After my first review of the Craftsman Pro Storage Combo with Smart-Lock, Craftsman wanted to get that review unit back for troubleshooting, and they sent me me another 41″ unit for further testing.
I was hesitant because of my previous experience with this combo, but in the end I assented to them shipping me replacement units. Since this is the third time we’ve talked about this combo, I’m just going to give you the basic information:
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- Chest (58662): 41″ W x 21″ D x 24.5″ H ($750 list, $450 on sale)
- Roller Cabinet (58663): 41″ W x 21″ D x 42.5″ H ($1250 list, $765 on sale)
(Between the last time we posted about this combo, the “regular” prices went up, but the sale price as of the time of this posting is lower.)
Craftsman Pro Storage Preview | First Review
Combo Price: $1300 $1215 (“regular price” is now said to be $2000)
Some time after Craftsman said they would ship me a new combo, I got a call from Waterloo asking me when I was available to receive a shipment. I was confused because I wasn’t expecting anything from Waterloo, but after a few minutes I figured out that he was talking about the Craftsman Storage Combo. We set up a time for delivery the next day.
The guy that delivered the storage combo turned out to be the guy who drives Waterloo’s show trailer. He said that sometimes he also moves boxes from the factory to the warehouse during less busy times (this turns out to be important). He drove 8 hours from Iowa Missouri the day before and was going to turn around and drive back after he delivered the combo — all this just to deliver my new sample and retrieve the old one.
Thanks to Matt for catching that the Waterloo plant is in Missouri not Iowa, it slipped my mind.
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I even took a picture of the inside of the trailer after I helped him load up the old toolbox, just to show it was empty.
In this followup review, I will be discussing what Craftsman fixed on the Pro tool boxes since the first review, and then I’ll discuss how I’ve been using this unit in the last few months, and finally I will talk about what my impressions have been.
Fixed Issues
In the first review I found several problems with the combo:
- Poor packaging
- Blocked threads
- Cabinet and chest misalignment
- Paint/powder coat coverage
- Drawers not locking
- Smart-lock issues
I’ll address the most important issues first:
Drawer Locks
If you recall from the first review, I had problems with some drawers still being unlocked even though the GripLatch had engaged. I would turn the key in the lower cabinet to lock it, but would then still be able to open up some of the drawers.
The Craftsman team was sure that most of my locking issues were caused by the cabinet being racked and the locking mechanism was out of line. I have NOT had this same issue with the replacement unit, and so it does seem like it was a manufacturing issue that has been fixed.
Smart Locks
On the latest unit I was still having problems with the lock on the lower cabinet hunting back and forth several times, timing out, and then losing communication. So I contacted the Craftsman team and they said they thought they knew what the problem was:
Unfortunately, it sounds like a problematic lock still managed to get through our quality system and into your hands. These locks are each tested at least three times at various stages of the build before they ship out, so although we are confident that the lock worked when it was packaged, something has obviously changed between our factory and your garage. We have been able to identify the root cause of this problem from your description and are working tirelessly on a firmware update which you will be able to install OTA [over the air] through your Android [device and app] to eliminate this issue.
I was pretty mad at this point and felt I was being given a line by the Craftsman representative. Remember – the driver that hand-delivered the tool box to me sometimes transports toolboxes from the Waterloo factory to warehouses. If “something has obviously changed between our factory and your garage,” that same “something” can happen to their toolboxes traveling from their factory to a distribution warehouse.
If the design can’t handle being delivered straight from the factory, there’s no way that “something ” wouldn’t change when a regular customer had a unit delivered by freight.
They said they would contact me when they had a firmware update to fix it, but several months passed and I never heard back.
Spring has arrived, and my frustrations have faded a little over time. I’ve been out in my garage more, grabbing tools out of the storage combo. The other day I started thinking that it’s really about time to see if they’ve fixed the locks yet.
So, I decided to reload the Smart Lock App onto my phone again and see if there had been any updates. After I entered the serial number for the upper chest into my phone I got a notification that there was new lock firmware — something the Android App couldn’t do before.
I clicked the more into button to download and install the firmware. After a few minutes the lock had updated without a hitch and was operating normally. So far so good. I entered the serial number of the problematic lower cabinet lock and updated the firmware. Lo and behold — the lower cabinet lock was operating perfectly like the upper cabinet lock.
