Jay wrote in, asking about holiday ball bearing tool storage combo deals. Or at least I assume he’s talking about ball bearing units and not ones with friction glide slides. Not that friction glide slides are better, but these days most of what you’ll find, even on entry-level products, are ball bearing drawer slides.
Anyway, here’s the question, followed by my response.
Do you know of any tool chest combo deals for Black Friday? I saw the ones at Sears, but do you know of any others?
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Yep. Looking through Sears’ 2014 Black Friday ad, there are a bunch of Craftsman ball bearing tool storage combo specials. Sears usually has the same or similar deals as in previous years, and then continues with certain storage combo deals throughout the holiday season.
Home Depot often has a couple of Husky combos on sale, and Lowes sometimes has an entry-level Kobalt or Task Force special or two.
Home Depot and Lowes adscans aren’t available yet this year, so it’s hard to say which combos might be on sale.
Another option to consider is looking at what’s offered at MSC, Zoro, Enco, or other industrial suppliers. They often have decent coupon codes for Black Friday and then Cyber Monday which could be used on Waterloo, Kennedy, or Proto branded combos.
But generally, Sears is the retailer with the most tool storage deals, and often better ones at that.
For those of you who are also looking to buy new tool storage components or combos this holiday season, which brands or models are you considering most closely?
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Jerry
I agree, Sears seems to have the best choice. Be sure to read the full specs. I got a new box last year, people were carting off a ‘red’ box for $25 less than the ‘black’ one next to it, because they looked the same but it was cheaper. Looking at the specs, I spent the extra money because the black one was rated for much more drawer weight, and total weight. Overall size and drawer size looked identical, if I remember right, one was the professional version of the other.
Jay Darby
Yep, I was asking about ball bearing units.
In reading spec comparisons, several reviewers have pointed out that Harbor Freight’s 44″ industrial cabinet has better material specs than most Craftsman boxes. Any input on the HF unit?
Stuart
I’ve heard good things about HF’s cabinet, but haven’t checked it out myself.
I generally prefer Craftsman, but that’s because I like options and cannot fit a 40″+ cabinet or chest in my workspace.
Josh B.
I’ve purchased the 44″ top and bottom cabinets from Harbor Freight as well as two of the 7 drawer end cabinets over the last several months and been very pleased with the quality for the price. I think they may have some Black Friday deals on some of these pieces, but IMO it’s probably not worth the hassle. The everyday prices on these pieces is very reasonable for what you get. If you don’t live near a Harbor Freight, your chances of getting an undamaged unit are slim. Apparently they don’t ship well.
M. Cheval
I have two of the Harbor Freight 44” lower cabinets. They are a very decent box for the money spent. Mine are two years old and are just for my garage tools. They work just as well now as ever. Josh B. has it right though. You must buy yours from a regular store and check the carton over carefully. The ones that are shipped are just about always ”damaged in transit”.
Enco Tools
Thanks for mentioning us!
We absolutely have Cyber Monday deals coming your way. Stay tuned on our website or follow us @EncoTools when we make the announcement!
Cheers!
Toolfreak
The Heavy-Duty ball bearing 3-pc set at Sears for $300 is a really good deal. This is also one of the few times the all-black unit has been at the $300 price, it’s usually the Red/Black units that get that price several times a year.
The “premium” units with the Griplatch handle are nicer, but since the new heavy-duty units have uprated drawer slides that handle more weight, they are more than enough for shop/garage use.
The HF boxes are okay, but I can’t stand the stink of the materials they use. It’s bad enough just having tools from HF that you have to keep in a seperate tool box so they don’t stick up your other tools. With a toolbox, it’ll stink up the whole place and all the tools that are in it. It’s a sad, sad day when you can walk into HF and not notice the stench of cheap tools because your place smells like that and you don’t notice it anymore.