Dewalt recently launched their larger format ToughSystem DXL tool storage system, and the entire line is in stock and prominently displayed at Home Depot stores nationwide.
Shown above are the 1- and 2-drawer tool boxes, and stores also have the dolly and top work surface that can also be used with other Dewalt ToughSystem tool boxes.
I have a 5pc combo in for review consideration (thank you, Dewalt!), and am quite pleased with the features, construction, and quality so far. This is a well-made and versatile storage system for specialized environments and applications.
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From what I hear, it is selling fairly well with commercial customers, and I think it will be a hit with industrial users as well.
Makita MakTrak tool storage products went live on Home Depot’s online store 9 days ago, with inventory counts of a couple of dozen of each tool box and organizer. Independent retailers’ orders have not yet shipped out.
Makita spent an enormous sum to host influencers at a launch event, and there are signs they have been pushing additional spending into influencer content and partnerships.
Makita is also running sweepstakes and has been heavily promoting MakTrak on social media and on other platforms.
I have had a couple off-the-record conversations with persons involved in the development of the Makita MakTrak tool box system. I still haven’t seen any of the products in person. From these discussions, I would say that MakTrak could potentially benefit specific user needs.
Makita approached modular tool storage products from a new and unique angle, with the exact same being true for Dewalt ToughSystem DXL products.
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ToughSystem DXL and MakTrak have 3 things in common – both systems are based on a larger tool box form factor, both have higher prices than we’ve seen in the modular tool box space so far, and both target very specific user needs and pain points.
There are piles of Dewalt’s large form factor tool boxes at Home Depot stores nationwide, sitting around and collecting dust. That’s what I’m seeing at Home Depot stores in my area, and also on Home Depot’s website when checking for different zip codes around the country.
Following are links to the relevant products so that you can check inventory levels at your closest stores.
Dewalt ToughSystem DXL at Home Depot
Makita MakTrak Storage Boxes at Home Depot
- Rolling Tool Box
- Large Tool Box
- Extra Large Extension Tool Box
- Medium Tool Box
- Deep Medium Organizer
- Low-Profile Medium Organizer
- Deep Compact Organizer
Home Depot looks to have gotten the very first shipment of MakTrak products and actually has them in stock.
Independent retailers have pushed back their MakTrak shipping ETAs and don’t seem to have received any inventory yet. It’s unclear if Home Depot has received multiple shipments so far, but it doesn’t look like it.
If that’s the case, it means Home Depot is still selling through the first couple of dozen units of each tool box and organizer type, at least 9 days later.
Both systems are large, different, and pricey.
Nobody is rushing to Home Depot stores to snag Dewalt DXL tool boxes, and it seems to me that Home Depot hasn’t sold through the couple of dozen of each MakTrak tool boxes they received so far.
Why wouldn’t Home Depot be treating this as a litmus test of sorts? If one large, different, and pricey tool box system is sitting around unsold in the middle of peak holiday season foot traffic, what will that mean for the other?
I have been thinking about what all of this could mean. I see two potential implications:
i) Might the DXL system’s seemingly poor in-store sales performance at Home Depot stores torpedo’s Makita’s chances at getting into stores nationwide?
ii) If arrangements and contracts for MakTrak to launch at Home Depot stores are already in place, could DXL’s performance serve as a predictor for how things might go for Makita?
It’s also possible that Home Depot sales performance for Dewalt’s DXL modular tool storage system, which has a large form factor, addresses specific needs, and is priced higher than other options on the market, won’t foreshadow the same for Makita MakTrak, which has a large form factor, addresses specific needs, and is priced higher than other options on the market.
Not every product is going to be well-placed at Home Depot.
Consider Milwaukee MX Fuel, the red team’s line of cordless light equipment. The Home Depot stores around me don’t sell plate compactors, sewer drum machines, core drills, or 10-foot tower lights, and so it’s not a surprise that you won’t find MX Fuel tools or equipment there.
I would argue that it’s clear Dewalt ToughSystem DXL wasn’t an ideal fit for Home Depot either. What about Makita MakTrak?
There are more thoughts I want to add, but this post is likely to get me/ToolGuyd in hot water with certain parties (again), and I’d rather not add more fuel to the fire below the pot. Still, this seems like a significant inflection point in the modular tool storage industry, and is something I think is important to discuss.
Dewalt ToughSystem DXL didn’t thrive at Home Depot, although as mentioned it seems to be gaining support in commercial and potentially industrial spaces, just as Makita MakTrak is set to enter the market.
If Makita MakTrak tool boxes and organizers were to launch at Home Depot stores right now, would they sell better than Dewalt’s DXL system tool boxes and workstation components?