In the previous review post for this storage combo I said: “the Android app is lacking quite a few features that the iOS app has, such as configuring the proximity locking feature.” This is still the case, all they seemed to add to the Android software was the ability to update the lock firmware. The Android App is still missing the following features:
- Proximity lock and unlock
- Tamper alerts and notifications
- Schedule access times
- View the log for the lock
Not having the proximity lock and unlock for Android phones is a pretty big deal — it’s pretty much the selling point for these locks. You can lock and unlock the chest and cabinet with your Android phone, but you need to pull the phone out of your pocket, enter your pin, and touch the icon on your screen. At that point why not just use the keys?
Remember when I said the experience soured me on electronic locks? I’ve been using my phone to lock and unlock the unit for the past week. Even though the Android version is missing quite a few features, it has been working well enough that it is almost as fast as digging the keys out of my pocket.
I have noticed that there seems to be a timeout feature on Android, that if you leave the app open long enough to require the passcode again and you never went out of range, the phone will lock any unlocked unit. I still wouldn’t depend on the feature because it has not worked dependably for me.
Packaging
This time there weren’t ill-fitting foam pieces just shoved in the box just to get it out the door. It looked like they designed some custom foam inserts for shipping cabinets and chests. While these pieces of foam weren’t designed specifically for this cabinet, they were at least designed to fit multiple sizes of cabinets without having to tear them apart. Some of the L-shaped foam corners still had rough edges where they had been torn though.
It’s not the greatest photo, but you can at least see there are no scratches on the bottom of the cabinet this time because there are no staples poking through the thin foam on the pallet.
Blocked Threads (Fixed)
I didn’t even bother taking photos, because all the threads I tried were in perfect shape this time. I still find it unbelievable that I had to deal with it the first time.
Cabinet and Chest Alignment (Better but Not Perfect)
While attaching the upper chest to the lower cabinet, I was able to get three corners to align pretty well, but no matter that I did, the last corner was always about 1/8″ to 3/16″ off. I decided to align the cabinet and chest so the corners on the front aligned and put the corner that was off was on the back side where I wouldn’t be bothered by it.
This is slightly better than my original combo, but still a little disappointing. I’ve since examined many tool storage combos from other brands and haven’t found one that was even off by an 1/8″. In the scheme of things this isn’t a showstopper.
Powder/Paint Issues (Fixed!)
The upper chest in the first unit I reviewed had splotchy paint inside and areas that weren’t covered at all.
The insides of both the new upper and lower units were finished about as perfectly as you could ask. Neither upper chest or lower cabinet had splotches or uncovered areas.
This is how things should look on a $1000+ premium storage combo.
Using the Cabinet
Before I resolved the locking issues, I’d been using the storage combo as a regular keyed tool storage unit for several months.
I have found I like the deeper drawers this storage combo provides, as the added depth opens up storage options that shallow units simply cannot offer. Not only can I fit some larger items, I can fit longer items from front to back that I’d never be able to in a shallower drawer.
In the full width drawer I’ve put an assortment of my sockets, ratchets and accessories. The deeper drawers allow me to store my 18″ breaker bars from front to back, which allows me to arrange the tools more efficiently.
Stuart asked me to check to see how much the full width drawer was sagging when it was filled. As this is the only drawer with two sets of slides, it is definitely meant to hold a lot of weight, but the width means that the middle will still sag more than the other drawers.
With the tools you see above, the drawer is sagging a bit, which is to be expected, but there is enough clearance to where I think you could fill up all the empty spaces and be safe.
The drawers are deep enough to store my blower wand straight from front to back rather than diagonally, again this makes more efficient use of the drawer space.
In the larger bottom drawers, I’ve been able to fit some larger items that I haven’t been able to fit efficiently into other tool storage combos.
For example, I’ve been storing my 14″ inch chainsaw in the wider lower drawer. It just fits in diagonally with the chain guard on. There is quite a bit of wasted space in the corners, but I think that I will try to store my bottle of bar oil and other chainsaw-related safety equipment there when I get to cleaning up that part of the garage.
In the narrow lower drawer there is enough room for two pairs of jack stands. These had been taking up valuable space in another cabinet, but they stack quite compactly in this drawer.
