[corndog67]

I agree that it's what's inside that counts....to a degree. I worked with one fellow who was using El Cheapo boxes to cart around some expensive stuff. Moving it around the shop one day, the roll-around just collapsed completely. A wheel gave out, but with so much weight the sides split.

I can agree wholeheartedly that in this business, the equipment list is endless! Just light night I snagged a matching tailstock for the 8" rotary table dad has. The shipping was far more than the unit, but the real issue was: He's owned the rotary table for 8 years and its never been out of the box. Why did I feel a need to buy the tailstock for it?

Pix, my bottom box is about to push the wheels through the floor of the bottom panel. I was thinking about making a little flat cart, like a furniture dolly to put it on. I just can't talk myself into buying an expensive, or even semi expensive bottom box, when I could buy some end mills or a digital chingadera, or a tenths something or other, or, or, or.......

As for buying stuff, I've got a set of Meyer .011-.062 gage pins that I've never used, I think I've used my Uni-Mike once in 15 years, but I've got them, that's what counts. I think I need a rotary table and tailstock for my garage, might not ever use them, but I need them.

[PixMan]

Pix, my bottom box is about to push the wheels through the floor of the bottom panel. I was thinking about making a little flat cart, like a furniture dolly to put it on. I just can't talk myself into buying an expensive, or even semi expensive bottom box, when I could buy some end mills or a digital chingadera, or a tenths something or other, or, or, or.......

As for buying stuff, I've got a set of Meyer .011-.062 gage pins that I've never used, I think I've used my Uni-Mike once in 15 years, but I've got them, that's what counts. I think I need a rotary table and tailstock for my garage, might not ever use them, but I need them.

That's just too weird. My dad & I essentially share his shop. We both have so much stuff in it that we forget who owns what. Among the stuff that we both recall he owns is an 8" vertical/horizontal rotary table. It's a Phase II #221-308 that my mom bought for him at his request, and it's never been out of the box in the 7 or 8 years he's owned it. Sunday night, the matching #240-001 tailstock came up on Ebay, so now I own that (for $21.60 + shipping.)

Perfect, more stuff we don't really need, but want.

You can certainly get a quality roll around for cheap if you look in the right places. I found this Kennedy #295B on Craigslist for $100.



It holds all of the cutting tools for the (free) lathe. Not nearly as bad as it looks in the photo, and for $100 I thought it was the deal of the century....until 3 weeks later when this one showed up on the same Craigslist:



This one has only 3 huge drawers, but they're roller bearing slides and are over 6" deep each. All stainless steel construction, $30. This one holds all of the Bridgeport tooling, and we even have a pair of 6x8x12 ground angle irons in the bottom drawer. (BTW, the unopened Phase II rotary table is in that wooden box in the upper-right corner of the photo.)

The deals on good "housing" for your tools are out there along with the good tools.

[Micah]

At best, I'm a sort of shadetree machinest. Yet, I find the topic interesting due to the San Diego CNC comments. I have learned at least one thing in my career. That is, appearance and impressions really do mean a lot. While I don't think much of a man who's capacity for judgement is as shallow as the brand of my tool box, I do think it is wise to take appearance into consideration if you plan on working for "the man."

It is very hard to overcome early impressions.

My tool box is probably 50% Harbor Freight. :banana: I don't care what they say, I love HF. No toolbox is complete without one of their pen magnets that extend out like the old bunny ear antennas.

[PixMan]

We have a HF store in Worcester MA (about 10 miles from me.) I recently took my first (and last) walk through the store...and walked right back out empty-handed.

I swear I've never before seen a larger assemblage of crap. I cannot imagine why anyone would spend a wooden nickel on any of it. Not one item in there, including the aforementioned pen magnet/bunny ear things, appealed to my senses or my wallet.

I'm happy for you if you enjoy the stuff, but really think you'd just die if you were to find QUALITY tools for the same price (or lower) as I am so adept at doing. I'd always been told that buying first quality only hurts once, but I find it doesn't have to hurt at all if you take time to look around and jump on a deal.

[Micah]

you'd just die if you were to find QUALITY tools for the same price (or lower) as I am so adept at doing.

I'm not sure pen magnets would come up on a craigslist search. But! I'm pretty sure nobody else even sells the wonderful electric fly swatters. Too bad. You'll never get your hands on one of them if you can't stoop down to go back to HF. :banana:

Electronic Fly Swatter

[corndog67]

At best, I'm a sort of shadetree machinest. Yet, I find the topic interesting due to the San Diego CNC comments. I have learned at least one thing in my career. That is, appearance and impressions really do mean a lot. While I don't think much of a man who's capacity for judgement is as shallow as the brand of my tool box, I do think it is wise to take appearance into consideration if you plan on working for "the man."

It is very hard to overcome early impressions.