Objectively speaking, I think that the Dewalt system could be used as a litmus test to predict Makita’s sales potential at Home Depot, as there are many parallels between DXL and MakTrak systems.
Subjectively speaking, I hope that’s not the case. Even though the new system is not well suited for my needs or wants, differentiation is good – more options are always better.
Scott K
Are there other brick and mortar retailers with the DXLs on the floor? I wonder if HD is a place for customers to get a hands-on look with purchases being made elsewhere. Do you think these have the potential to replace typical metal tool chests used by mechanics? I never understood how those get moved if you switch workplaces – this seems like it could solve that challenge.
Stuart
Yes, but not home centers.
DXL combos are better described as modular and customizable work carts or stations. It could substitute for some metal carts in certain environments, but won’t replace the storage capacity of higher volume storage cabinets.
There are haulers and truck rentals that can move larger mechanics tool cabinets around.
Chris S
The cost per cubic inch is vastly higher than metal tool chests as well.
If you go with a higher priced Milwaukee tool box (one of home depots nicer options https://www.homedepot.com/p/309404633 ) you spend $988 for 27,326 cubic inches of space.
VS
(3) of the Dewalt 2 drawer boxes ( https://www.homedepot.com/p/331161716 ) for $987 only gets you 6,264 cubic inches. Thats also ignoring the fact that we don’t get wheels with that. Add another $189 to buy Dewalts plastic dolly.
You get over 4X the space for 1 dollar more…
Nathan
Being 6’3″ maktrax makes little sense to me. Yes lots of space big dolly but let me lay it down width wise on the floor to be able to use it.
As opposed to stacking up smaller boxes on a dolly that I lever upright so it’s tall. Making my tools closer to me from the floor
I looked at them the other day but I just don’t see an appeal. Other than the slide under a bed cover. But I see the guy down the road breaks his stack in 2 and does the same with Ridgid I think. He’s a plumber.
eddiesky
I have the Dewalt cart (wheeled base) with several System2.0 drawers and its horrible (I’m 6’3″ as well). The drawers don’t open well, and its still a stoop. I’d rather have the larger single drawers stacked but the damn thing wobbles. And I don’t have the top cover/lid/shelf workspace. But yeah, who is gonna lie a cart flush with ground that is tall?
Funny thing is, the Makita Large case might fit my Dewalt flooring nailer… who engineers these products???
John
I’m very curious to know how much brand loyalty extends to tool organization systems.
Are tool owners invested in their particular brand reluctant to commit to a different brand’s organizer system?
Stuart
Tool users can be very brand loyal, but from what I’ve seen most will not go with less suitable solutions because of it.
There aren’t enough cordless battery-powered tool box integrations – in my opinion at least – to greatly influence decisions with respect to compatibility.
There are plenty of examples on social media where tool users have a mismatch between tools and storage.
Trevor
“There aren’t enough cordless battery-powered tool box integrations”
agree! Seems like an obvious thing to do, but other than a DeWalt and a Makita offering there is little out there.
Stuart
You mean Milwaukee? They have lighting products and a vacuum, and the air compressor can kind of sit nicely on top of a flat stack.
Old Suburban Dad
I’m sorta brand loyal, and have a decent batch of Makita LXT.
But since the old macpacs were so crappy, I invested in a bunch of packouts.
Had maktrak existed back then, I would have had a hard time choosing. I think maktrak looks great for the job site pickup truck folks. But my packouts rarely leave my garage , and for that, they are pretty much ideal.
MFC
Tool box color doesn’t matter at all to me. I mainly have DeWalt and put it all in Packout and Ridgid boxes. I do have some DeWalt drawers, but only because they were an exceptionally good deal.
Corey
It’s funny you say that, because I’m looking at the DeWalt system *because* of color.
Over the last two years here in the Washington DC area, we’ve had something like 25 of our technicians experience truck break-ins. They’ve lost a staggering amount of Milwaukee tools and packouts. We’ve noticed the thieves have ignored higher dollar equipment if it’s not red.
I’m working on outfitting the trucks with some standardized inventory, and I’m trying to figure out the best way to implement this over different truck styles. I love the idea of the techs being able to move the inventory out of the truck for the yearly count, but I don’t want to invite theft by having a portable box of copper gift-wrapped for the thieves.
I’m still just not convinced that spray painting a packout bin is going to provide enough camouflage.
Harrison
Gotta love that classic ‘Steal Me’ red.
I’ve also tried to avoid Milwaukee where possible, as it’s basically the only brand used by local sub-trades.
Sticking to Makita and the euro brands has been successful in avoiding accidental tool & battery mixups around the jobsite.
MM
I am very picky about tools, and there are brands which I respect and tend to gravitate towards but I am not blindly loyal to any one them and my mantra is that any brand can and does make some turds along the way.