Finally, to address Stuart’s and some other readers’ concerns about closing the lid, I made the following quick post on Instagram:
I really haven’t had any issues with the height of the combo. I’m 5’10” and don’t think I have an arm-span out of the average. But if you are shorter or have shorter arms, or will be putting the tool cabinet in a place where you cannot reach around to grab the side of the lid, the height of this combo might be a problem. I’d definitely recommend checking one out in person if that is a concern.
Summary
Pros:
- Deeper cabinets have allowed me to make more efficient use of the drawers.
- Solid construction and well built.
Cons:
- Expensive compared to similar products.
- Bluetooth app for Android still lacking.
- For the price the cabinets should align better.
- Possibly too tall for some users.
Concerns:
- The replacement was hand delivered and wasn’t shipped via freight like normal.
While it’s always a possibility that a tool sample isn’t representative of what’s actually in stores, in this case I’m particularly worried about that being a possibility. Craftsman was concerned about our negative initial review and probably wanted to do everything the could to make sure the units I got this time were good — including hand delivering me replacement units.
We believe that the box was taken straight off the assembly line and delivered directly from the factory to avoid potential damage due to third party handling. But it’s impossible to know for sure. The possibility exists that it was cherry-picked or given special attention.
The big question this raises is: “what is going to happen to all the units in the pipeline before they made made these improvements?”
It’s not critical to the functioning of the cabinet, but here we are at least half a year past the initial release, and the Android app is still not as fully functioning as the iOS version. If you are going to advertise a product feature but cannot provide that functionality to a large group of users, people are going to be disappointed.
In short, if you are an Apple user looking for electronic locks, a taller chest and rolling cabinet height, and want deeper drawers, the Craftsman Pro Smart-Lock 41″ Storage Combo might be worth a look. If you don’t fit the above criteria you’d probably be better off with one of the better-priced tool storage combos from a big box store.
Stuart’s Note: The last time I checked, there was a demo unit on the sales floor at the local Sears. If you’re interested in the combo, definitely head on over to your Sears and check it out first.
I personally think that this box is competitively priced for what you get. But I also think that Craftsman and Waterloo might have been a little too ambitious in getting this to market when they did. Crooked boxes, jammed threads, drawers that won’t close and lock? The good news is that it looks like most of these issues have been fixed.
The bad news is that the Craftsman Pro Series tool storage combo looks better on paper than the whole package can currently deliver.
Thank you to Craftsman and Sears for providing the review sample unconditionally.
RC WARD
Sounds like an over priced attempt by Sear’s to get into the high end tool box game . No way I would even think about buying that box. And the electronic locks? Why? Everything does not have to connect to your phone, it really doesn’t .
Stuart
It’s a good idea in theory. Stand next to the box, and it unlocks. Step away, and it locks back up. I’m interested in something like that.
Benjamen
I really think to implement something like this correctly you need to have a separate fob. There’s no worrying about compatibility across operating systems or phone models. The auto industry has this down. If the fob is inside the car it starts, if it’s not, it won’t. You probably could adapt this to a certain radius around the cabinet with minimal work.
You’d also need the ability to tie multiple cabinets to one fob, because carrying two different fobs for the same combo would be ludicrous , I suppose if the fob was small enough it could be part of the key.
You can still have an app on your phone that connects so you can read the tamper logs and set up the behavior, or even unlock the chests if you forgot your fob.
Toolfreak
Locks that you use your phone to lock/unlock have the same flaw as fingerprint readers – you just need access to the phone or finger. It’s also fairly easy to hack electronic locks, just like you can copy a fingerprint to fool those readers.
I realize tool chest locks are more about preventing someone from just having casual access to an unlocked box so they can’t just open a drawer and grab a tool, not ultimate security, but really, it seems like something in this day and age that will be easily defeated.
If nothing else, having it set to unlock just by the phone being in proximity to the lock makes it real easy for the wife/kids someone else to catch on eventually when they notice you doing it, and then just grabbing your phone and holding it near the box to open a drawer and grab something.
Worst thing about it is it’s just something else to break/go wrong. What happens when the electronic lock is stuck closed and you can’t open the box with the key?
I definitely prefer a key-only system, since it’s really just a light deterrent or to keep the drawers closed, and electronic locks just make a box more expensive than it needs to be.
RKA
What changes between the factory and your garage that can be resolved with an app update?? Time zone?
