I'm with you on that...I got a good Snap-On from the Mac tool guy. He knew I was in the market for one and Mack Trucks was on his route. When people started retiring from Mack, he would get all sorts of stuff cashed in. He didn't want the Snap-On in his truck, so I scarfed it up in a good deal.

BTW, the Mac man was the only one who would stop by work regularly...the Snap-On guy couldn't be bothered with a measley $50-$100 purchase from me every other week. So my basic wrench and socket sets are all Snap-On, but the later purchases (like metrics) are Mac. Still think Snap-Ons are the absolute best for a working tech.

 

One thing you have to watch, DRAWER HEIGHT. I went from a tech1000 (mac) to a Snap on, what would fit in the mac would not fit in the snap on ie. shallow sockets that would stand up in one i had to lay on their side in the snap on. the point being I have a larger box cubic inch wise with less USABLE space. Greg

 

You're absolutely right, Greg. My old box was a Gray Professional, which I sold to my buddy for a hundred bucks. Anyway, I had some wrench holders that I stacked my wrenches in, and they fit fine. Same with my box of drill bits. Would sit flat in a drawer when closed. But now, I have to put my box of bits in a deeper drawer, and have to take the biggest wrenches out of the wrench holder and lay them flat.

I had my eye on a particular Snap On box for the last ... 10 years. Since I entered the workforce I guess. 40" wide KRA series top and bottom. But for the price, I bought a used Gray instead, and a new Waterloo top 4 years ago. 2 different shades of red. Anyway, that combo worked for me from 97 till last year. Then, I needed a 12 mm 12 point 1/2" drive socket, the Mac guy showed up. I saw a used KRA box, top and bottom, asked how much. $1500, tax in. SOLD!!! He threw in the socket for free. Woop de doo.

I still need a few things for the box though. The bottom drawers in the top and bottom boxes need new slides for some reason. And the previous owner couldn't figure out how to bolt the chest to the roll cab, so he used self tapping bolts through the sides with flat bar. I've got to put riv-nuts in those holes too, to make it look somewhat "intended". I've also got a Mac side cab that holds manuals, stainless hardware, and assorted brass fittings, caps, and plugs. The top of that makes for a handy "staging area" for my tools I'm not using at the moment, but will be in a few seconds.

This setup suits me fine now. The Mac guy also owes me a second key. I'd get it from the Snap On guy, as well as the new drawer slides, but I haven't seen him since the day I showed him a Snap On box from a Mac dealer.

 

Some tool guys have no sense of humor. Don't be too suprised if you can make Mac locks fit the snap on. I have the barrel type snapon locks in my mac. took a little, but they work. Greg

 

bigrigfixer it's time to hunt down a Snappy dealer. Mine replaces my hammer drawer slides about every 2 years, under warranty.
Where I work we don't always work in one bay all the time so our boxes are getting rolled around constantly. It seems the Snap On boxes hold up to that the best. There are only a couple guys in our shop that have top boxes. The rest of us use the top of the rollaway as a workbench.

 

Yeah. Everybody in Port Kells is getting screwed by this guy. My brother in law had some warranty stuff, and the Snappy guy came in, and took it. Gone! No replacement, no goodbye. So now, the guy has stolen, broken tools. Not to mention that my BIL still owes money. The guy just won't collect.

At my job, we had to call the local head office to get a new 3/4" impact gun.

A buddy of mine bought some tools off the truck, was going to pay cash. The Snap On guy puts it towards the outstanding balance, and then adds the new tools, just so he can apply more administative fees. It was supposed to be a cash sale, not a credit and payment. So my buddy figured it out real quick that he was getting less for more (less than 2 seconds when he saw the credit screen on the computer) and said "You're not doing that" Snappy says "Too late, it's already in the system."

I don't know how to go about it. How do we get rid of him if we can't get him in?

Sorry for the rant and hijack.

 

I wonder if complaining to their head office will help. It only took me about 12 emails to them about another problem before I finally got a reply
At least the guy that finally phoned was good and helpful but I sure wasn't impressed until that point.
We've been lucky here that we've had good Snap On dealers. I won't comment on the Mac dealers we've had in the past.

 

We are lucky, both our Snap On and MAC guys are easy to deal with.