I try and stick with a smallish number of cordless brands so I can maintain battery cross-compatibility as much as is practical, but I would think nothing of putting Dewalt tools in Packout, or Milwaukee tools in Toughsystem boxes.
JR Ramos
I think these two lines serve very different types of users but I also think that neither is typically the HD kind of customer. If one is more likely to be found at HD then I think it’d probably be the Maktrak fellows.
I wasn’t impressed at all with the DXL boxes when I looked at them at HD a few weeks ago. They seemed a bit weak and as if the drawers would sag on the bottoms over time (with enough weight and/or as the plastic ages and relaxes). Bulky for the available storage space, expensive, and not as sturdy as a decent metal tool box/cart/chest. Maybe it fits some trades or scenarios better than where my perspectives are coming from. I can see it being a popular option for YouTube “shops” and some home gamers that like the form factor and don’t mind the expense.
For these kind of products, my takeaway might be the opposite, to where I remind these two manufacturers that HD should not be a litmus test for the validity or potential success of these particular products. They’d love big sales volume of course but I suspect HD just isn’t the place this time.
Goodie
I saw these a week and half ago. Plastic seemed a little thin for loading a bunch of tools in, but the drawers had nice slides and latches. I had a hard time understanding where these would work best. For my money, the metal chests that HD, HF, and Lowe’s offer are a better value for limited mobility setups. These could work on a maintenance crew’s cart or as a rolling tool cabinet.
While they are nearly the size of MakTrak, I don’t think they share much in common. Makita’s are sold as “chest” designs that you access through the top. DeWalt DXL leans into using drawer. Makita’s seem to be aimed at a construction/renovation job site, while these are aimed at maintenance folks in an industrial setting (or maybe someone who has some mobility needs to get to multiple industrial sites.
Goodie
Forgot to add this…
MakTrak seems cool, but I have yet to figure out how all of the tools you put inside don’t slide around and get banged up when you tilt the stack to carry it. I have visions of bent saw bases and/or a jumble of sockets and wrenches piled up on one end of the box. Are there internal dividers? Do you need to channel Marie London and cut special Maiden foam to hold everything in place?
Goodie
Marie London = Marie London. Autocorrect sucks.
Jason
Marie London?
Hal Smith
Marie Kondo
Skylar
Best comment on the post.
Goodie
LOL. Autocorrect double sucks.
Julian Tracy
To me, these two system have little to nothing in common. The Makita is for trade folks carrying boxes of tools to and from jobsites, the Dewalt is for folks that want a larger rolling toolbox that they will only be breaking down occasionally. The Dewalt size is so large as to be basically unpracticable to move while loaded IMO.
The Makita might have had a chance had they jumped aboard with some drawer options, but the overly large big bulky separate boxes really only probably appeal to plumbers, maybe electricians, but good luck getting those folks back from big red. In my experience, plumbers and electricians are not the guys that dabble in different brands to get the best tool for the job. They don’t require finesse or perfection and tend to only use their stable of red tools.
As a finish carpenter, I see no appeal at all in either and I’m a big Makita user since the 9.6/14.4volt system and have had packout,sold them off to use Stacktech and have my van outfitted with fixed in place Toughstack drawer units.
Harrison
I see Maktrak less for subs, and more for framing and heavy construction in timber, steel or concrete. These trades are more likely to drive pickup trucks than vans, and benefit more from the spacious bins vs. stacks of drawers and parts organizers.
I recently purchased the Makita 10 1/4” circular saw to cut roof timbers on our current project, and it fills an entire large Packout container.
I find bulky tools like framing nailers, circular & reciprocating saws, rotary hammers etc especially frustrating to store, as they sometimes only fit diagonally. You would end up using more storage containers than really needed, and Packout is already an inefficient use of space.
Having already bought into the red boxes, the idea of switching is annoying, but I am very interested to see the Makita system in person. We have Systainers for our finishing and cabinetry tools, but Packout has only been an okay solution for our framing work. I really liked the look of the StackTech as well, but the form factor isn’t much different than Packout, and frankly I have concerns about ToughBuilt’s future.
James
You make lots of good points on this post.
For bulky tools, I couldn’t agree more. Packout doesn’t quite work for the big stuff, which has forced me to modify boxes by cutting them etc, which makes only an ok solution. And yes they have the giant box (I have one and keep tubing assemblies in it), but it is terrible ergonomics to move around (just as the Maktrak base is) and is teasing a back injury even when not heavy.