It sounds like the people responsible for building the app are learning as they go. They should have invested more into this (with the right people) if they wanted to push this locking feature. Unfortunately, buggy software will just sour people. And while some might like the convenience, dealing with the headaches when it doesn’t work negates the benefit.
It is impressive that they listened and took your critiques seriously and even went as far as they did to get you the improved sample. You raise a great question about what the consumer might expect to get. That’s why I appreciate reviews on products obtained through normal sales channels.
Benjamen
You’re right, programming things that interface to real world mechanical systems takes experience, and this experience with the locks really makes me think they are learning as they go rather than picking somebody with experience.
What changed? nothing physical. The locks have to decide whether the cabinet locked or not when the motor turned. Well I suppose they just could have made them dumb, turn the lock when the app tells them to. The only two parameters the lock can probably sense are the amount of current taken to turn the lock (corresponding to force) and the amount the lock rotated.
What was happening is that the lock was actually being locked — it worked fine with the key, but the electronics was sensing that either the lock wasn’t turning far enough or it was taking too much force. From our conversations with Craftsman, I think they had too strict criteria for when the lock had turned far enough. So when the lock motor didn’t detect the cabinet was locked it would try again and again until it timed out.
So with this update they probably made the locked criteria more fuzzy, say that the lock was locked when the shaft turned 90% rather than 95%. Why doesn’t every lock just turn 100%? It could be that the locking mechanism is within tolerance, and works with a key, but there’s built in slop in the design, or it could be that the shaft position sensor is a potentiometer which can have tolerances of 5% add that to other tolerances in the circuit and the readings could definitely vary by 10% or more from board to board.
___
I believe that the original two (the damaged one and the replacement) were from normal sales channels. With many of the review samples we get, a marketing company or even a retailer puts an order in with the manufacturer and it ships like you ordered it off the internet (or mail). Many of the invoices we receive with the packaging reflect this. In this case I actually received the sample from Craftsman’s (or maybe Sear’s) marketing company. Obviously this last unit was specially shipped — whether it was randomly chosen off the line or cherry picked, we’ll really never know.
I agree with you in principle that buying a unit of the shelf may get you closer to what a consumer might experience, but then we’d be doing a lot fewer reviews.
Toolfreak
Hm, makes ya wonder if they not only cherry-picked a unit off the line but if they actually had it fully power coated and assembled just as your own personal review unit? If no store-bought units are fully powdercoated inside I’m going to guess that’s what happened.
I didn’t think of Waterloo as a shady company, but maybe Craftsman put them up to it and paid them for their trouble? If so, kind of sad it was still off on one corner, maybe from the shipping and being moved around.
It’s a real shame they went with an electronic lock/app gimmick for a “high-end” box rather than just having better construction and drawer layout.
Stuart
When we spoke with the Craftsman team, I got the feeling that they truly believe in the functionality they designed into the box.
I can see benefits of the electronic lock. And to be honest, that’s not going to be a major contributor to the cost. You need what, a Bluetooth low energy board, a battery pack, a solenoid, and some supporting circuitry?
The software is of course the other half of the equation.
My take is that something was lost between designing it on paper and Waterloo manufacturing it. I don’t think Waterloo has made anything quite like this before, and so there might have been new challenges to conquer.
Craftsman and Waterloo have a strong relationship, but something must have went wrong here.
They’ve taken risks together before, sometimes trying new things that customers weren’t receptive to, such as the AXS tool storage system. That box was physically decent, when I tried it in stores, but there was too much plastic and too many “innovative” features that users weren’t quite ready for. Users then didn’t want a digital display in their tool box. Now? I think if it launched now, it would sell a lot better.
I digressed a bit, but my point is that I don’t think it was designed to be a gimmick. And let me tell you, there are plenty of Craftsman tools that are gimmicky, designed to sell to gift givers, holiday shoppers, and anyone who makes their tool purchased based on what they read on general interest websites.
I believe that the Craftsman team sought out to produce a Pro-quality box with appealing features.
If everything worked perfectly, I’d feel differently. But an app that doesn’t deliver on promised functionality, and a mix of physical and mechanical imperfections until the 3rd test unit was personally delivered to Ben for review? That’s exactly why I asked them to hold off until a “fixed” production model was ready. Because now we’ll never know if Ben received a cherry-picked or polished model or not.
