Alternative Tool Cabinets

[Mark in Indiana]

Hi Friends,
Pictured here is a 60 year old fire proof file cabinet I picked up a few days ago. After I got it home, I built a caster cart and mounted the cabinet on it. The cabinet will be used to store larger power tools that wouldn't fit in my Kennedy or Clarke HD tool cabinets. I also plan to dedicate 2 drawers for old photographs and books. That's where the fire proof is needed.

BTW: This is a legal size file cabinet. It weighs well over 650 pounds, is mounted on a piece of 3/4" plywood with four 6" (600# capacity each) casters. I plan to mask & paint it later this summer. Total cost of this project is <50$.

I have some standard tool cabinets & boxes in my shop. However, over the years, I've collected different cabinets for tool & hardware storage, that weren't your standard storage cabinets that you would get from HF to Snap-On to Lyon. These cabinets would have been the steel cabinets that were used in kitchens of the 1950s, old cabinets that a photocopier or mimeograph would stand on and very old file cabinets. I even picked up a 24" x 16", 8 drawer wooden sewing spool cabinet that I plan to use for my precision measuring tools.

My attraction to them is the quality of how they are built and they can be picked up dirt cheap compared to the standard tool cabinets.

What alternative cabinets have you guys & gals use in your shops?

 

[Ulma Doctor]

i use a large surplus 30mm ammo can for my welding gloves/leathers/tig electrodes/Air Carbon Arc torch/etc.- the can seals up very good.

 

[GA Gyro]

Old file cabinets, while one has to deal with drawers of specific sizes, seem to be nice storage units.

I have a pair of 2 drawer legal width, sitting side by side, to the right of my PM935 mill, with a cut to fit piece of 3/4 plywood on top. Nice handy place to set things, when doing a milling project. And a nice place for keeping misc stuff (stuff one can easily place IN a drawer).

So far, I do not have any heavy fireproof cabinets... however if I find one... it probably will go in my office.

 

[uncle harry]

I have an electrical control 2 door shallow wall cabinet approximately 36" W x 30" H x 6" deep re-purposed by pop riveting the hanging strips
for small plastic bins to the inside back panel. The bins are from Northern Equipment & are ideal for mobility & storage in the cabinet.
The only expense was the paint for the cabinet since I was given about a gallon of aluminum 1/8" pop rivets.

 

[Franko]

I picked up some computer card file cabinets at my local used office supply store about 20 years ago. They are very strong and heavy duty ball bearing drawer slides because thousands of computer punch cards were very heavy. I use them to store and organize parts and tool stuff.

 

[fahrphrompuken]

Used file cabinets work great for hand sized power tools, keeps the dust off of everything. At work they had a silent auction and I won three horizontal file cabinets, four drawers each, and about five foot wide. Got'em for $12 a unit. The drawers are interlocked so only one at a time can be open, which is a great feature even with them screwed to the wall.

 

[w9jbc]

I seem to have plenty of kennedy damaged and factory seconds I've bought cheap over the years. I guess that is a perk of living only 35 miles from van wert oh the home of kennedy toolboxes.

 

[pebbleworm]

I use old Kardex files for nuts, bolts, chisels,punches and small parts. Rip out the cards and you have a bunch of 10"X24"X1" drawers. They are very shallow, but it makes the contents easier to find. Here is a picture:
http://www.recordsystems.net/cardcabinetsenlarge.html

 

[Dave Smith]

I use old Kardex files for nuts, bolts, chisels,punches and small parts. Rip out the cards and you have a bunch of 10"X24"X1" drawers. They are very shallow, but it makes the contents easier to find. Here is a picture:
http://www.recordsystems.net/cardcabinetsenlarge.html

I do the same and they are sure handy for taps and long bits---they are sturdy also---Dave