In my view (do you hear me Milwaukee?), they could add a couple of items that would help this:
1. Double deep crates…I’ve made some of these with bolts and OMT, off the shelf would be nicer and cheaper.
2. Extra wide boxes (1.5 times the standard width). While looking awkward in a stack, they would work just fine and allow for long tools to be stored (chainsaws etc). If the cleats were also 1.5x, then the user would be able to choose which end “sticks out” of the stack, and it would also give the chance for a ammo can, etc on top of that box.
My 2 cents. I’m sure Milwaukee product managers will be getting in touch 😆
Michael John Fernandes
As an automechanic these systems probably won’t work.
David
I’m a big Tough Case user but i just can’t justify the cost of the DXL, This my be partially due to how to integrate this into my egress window business. I would be interested in a water proof table saw case or complete new portable Flexvolt table saw with weather proof lid.
Frank D
I was very impressed with the DXL when I first saw it a few weeks back. Could make for a neat setup … if … I had a large cargo trailer with ramp (or a van with a lift ? ). Move stuff between garage and vehicle, with little fuss.
Harrison
I tend to agree that neither DXL or MakTrak make a ton of sense at Home Depot. Both are expensive ‘pro only’ systems, and HD barely caters to professional tool users outside of the basics that can *also* be marketed to homeowners. Home Depot is also a horrible place to buy Makita, at least here in Canada.
It’s possible a homeowner could use DXL in their garage, but that would be inefficient and poor value compared to steel rolling cabinets.
MakTrak could be used for OPE, or by someone who moves their tools frequently, but again, it’s a bit of a stretch.
Back to pros, DXL customers seem more likely to purchase from Grainger, or a local industrial supplier that stocks proper tooling and consumables. Industrial purchasers negotiate their own discounts directly, they aren’t wandering aimlessly through HD browsing holiday promos.
MakTrak does hold some promise for framers, deck builders and other light residential contractors that use bulky tools. These trades are more likely to work out of trucks, purchase their own gear on impulse, and make runs to Home Depot.
So while I doubt either will be a runaway sales success, I do think MakTrak is a slightly better fit for the pros who actually shop at big box stores.
Rossy
Does either lock to the truck securely?
Stuart
No.
chip hershberger
As a mobile tool user mac pac is the cause and solution…for a back injury and and a coffin when you die.
It doesn’t stack horizontal or offer drawers.
It fits under a truck bed,apparently your bed must be pristine around it.. .with a cubby that blocks the use of the rest of the bed.
It is an “interesting ” design.
Tucker
This got me thinking, has anyone had any experience with the SK Modular Stackable toolboxes? https://14cyiuhvcgv.com/sk-tool-boxes-available-home-depot/%3C/a%3E
At some point I need to do some reorganizing of my home workshop, which is in the basement and the idea of lugging new metal rolling toolboxes down there is not something I want to do again. It was terrible when I was 10-15 years younger, not going to be better now.
DXL is a bit pricy for my needs/budget, but I like the idea of mix and matching drawer sizes and a system being modular makes the lugging to the basement easier.
Stuart
Amazon listing for the cart and boxes: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CLD3ZP5G/?tag=toolguyd-20
At this time I only see it at Amazon. I have never seen the SK tool boxes in person.
I mean this in the most neutral way possible: with “50+ bought in the past month,” with that month including 2 weeks before and after Black Friday and Cyber Monday, I think there’s a low chance of any future add-ons or expansions.
I went with Packout and am likely to buy some more before the current deal ends. There are compromises, but I move them around in ways I just can’t do with steel storage cabinets and chests.
Patrick Johnson
It’s simply too expensive for what it is. The drawer depth is also shallow, meaning that large tools don’t fit so the end user will STILL have to find another system to store large saws and hammer drills. I think it would sell better at $199 and if a one deep drawer unit was included.
G G
I expect it’s just me, but I don’t begin to understand the pricing for fancy plastic plastic boxes. Way, way, too expensive. I worked as a contractor and used a collection of (hybrid plastic) standard toolboxes. They were cheap, and effective and a lot more durable than most of what I’ve seen. Couldn’t stack ’em, but that was no big deal. Again, that’s just me, and I must be wrong because they sell millons of these things.
Andrew
I like the idea of DXL, the build quality seems good and the size of the drawers are nice, but they are heavy without tools in them and I feel like they would be impossible to load into a van once full. If I’m gonna just keep them in a shop I might as well buy a tool chest for the same price with twice the storage. Makita just seems too late to the game, I’m sure they will sell fine but I don’t see them becoming a leader in the space.
Shawn
I expect the DXL stuff to not sell well and end up on clearance.
The worktop is flimsy, and they want 200 bucks for a dolly.
I own lots of toughsystem and Tstak. I look forward to picking up some dxl half off or more
Stuart
The dolly is 2x the size of other brands’, and has larger wheels with fancy locking. There’s no issue with the build quality or construction,