My tool box is probably 50% Harbor Freight. :banana: I don't care what they say, I love HF. No toolbox is complete without one of their pen magnets that extend out like the old bunny ear antennas.

Micah, I'm a 29 year machinist, for 40 hours every week, it's my gig. Ahem, for the Man. I know some machinists that don't even have their own tools, I haven't figured that one out yet. They wouldn't get past the first interview, "Do you have your own tools?", "No?", sorry, we only hire real machinists. They don't like that attitude, but that's the way it is. You look at the companies tools, and everything looks like it has been thrown, more than once, everything is about worn out, from 20 years of people just tossing them around, and it is kind of sickening.

But, and this is a big BUTT, it's the tools inside that count. If half of your precision measuring equipment is Harbor Freight, you are not doing really tight tolerance work. Try sending a Harbor Freight micrometer to calibration. Or anything else they have. I'll admit I've got a Harbor Freight hose on my air compressor, and I might just buy an electric fly swatter, but I don't think I can rely on one of their $20 electronic calipers to be there, to actually be fairly accurate, and to continuously work for me. My mitutoyo 8s, had the original battery in it for over 3 years before I replaced it out of nervousness.

I know some of the wood box (Gerstner) boys too. Some are good, some aren't. I know a few shop owners and managers also. It seems, right at the moment, they are having a hard time finding people to come to work, come to work straight, not drunk or stoned, to come to work regularly, to not steal ****, to actually know their job, and to actually give a little bit of a ****. I've seen guys with the nicest box you can get, the big Gerstner, that after half an hour on a new job, just get fed up and leave, because they can't do the work. But they've got a nice tool box!!! Cause there ain't no fakin' it on the shop floor.

[MikeZee]

What tools do you need to be a "sheenist" ?' what a wonderfully simple question, asked by a wonderfully simple person. Am I in the right forum here, looking for skill or potential thereof. You need a sh1t load of 'em - 40 years and I still don't have enough, and trust me I have a whole shop full of 'em.

[Smrtman5]

Isnt that the truth. Never have enough tools. Im certainly guilty of the 'bought and never used' case too. Come to think of it, it was a rotary table too. My friend did use it to cut some gears once, but i wasnt around.

Anyway...
Ive been getting by with:
6" mitutoyo calipers
0-1, 1-2 starrett mics
0-3 starrett depth mic
6" rule

and cuz theyre always missing in the shop
single flute c'sink
small files
allen wrenches
box wrenches
screwdrivers
medium mallet
machinerys handbook


Most everything else i can borrow from the shop, but i have been slowly amassing more things. It is nice to have your own tools, you know they work and you know where they are.

I got a pretty good deal on a 6" B&S square in the box recently Not an everyday tool for my work, but sure is nice to have when needed!

Its funny how some of the seemingly most simple questions spark heated responses.

Heres a question for you guys: What size toolbox(s) do you use? Im on the 7drawer model, but im looking around to upgrade to the 11drawer.

[corndog67]

I've got a three drawer lower, with the big opening underneath (piece o'junk), 6 drawer top, and a 4 drawer center (nice ball bearing Proto).

A 9 drawer chest O'drawers hold all my stuff at home. It works OK, but it doesn't roll. It's up on milkcrates.

[PixMan]

Heres a question for you guys: What size toolbox(s) do you use? Im on the 7drawer model, but im looking around to upgrade to the 11drawer.

I had moved up from a 7-drawer Craftsman top box to the Kennedy 52611 model 11-drawer. The one thing to to be aware of if you do that is the size of the front drawer cover plate. This is the cover that you remove after unlocking the box and slide in under the bottom drawer.

On a 7-drawer box, that plate is just about the right length. When you slide it in under the bottom drawer, it doesn't stick out. On the taller 11-drawer box, that cover is so tall that it sticks out a few inches when it's in the stored position. I added the MC-28 2-drawer mid-box to get the 11-drawer box off the deck and get back some working space on the top of the roll-around. However, that cover makes it a pain in the arse to see what's in the top drawer of the MC-28 so I just have my 3 Mitutoyo blade mics in that drawer. I don't need those tools all that often so if their boxes are hard to see it's no big deal.

If I was doing it over, I would probably stick with the Kennedy 526 7-drawer top box and just add the taller 2604 midbox. It's wider than the MC-28, but if you're going to lose working space you might as well be adding storage space. I might still add that 2604 and sell off the MC-28 in the future.

[Smrtman5]

Thanks for the tip PixMan.

I was debating between getting a 2 drawer mid box or getting a bigger top box. Both has its appeal, i could use more larger drawer space as well as a few more smaller drawers. I guess ill go back and revisit that thought...

Does the 8 drawer model have the same cover plate issue?

[PixMan]

8 drawer model? Not familiar with that one. Got a catalog number? Is it a Kennedy?