I won’t hold this against Craftsman – I’m sorry, Craftsman by Sears – or Waterloo. But it has been very disappointing.
On the bright side, it’s a good box and you could leave out the batteries if you didn’t want the Smart-Lock functionality. Ben seems satisfied with the build quality, although I still find it curious that the box only lines up on 3/4 of the corners. Maybe this is because most (all?) of Waterloo’s bottom boxes have lips on the sides and rear for holding top chests.
Toolfreak
I don’t doubt that the Craftsman crew believe in the product or that the Waterloo crew made it the best they could within the budget they had to work with, I just think that a better quality box with more drawers could be had for that money that went into the electronics and development. That’s why it seems like a gimmick – the electronic lock is just added onto something that doesn’t need it.
Yeah, the hardware probably isn’t the expensive part, but the development of the locking system to work with the electronics probably involved more than just sticking everything on the same type of keyed manual lock they use for all their other products.
Developing the software, and, importantly, maintaining and updating that software has got to be part of the cost, too.
I’ve seen and tried these out in-store. They seem ok but just have the same overall feel as the Kobalt/Husky boxes that makes me shrug and move on rather than think of them as something I’d want to own. That, the debatable usefulness of the electric locks, the minor fitment issues, and the higher cost just make me think I’d be happier with a box focused on quality rather than around electronic locks. Craftsman used to sell some of Waterloo’s high-end HD series as their Industrial boxes for not much more money, at least on sale, which is what I’m thinking of when I say I’d rather have something of better quality for the money. I’m not sure if the Edge series boxes use the same slides as the Pro series, but they might be fairly close in overall construction for a lower price.
I’d agree this is comparable to the old AXS series, trying to incorporate tech to make something like a toolbox of the future. Thing is, when it comes to storing hand tools, especially in a garage, it’s tough to beat just having a box with heavy-duty construction and ball bearing slides that is built well enough to last a lifetime, instead of something that has neon lights and a digital display to look cool – until the light and display no longer works. In 10 years is that app still going to even be available or work on the newest phones? I guess you could keep the old phone around with the app on it to use as a dedicated remote, but that’s another thing to keep track of – and keep charged.
I’d guess the fitment issues are a production problem, or it may just be how the boxes are handled throughout the process of being constructed, powdercoated, assembled, packaged, and shipped. I’d say it’s fairly common for Craftsman/Waterloo boxes to be warped diagonally, and usually you have to keep them loaded down for awhile to even out. That misaligned corner pic makes it look like the bottom box might be slightly wider than the top though, not just that the corner floats above from warping. Either that or maybe the holes just don’t line up for the fasteners so you’d have to drill your own for the last corner to make it work and pull that corner down.
EDWARD MORENO
WATERLOO IS A GREAT TOOL CO. I WOULD NOT BUY BECAUSE OF SMART LOCK . PREFER OLD KEY LOCKS. WHAT IS THE GAUGE OF THE TOOL BOX?.
Hang Fire
This is ToolGuyd at its best, getting manufacturers to fix their stuff.
I’m still not sold on app loaded, app-driven software in a toolbox, I guess it might have a place in a high theft environment, but a sturdier box would be in order there, too. Personally wouldn’t buy one because I always take the long view, and chances are 100% there will be no supporting App in 15 years. Perhaps there will be blogs about how to run VM iOS’s or Android’s to keep your 2010’s era tools working.
I’m also very leery of anything that offers partial support to either side of Android/iOS. That’s just saying “we don’t value half of our customers enough to hire another programmer.” That lack of commitment speaks volumes.
Stuart
This is perhaps one of the more extreme cases, but it does happen where we receive early production units that are defective or otherwise unsatisfactory but fixable.
Something like this is an investment, and I agree that long-term compatibility is a concern – especially when a company has an uncertain future.
I had previously considered that this could be treated as any other keyed toolbox down the road. But now I’m thinking about the shorter term. If Sears goes bankrupt, what happens to the App? Does it transfer to Stanley Black & Decker ownership, or does it simply lose support?
After speaking with someone from another tool brand about their app-based tool features and ongoing iOS and Android app support and evolution, I’m a little worried now about the Craftsman app.
Apps aren’t “code once and move on.”
What happens if an iOS update requires a code change? Or an Android update changes things (again)?
I’m inclined to believe that everything would be fine, but there’s now a growing doubt in my mind.
