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I am hope for some advice or pictures of how techs are setting up there boxes. I am looking to get in the trade. I will be buying a sub $1000 or used box.
I have a Milwaukee impact and a Modis to make room for in the box. Of course all my basic sockets, wenches, pliers, and what not.Looks like this would be a ok starter box, Modis up top, impacts in the big middle drawer.
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Sockets – Plastic spike style, Regular metal clip, 4 Row Metal Clip Style on a plate with handle, Billet Aluminum
I recommend the 4 rails on a plate style mainly because crap doesn’t mess them up. You can pick up the whole tray. You can do what I do and have your metric on one and standard on another. Then have a 3rd one for specialty/bit sockets and a 4th for the ones you use all the time and I stick my small extension, adapters, swivels etc on the one I use all the time.Wrenches you pretty much are stuck with these: VIM Tools V514 Wrench Gripper. I like this style best as they grip well except for the extremely small ones and you can walk around with it and take it to where you are working if need be. The metal ones you can’t
As for what goes in what drawer generally speaking it goes like this. You can organize it by what it is or by what uses what. What I mean by this is you can have a drawer that is just sockets or you can have a drawer that is sockets, extension, adapters, swivels, and your ratchets. I tend to organize with what uses what. So I have an oh shit drawer this contains my drill bits, punches, chisels, extractors, twist sockets, etc. I have my junk drawer this is also my drawer for my keys, wallet, etc. I do not recommend doing this till you know the people keep the stuff locked in your glove box or something till you know the place is trustworthy. I have a drawer that is all my bits, screwdrivers, ratcheting screwdrivers, torx screwdrivers, bit ratchets, and if I had them nut drivers. I have a drawer that is my taps and dies and thread restorers. I have a drawer that is all my 1″ drive sockets. I have another drawer that is all my 3/4″ drive sockets, ratchet, breaker bar, t-handle. My main top drawer which would be the top drawer of your bottom box in picture I have all my 1/4″-1/2″ drive ratchets, torque wrenches, chrome sockets, breaker bars, chrome swivels/adapters/extensions. I have another drawer that is all my impact sockets/extensions/adapters 1/4″-1/2″ drive and that is also where my main what I use all the time tray is. I have a drawer for all the main size wrenches. I have another drawer for all my Jumbo Size wrenches. I have all my hammers, ripping bars, specialty prying and hitting implements all in one drawer. I have all my air tools in one drawer. I have all my measuring devices in one drawer. I have all my tubes/bottles of lubricants, sealants, etc in one drawer. I have a drawer that is all my smaller size pliers, vise grips, channel locks, adjustables, etc.
I also layer my stuff cause I do not own a large box and have no intention of buying one atm.
I have a cart but, have yet to move everything around. It is a pain once you have a layout to change it especially when you have no down time. So think about it lay it out and do it the way you would like. I plan to switch it all around on a Saturday so my most used tools are in my cart but….
Some Advice:
I tell everyone to start with a service cart though if you have more tools then one of those can hold then you need to upgrade to a box. I would definitely recommend looking at used box of a truck brand. You should look on Craigslist, yard sales, estate sales, pawn shops, and find out what the local tool truck guys are or where you are going to be working and see what they have in the way of used boxes.
Craftsman Industrial toolboxes are good, Harbor Freight boxes are ok and will prob last 2-3 yrs before the slides start giving you issues and if in a shop that holds moisture it will prob start to rust by then, and lastly I have heard lots of good things about Extreme Tools toolboxes but, i have yet to experience them. Some other decent brands are Montezuma Mfg , Kennedy Manufacturing
Thank you for taking the time to write that reply out. a service cart is not a bad Idea, However I doubt my tools will fit in one. I have a fair bit, I have been buying broken cars fixing them, then moving on to the next.
I will work it into my budget for a tool chest and service cart. whatever chest I get, I am only thinking it will around for 2 maybe 3 years. I am hoping the snap on guy will get a trade-in I can buy. Tool truck chest are rarely for sale used here, or it a huge chest and tools for $10000 or less. good deal but too costly for a guy starting out.
One of the nice things about toolboxes is that they hold their value fairly well and there’s always a market for used ones. As long as you don’t buy something for full price that’s regularly on sale for half price.
Buy one big enough for what you need now and when you realize that you’re going to run out of space you tell one of the guys that drives a truck that you are looking for x type of box used. It might not be available the next day, but if they know they can easily sell a box they take as a $2000 trade they would be more willing to make sure they get the trade. Since it would already be effectively sold. It took my former Snap-On guy almost 2 moths to get my box, he told me straight up how much he would give me for trade and I started stashing some money away for it.
If you live somewhere with an apprenticeship system, both Mac and Snap-On have discount programs for apprentices. Snap-On also has a separate financing program for smaller purchases that is fairly cheap and any interest charges are given back in rebates if you pay it off before the end of the term. Unless you’ve declared bankruptcy or stiffed them, you should qualify.
Yeah, I have a account with the part store, and the Snap-On rep in the area. They have known me for a few years. I got a fair deal on a Modis for $1000 with everything I need. Hoping to pick up a Snap-On gear wrench set in metric, I keep bending the master-craft ones. Handy tool.
I will look into that discount programs, I am not a apprentice yet.
Where do you techs, get information on sensor specs and good senors wave graphs. I am always fixing the already bad parts, so I don’t know what is good or bad data. O2 sensors are my achilles heel, that and cats.
Only places I have seen oscilloscope pictures is in school or Scanner Danner. He has a book on all stuff electrical but, I have yet to buy it. It is more of a want then a need with where I am at now. Especially since I do not have an oscilloscope and the one from work is the old style analog one that looks like it has a radar for a screen. I am sure it would do fine but, the time it would take to break it out and hook it up without knowing the waveforms off hand is normally longer then it takes to diag with a dmm and power probe. Though I am also mainly a diesel tech. I work on autos at work as well but, it is normally when we run out of heavy truck work which is rare.
Oscilloscope can be very useful for measuring injectors, cam, and crank positions, and finding intermittent problems. Another thing that is very useful that most young guys have no clue or do not use one is a mechanics stethoscope and because of this its becoming a pain in the ass to find a good high quality one.
MDK22 you are spot on about a scope. It’s one of those things which is needed less and less, but at one time it was a necessity. Still can be useful but you will rarely use it. Most techs would never get their money’s worth in buying one today. Now, we have data pids which will tell you 99% of what you will need, and if it’s not available on the data then you probably won’t be able to access it with a scope either. Also depends on the scanner you have. Working for Nissan, I have the C3+ which is so nice. I remember the first shop I ever worked at had this huge BEAR machine (similar to the old SUN diagnostic stations) I remember they weren’t easy to use either, you could create problems if you didn’t use it correctly, or damage the machine and things were even more expensive to fix back then. However, if you knew how to use them, you were made of gold. I am really interested in learning how to use a scope. One day.
Good to know. my MODIS has a lap scope, I would like to learn to use it and learn how to use the MODIS better. I used to own a OTC Genisys, good tool but kind of entry level scan tool was the feel I got from it.
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