Ooops. my bad. The Kennedy #526 is an 8 drawer. It does not have that problem with the cover plate.

[corndog67]

I've got a three drawer lower, with the big opening underneath (piece o'junk), 6 drawer top, and a 4 drawer center (nice ball bearing Proto).

A 9 drawer chest O'drawers hold all my stuff at home. It works OK, but it doesn't roll. It's up on milkcrates.

Alright, you guys shamed me enough, I can't take it any more. Today at Home Depot, I bought a 13 drawer ball bearing upper and lower, 40 in wide, hydraulic lifts for the top, it's not as deep as some boxes, and it was the last one they had, the floor model, for $269. Couldn't pass it up. Now what do I do with the 9 drawer bedroom chest of drawers I've been using as a tool box? Ahhh, the fireplace, that's the ticket.

[corndog67]

I've got a three drawer lower, with the big opening underneath (piece o'junk), 6 drawer top, and a 4 drawer center (nice ball bearing Proto).

A 9 drawer chest O'drawers hold all my stuff at home. It works OK, but it doesn't roll. It's up on milkcrates.

Alright, you guys shamed me enough, I can't take it any more. Today at Home Depot, I bought a 13 drawer ball bearing upper and lower, 40 in wide, hydraulic lifts for the top, it's not as deep as some boxes, and it was the last one they had, the floor model, for $269. Couldn't pass it up. Now what do I do with the 9 drawer bedroom chest of drawers I've been using as a tool box? Ahhh, the fireplace, that's the ticket.

I've still got the hunk o'junk at work, I don't need anybody roosting coolant on my new tool box.

[PixMan]

Well congrats! Pics when you get a chance would be nice.

BTW, they're crappy cell phone photos, but this is what I was referring to when I remarked about the Kennedy 52611 top box having a design flaw.





I love the toolbox, except for the way this only storage spot for the front panel overhangs anything below it. It's less of an inconvenience for the infrequently used (left to right) 122-127 2-3" , 222-125 0-1", and 122-126 1-2" Mitutoyo blade mics and Starrett SD167 Decimal Radius Gauge Set stored in the drawer below.

[Fadal Error]

This thread was a painful read. After the first two pages, I thought of the most important tool you will need.


Humility. It will take you farther than anything else.

[plasmator]

+1

This thread was a painful read. After the first two pages, I thought of the most important tool you will need.


Humility. It will take you farther than anything else.

[sbalder]

After reading through 12 pages of this post I feel I can't leave here without posting a few thoughts. I was a master auto technician and after several years in the corporate world I have a small business rebuilding cnc and automation equipment. The companies that buy my stuff inspire and humble me.

When I left the dealership I sold my 2 year old, 10-foot long, $10,000 Snap-on toolbox to help pay for a wedding and a home purchase. I purchased the 2 largest Craftsman Professional boxes and a 10-foot maple butcher block to span them figuring it would be easier to move and a great in a personal garage. Years later I also bought a Kennedy work bench and while it is nice it is nowhere near the quality of my Craftsman boxes.

Tool box fever spreads through a dealership like an oil fire. The thing is I grew into my Snap-on monstrosity rather than bought a huge box and then slowly added tools. There were other techs with junk tools and a beautiful box and they could barely do a brake job. One other technician I worked with had an ancient Snap-on box, and a Charles Manson hairdo, but his tools were complete organized, his work was strong, and he carried himself as a true professional. He was promoted to Shop Foreman and was a delight to work for.

Bottom line (I think) is that professionalism counts in all industries. How you communicate, how you act, and how you produce and add value are important no matter the field. An employer looks for clues during and after the hiring process to measure these things. If you can be professional with a junk box and cheap tools, more power to you. In my experience, however, a person is never a just a no-caring slob in just one aspect of their lives.


One other thing following my mini-rant..... I have a set of Harbor Freight micrometers and calipers that see most of my layout work in my shop. I also have a new Starrett S908 Toolmaker's set that only sees the light of day when I need to be more precise. Does anyone else follow this strategy- one set of inexpensive, I-won't-cry-too-much-if-they-fall-on-the-floor measurement tools and a master set of name brand stuff that will one day go to the grand kids?

[jahd32]

i can safely assume that if i used a crappy set of mics and a plastic vernier stored in a old shoe box i could still do a job just as well as you if not better as i am a skilled tradesman(toolmaker) and know how to use a look after my tools not having the slightest interest to what toolbox i pull around my workshop to transport my equipment from one machine to another just an opinion as i would never employ a person on what toolbox they have not that i have many coming for an interview and bring toolbox with them i only look at what they can do as will many other employer.

[extanker59]

This thread was a painful read. After the first two pages, I thought of the most important tool you will need.


Humility. It will take you farther than anything else.

+2