Personally, if I bought this unit, or received a test unit I decided to keep long-term, and it was stuck without app-based lock controls, I’d replace the control system with a simple hard-wire or easy-to-code Bluetooth low energy module.
Hang Fire
Many good questions, perhaps Sears doesn’t even know the answers. Not sure which side of the deal Craftsman tool boxes fall into, SB&D or Sears.
Waterloo might choose to continue supporting it, but I can only see that happening if that exact technology continues in some brand line somewhere (that they OEM for, or sell direct.)
Toolfreak
Waterloo’s contract for tool boxes is with Sears, and afaik SB&D only owns the Craftsman brand to make tools, at least for now. Maybe the exact wording will let them sell other products like tool storage and clothing with the Craftsman name. I don’t think Waterloo makes Stanley’s tool boxes (going by the ones I’ve seen) so if Sears goes under I doubt Stanley will keep anything to with Waterloo.
This is why I hate “apps”. It’s technically possible to make them work like programs where they stay on an OS and updates are optional, but the whole point of Android is to require apps to constantly be maintained and updated. Maybe you could keep the app on an old phone that never connects to phone service or the internet, but you’d still be time limited by how long the phone/battery lasts or until you can no longer buy replacement batteries.
Still a ton of trouble for an electronic lock. Could probably rig up something with a door lock, solenid, and remote that wouldn’t be app-based.
Matt
All the way from Iowa.. Waterloo Iowa I assume? Waterloo Industries built their toolboxes right here for decades. They still keep an office up the road. They once employed a pretty large workforce and there’s still a loyal Waterloo (and likewise Craftsman) toolbox following here. I did work for a guy a few years back who’s basement was full of prototype toolboxes. He lost his job when Waterloo relocated manufacturing to Missouri but still got to keep some pretty cool stuff! Those guys build the real deal. I hope this whole thing all works out between Sears & Waterloo. There’s a lot of history there. Or maybe it will be Stanley & Waterloo now? Dunno..
Benjamen
Thanks for catching that!!! As soon as you said Missouri, I started thinking that the timing for the drive didn’t work out.
I had misplaced the invoice and couldn’t find it so I just assumed it shipped from Iowa because Waterloo. I still can’t find the invoice, I know I scanned it and sent it to Stuart but I couldn’t find that either.
I did find another reference in an email to Stuart that I got a weird call from Missouri and I figured out that it was Waterloo.
Taylor
They still don’t have proximity unlock for android. How do I get ahold of the engineering team?
Stuart
The last we asked, they said you could contact them via the app.
Taylor
Okay, I’ll try that. Thanks Stuart!
Taylor
I looked all around the Android app and no dice. No way to contact them in there.
Luis s
Unfortunately I was also duped into one of these boxes 2 1/2 months ago. I also had a damaged box and had to replace it. The second box was not as bad and felt it was more of a hassle to return so I kept it. I recently used the app again to lock the box, then later that morning I tried to unlock the box with the app and the app just gave me an error. I tried to unlock the box with the key and it won’t unlock. Now all my tools are held hostage and customer support for sears and craftsman is useless. I’ve been trying to open this box for 1 week now and as you all can emmagine I’m at a boiling point. Yesterday I was at the sears store for over 2 1/2 hours while the associate tried to see where I can get any help. Finally they have me Waterloo’s phone for service and was told I would be called later no call. Here is there number where I was able to talk to someone (800) 833-4418 but the lady said an engineer would call me back. Unfortunately I payed about 1700 for the 52″ combo.
mundo
Any luck. I have the same issue happen to me.
Taylor
Craftsman now has a stainless version of the 41″ professional only.
I looked at it in the store and noticed an improvement. It had double slides on both bottom drawers instead of only the top. This is a great improvement. The bottom drawer on my 52″ wide craftsman pro box drags when loaded down.
It’s also a very good value for stainless and if I remember correctly, it had a slightly different drawer layout.
