large MAC chest and cabinet (long ago forgotten the model numbers) for about 30+ years now. It still looks good, works well, and has no rust or finish issues other than a small blotch where some brake fluid bubbled the paint.
I have a smaller cabinet for my misc. specialty junk. No reason to change at this point as both will outlive me. 🙂You could always buy used from the tool guys. Toolboxes get repoed all the time. I scooped up a Matco 6 series for $2500 vs the $10k sticker price of buying it new.
Well its been a while since I wandered onto here, so let me dust off the cobwebs….lol
I started out with stacked craftsman boxes, three piece stacked to be exact. They weren’t even ballbearing drawers, talk about tough pulls! It was tippy as heck and no work space either, and no place to store big pry bars, long extensions, etc that I was acquiring. I picked up a Mac 1800 series box(discontinued in the late ’90s) that had scuff marks from riding in the tool truck for a while. I think I shelled out $3200 for it and paid it off. It was getting kind of full, and wasn’t very deep compared to a lot of boxes out there but at least it had all bearing drawer slides. So when Mac came out with the 1900 series Macsimizer, I went ahead and ordered one up in black. From what I was told way back then(march 1999) I was one of the first in town with one, and had more than a few guys come by to look at it before ordering one(tool guy asked permission first). They weighed in around 1100lbs empty, and when mine arrived, it was so long that it took two liftgates to unload. I can attest, that they are painted inside and out, and I still have this box, to this day. It has survived more than a few moves, and right now has almost as much junk on top of it as it does in it.
So yeah, Mac boxes, particularly the flagship models (1900 series) are built like tanks, and hold up. Snap Ons are a little lighter, but are also very well made. Mac has cleaner lines IMO, but the Snap On boxes, seem to have more of a classic look. I’m not a fan of Matco or Cornwell boxes. If you take care of the boxes, the tool guys will give you a good trade in. How good? I got $3400 for my old box on trade, yep, more than I paid. My Snap On guy has tempted me in going with an Epiq box, to which I’d want more than what I paid for my old box new. Tool guys have a large margin on tool boxes, so they have wiggle room to make a sale. With that said, you don’t have to get the biggest they offer, because if you take care of yours, you’ll get it back on trade down the road. Save the money on more tools. Don’t be like our GS, with no 3/8″ impact or air ratchet, or torque wrenches, torx bits, etc. Granted, he has a decent sized craftsman box, but its full of stuff he doesn’t even know what for. That’s what you get when everything has been handed to you though, lol. If you’re hurting on space, Mac and Snap On have a bunch of middle of the road boxes, lot of times on special that won’t break the bank. You can also look at the Lowes Kobalt boxes, they seem to be ok. If you’re having to work all over the shop, consider a decent tool cart. Years ago, carts were cheap things you worked off of, and were only a few hundred bucks. Now they have these fancy carts that I am eyeing, with 6-7 drawers in them, and are basically bigger than my first bottom box! Now you can store a bunch of commonly used tools in them, freeing up box space. Just some things to consider.Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind on getting a box. I have a SnapOn Masters KRL722 love that box plenty of room to grow your tool collection. Don’t have any experience with Mac tool boxes as nobody in my dealership has one its either SnapOn or Matco. I would stay away from Matco lots of owners complaining about rust, have a tech at work fighting with Matco to get his box fixed or replaced its less than five years old and its has rust all over the inside.
[quote=”CadyTechFL” post=136892]Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind on getting a box. I have a SnapOn Masters KRL722 love that box plenty of room to grow your tool collection. Don’t have any experience with Mac tool boxes as nobody in my dealership has one its either SnapOn or Matco. I would stay away from Matco lots of owners complaining about rust, have a tech at work fighting with Matco to get his box fixed or replaced its less than five years old and its has rust all over the inside.[/quote]
The guys at my work hate the Matco boxes as well. The guys that have bought Matco have been having rust issues. The Macsimizers are NICE boxes. Most of the technicians at my work have the Mac boxes, and they have been through hell and back. Even the oldest of the Macsimizers in the shop still are not having issues with rust.[quote=”CadyTechFL” post=136892]Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind on getting a box. I have a SnapOn Masters KRL722 love that box plenty of room to grow your tool collection. Don’t have any experience with Mac tool boxes as nobody in my dealership has one its either SnapOn or Matco. I would stay away from Matco lots of owners complaining about rust, have a tech at work fighting with Matco to get his box fixed or replaced its less than five years old and its has rust all over the inside.[/quote]
The guys at my work hate the Matco boxes as well. The guys that have bought Matco have been having rust issues. The Macsimizers are NICE boxes. Most of the technicians at my work have the Mac boxes, and they have been through hell and back. Even the oldest of the Macsimizers in the shop still are not having issues with rust.I have never purchased a new box . I have always gone the used route . On the last one I was crammed full. Two bottom cabinets and one top . Tool truck rolled in and had a trade in . Made the deal on a well cared for unit . Traded my old boxes for more than what I should have received and got the box for a third of retail . As stated before . Get a roll cart . Oh and one other thing …….keep the extra junk out of your box . The infamous nut and bolt drawer(s) where tools can be stored instead of clutter .
[quote=”CadyTechFL” post=136892]Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind on getting a box. I have a SnapOn Masters KRL722 love that box plenty of room to grow your tool collection. Don’t have any experience with Mac tool boxes as nobody in my dealership has one its either SnapOn or Matco. I would stay away from Matco lots of owners complaining about rust, have a tech at work fighting with Matco to get his box fixed or replaced its less than five years old and its has rust all over the inside.[/quote]
Wow . Rust issues ? I have a Matco and the only place I have had issues is with the flat black painted covers on the casters . Granted the box is 15 years old . Guess they are not doing the prep on the paintwork ? This is my first Matco unit .
When I moved up to my current Mac box, I did away with the junk drawer. Still accumulated junk, but put it into a tub beside the box. Sometimes you can score used boxes with a good price, and as long as they are made strong, it makes sense. Buying a used craftsman box isn’t a good deal unless you’re flat broke and need something bad. If you are like many who work in more than one bay and have to go back and forth across a shop, tool carts make sense. I bought one from Mac 17 years ago, the plastic cart, and added a drawer under it eventually. I still have it to this day, but I am finally retiring her. I’m moving into a new snapon cart that is bigger, and rolls so much nicer. If you are going to load the cart down like I will mine, don’t go cheap. Cornwell carts have some cheap wheels on them and don’t roll as well, and for the size, they weren’t that much cheaper for instance.
[quote=”1oldmechanic” post=138782][quote=”CadyTechFL” post=136892]Sounds like the OP has already made up his mind on getting a box. I have a SnapOn Masters KRL722 love that box plenty of room to grow your tool collection. Don’t have any experience with Mac tool boxes as nobody in my dealership has one its either SnapOn or Matco. I would stay away from Matco lots of owners complaining about rust, have a tech at work fighting with Matco to get his box fixed or replaced its less than five years old and its has rust all over the inside.[/quote]
Wow . Rust issues ? I have a Matco and the only place I have had issues is with the flat black painted covers on the casters . Granted the box is 15 years old . Guess they are not doing the prep on the paintwork ? This is my first Matco unit .[/quote]
Yeah I was surprised when he showed me then I searched google and found others are having similar problems.
I have a Matco toolbox and no rust issues at all,3 years old.Snap On’s toolboxes are not strong,weak welds in spots and they have rust issues.Matco did drop test and the Snap On did not do well,the drawer did not close very well.Matco did the video taping to prevent a lawsuit and is the same toolbox used.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPSaZfeJbzA
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