 

getting a little off topic here, but When I started mechanicing at my mechanics garage (long story) we had a Snap~on guy that I bought some stuff from. The guy refused to take cash and never asked for a signature on anything, when he left, Snap~on came in to collect the accounts and everything had been placed in one shop account, it was politely discussed as everyone knew who had what and no one had a problem wanting it paid, but the old driver. Snap~on had two items that we had never received listed, but we were that shop with the least amount of problems to deal with and both my garage and the Snap~on man tried to get be to become a tool distributor.

 

This is a good thread. I'm just curious to know where the idea that a Craftsman Pro box is half the cost of a Snap On. I bought a new 40" Snap On KRA last year for $2400. The "equivalent" Craftsman Pro box was $2100+shipping. The Snap On came with usable drawer liners; the Craftsman came with useless ones that would need replaced. The Snap On came with matching locks; the Craftsman cost extra to have the locks matched. In the end the Snap On box was only about $50-100 more, and it was worth it. It is a much better box. If I had a jerk dealer it would have been a lot more, but Donnie is the best and I don't even buy much of anything from him. He has always taken care of me. He actually talks me out of buying more tools than he talks me into.

Incidentally, I'm one of the dorks with a big fancy Snap On box full of Craftsman tools. I just don't see the point in spending 2-3 times as much for a tool that is only a little bit better. I used to use tools off the truck and had 10 times more problems with them than I have had with Craftsman. I have Craftsman tools because I prefer them over the competition. I don't understand why some people seem to have such a big problem with them.

 

Comparing the price of that Snap~on box and the Craftsman box, you did right. I know a couple of former tool truck owners and I know the repo rate on the boxes. I tried to talk a friend out of purchasing a Snap~on box and to spend, the $600 on the stainless box at Sam's (he saw some at a local car show he liked and they are made by the same company, only polished and $800 + more). He is up to his eyeballs in debt and doesn't think he is, but if his toolbox gets repo'd I would be able to pick it up. Just don't understand why some people need a box bigger then them, that they still have room to live in, and yet if the shop got broke into (it has before) they go for the portable "jobsite" boxes first, then the big expensive Snap~on's ( oughta be loaded with goodies, right), last ones they touch are those old Homebrew looking things that actually earn the living.

 

I've never been in a shop that was broken into, but if I had up until my new box, believe me, mine would have been safe. I could have won the ugly toolbox contest in most any shop in the US. The thief would have missed out, because it might be a ratty box, but it was packed full of Snap On and other quality stuff.

It's easy to tell that those thieves have never been around the shops that I've been in or they would have known that alot of the big boxes are empty.

Have a great day,
Doc

 

Bigrigfixer, Contact the district office for Snap on and request to talk to the district sales manager (the dist. office # is in the catalog) Let him know about the problems with the local salesman.
I had a problem with a Mac man a few years ago, didn't get results at dist. level but I did get the satisifaction of knowing he lost TWO new box sales with the same bottom box. I wanted a new Tech 1000 top to go on my bottom, but he refused to finance through Mac credit so I bought from Snappy. He in turn sold the bottom to a guy in another shop, HE also wanted a top Tech 1000 box with the same Mac dealer. Again Mac refused to finance so the box was AGAIN traded in on a new snapon. Two lost sales on the same box! Greg

 

I have had a Snap on tool box for over 20 years had my current box since 1990. It was 2 year old used one I bought off the Snap on truck. One off the roller slides on the bottom drawer wore out my Snap on dealer replace it under warranty just this year. No question who the best. PS my dealer said that Snap on builds their on boxes.

 

Hey Guys, I just purchased a Cornwell 58" box. Love it! I had a Cornwell 41" before it. I have owned differant brands (because of expansion not wearing out) The first box I bought was a Matco. The reason I bought it?(your gonna think that this funny) He done the stair step test on it. He pulled all the drawers out in a stair step and walked up it.(of course the box was strapped to the wall) That impressed me. Later I wrecked my car and a guy wanted my box. So I traded the Matco for his car and a Craftsman box. It was a good box but I outgrew it. Thats when I bought the 41" Cornwell. Outgrew it as well. All have been good boxes!

As far as Waterloo making all the boxes, thats not totally true. There is three major manufactures of tool boxes. There is Waterloo, Kennedy and Remline. Waterloo does make most of them but not all. My first Cornwell- Waterloo (looked just like a 41" Craftsman except blue in color) The Cornwell dealer told me that their upper lines were made by Remline but they have changed there line abit since then. I think that my new one is a Kennedy because the touch-up paint bottle says Kennedy on it but who knows...still may be a Remline. All I know is that I love it!