Keithangle
I have the 41 pro series bottom only, I got as a floor model in March 2017. I paid like $760 w/ tax , it had a small dent on back. I like the box a lot , but feel more attention to detail is needed. My issues are that I can’t lock the top long drawer(it lives in private shop)((I’m going to contact Waterloo about that)) and that in order to lock all the drawers(except top) in need to push them in further than the grip latch holds them. After reading these reviews and comments, I feel I still got a good value, yet I wished I’d read this before purchase. I never intended to use the electronic locks. My .02
Trace
What is the weight of each size (26″, 41″, & 52″) of boxes? I don’t like how Craftsman isn’t forthcoming with information (i.e. weight, steel gauge, etc.). There are also discrepancies (at least for the 52″ version) for the rated weight, 2000 lbs vs 2500 lbs. It seems like the main thing they are pushing/marketing is Bluetooth which will become obsolete in time. I purchased this tool chest before I saw this review and will receive it tomorrow so we will see how it turns out.
Grey Proctor
So, it’s been about a year since this review. I strolled through my local Sears shopping for a new box and found these. Needless to say, the gut feeling I got of shoddy workmanship, poor QC, and excessive pricing while inspecting the cabinets appears to have been spot on. When Husky and Milwaukee are offering the level of fit and finish we see now for far less, why even risk purchasing this product?
It’s unfortunate, because I wanted to buy Craftsman. But my feeling is that the average consumer would run into all of the headaches you ran into but, not being an Internet reviewer, would get none of the support you received. Sears is about a year away from bankruptcy anyway, so there’s that too.
It’s too bad. Looks like a good concept but mortally wounded by a company about to slip under the waves.
Paul
I just bought one of the 52″ Pro Series Combos. I took it back 2 days later. Drawers were locked shut- This is NOT my first toolbox- I know how they work, (latching mechanism was disconnected, as was the key, smart lock has wires missing/loose- this I observed by inserting a bore-scope camera into holes), packaging for shipment was atrocious, ill-fitting, etc. This was the lower unit- I didn’t even bother to open the upper unit. After spending an entire day messing around, I finally called the Craftsman helpline- only to get a recorded message that they were not accepting calls…..I finally got in touch with an actual person, and they said they didn’t know why the ‘phones were down’, were no help, and told me to take it back for a refund. The whole experience was surreal. Sears has really gone down the tubes. I’ve been a loyal Craftsman customer for 30 years. I fear they may not be long for this world. The quality control has really slipped. Sad. Beware everyone.
Dennis McCarthy
I purchased one of these combos from sears when they closed in flint mi. I think this box is awesome. Its been a month since I brought it home and I still don’t have all my tools in it yet.Decisions,decisions.The only problem I’ve had is the keys were missing and nobody at Sears can seem to get replacements. Can you suggest where I might go to get them? I Thankyou Dennis I tried Waterloo but they denied making the combo.
Jody
I did buy the stainless 41″ combo. I considered heavily the Husky Industrial box but the 200# craftma. Drawers vs the 120# husky drawers made the decision. I use this box in an industrial environment and needed a solid box. I don’t regret my decision. The casters are slightly larger for getting across the rough floors. We have 1/4″ plates on the floors in areas that have to be crossed. As well as a couple 1/2″ that I try not to cross but can. The latches vs the soft close drawers….I prefer the latches. The stainless also has a slightly different locking mechanism for the top cabinetwhick I didn’t prefer to the black version, but, oh well. The slides also are slightly thicker and double on more drawers. Like I said, I don’t regret my decision. It’s finish was perfect underneath the peel off protective plastic. Very heavy and the alignment was very close top to bottom. About 1/8″. Still not prefect but very close. I’m satisfied with that. I did not use the Bluetooth. Not worth the risk and not why I purchased it. I needed a snap on but couldn’t spend that amount. This unit was $1400 and I feel it was a solid deal. I would definitely buy this combo again. The only issue I had was one small drawer was slightly warped when you looked closely. A couple solid hits with a mallet, and it’s straight now. No damages from the mallet either, which surprised me. I actually would recommend this stainless steel box. I own a Kobalt stainless box for home use and this is so much better built. It took two of us to fit the top cabinet but almost didn’t get it there. It need a minimum of three and most likely 4 people to lift. I hope my experience with this box can benefit someone out there.
Chancey Dee
It is 2020 – and the app DOES NOT EVEN COME ON THE DROID PHONES NOW. I have the latest android and the app says it is not compatible with my device.
I am so very disappointed in this tool box.
As a female that bought this on the fly knowing it would work perfectly for my business – it doesn’t – the shit box is a fail. A major fail.
Benjamen
We normally don’t allow profanity, but for this product I’ll look the other way :>)