It caught me as a surprise that Crescent, most well-known for their hand tools, is coming out with new open-top tool bags. The two new Crescent Tradesmen tool bags are said to be ideal for everyday use in rugged conditions.
We found two sizes of Crescent open-top tool bags, 14″ (CTB1410) and 17″ (CTB1710). Both have polypropylene bases for moisture and impact resistance. The bags are also made with 1680D polyester, metal hardware, and a high visibility orange interior.
Advertisement
Both tool bags feature a large metal handle and a removable shoulder strap.
The two Crescent open-top tool bags both feature internal and external pockets for hand tool organization, and a partition in the middle divides the bags for more organizational options.
Launch Price: $100 for the 14″ tool bag, $110 for the 17″ tool bag
Updated Pricing (4/28/21): $70 for the 14″ bag, $85 for the 17″ bag
Buy Now(14″ tool bag via Amazon)
Buy Now(14″ tool bag via Acme Tools)
Buy Now(17″ tool bag via Amazon)
Buy Now(17″ tool bag via Acme Tools)
Discussion
As far as open-top tool totes go, the new Crescent bags seem to have features indicative of premium build quality. The pricing seems a little high for the brand, but maybe they went for a no-compromise “go big or don’t bother” philosophy.
Advertisement
Most other less expensive tool totes that I’m familiar with don’t have partition panels, and also seem to be built with two horizontal panels and two side panels all fastened together. Just looking at product photos for the Crescent, the corners are rounded, giving the tool bag a more continuous appearance. Depending on the internal construction, this could make it more durable over time. There also appears to be an internal frame along the upper/outer edge, which would increase rigidity.
The new Crescent tool bags are positioned between entry-priced and basic-featured tool totes, such as from Custom Leathercraft, and more premium options from Veto Pro Pac. At least from the product imagery, Crescent’s claims of “ideal for everyday use in rugged conditions” look to be reflected in the tool bags. Looks aren’t everything, but I’m optimistic, and I don’t think that Crescent would want to enter the tool storage market on a weak foot.
Frank
I think if you’re in the market for this you’d be better off going for the ~$80 more Veto Pro Pac, something like the OT MC. I would expect something from Crescent to be more downmarket honestly and for $100 it would be Klein or something better regarded.
Patrick McIntosh
I don’t understand why you say “I would expect something from Crescent to be more downmarket honestly .” If you had been following the changes at Crescent you would have noticed that with their new CEO, ex Irwin CEO, the brand names have been wound back, as he did when he was with Irwin, the products have improved in their appearance and their quality, along with some damn good innovation. I know a bit about tool bags and I can say that the idea of the interior colour being as it is improves visibility therefore accessibility to the tools in the bag. The rounded corners are a great idea, stopping the old torn corner syndrome of most tool bags, and having a frame around the upper edge means an always open fully accessible bag, not a “damn the lips of the bag are folded in” bag. You should note that Apex Tools who are Crescent also make things such as Apex driver bits and driving tools, the bits that are used by every vehicle manufacturer in the world due to their quality and the longevity. So to make a covering statement such as you have tells me that you don’t know much about the company or its brands, rather that you have formed an opinion over something you either purchased yourself a while ago, or are forming an opinion on hearsay. I will sort of agree with you in one way, Cooper Industries who used to own the brand went to sleep for a lot of years and focused on their electrical and power industries, letting the brand slip, however those days are gone.
Tony
Frank is talking about the business concept of Market Segmentation. And he’s right. If a company like Crescent wants to shift part of their product portfolio toward a different market segment, that’s great news. But it takes many years of marketing expenditure and shifts in customer perception to reach a different product segment for which another company already has first mover advantage.
Nathan
The handle pad looks cheap in comparison to the rest of the bag. LIke an afterthought.
meanwhile however ther rest of the bag looks nice. It does look to have an internal frame. Had it said Klein or Dewalt or something else on the side I might see the 100 or so price. I don’t really know what’s worse the fact that the brand names makes me think it should cost a bit less or that I think the bag is overpriced.
anyway. If in themarket for a new tool tote I would consider one especially if it was on sale.
James C
I don’t like tapered outside pockets on bags like these. They tend to cause tools in them to sit angled away from the bag making it take up more space and more likely to snag on things.
IBEWelec
Hate to say it, but its obvious the team than engineered\designed this bag has never carried one on a job and/or they got no feedback from professionals in the trades.
Right off the bat- tapered outside pockets like you said, and a hard carry handle that doesn’t look like it can be folded down. This means that the gangboxes you see on 99% of jobsites- like Jobox’s or similar with interior shelves that have 10″ of clearance between shelves won’t fit this bag unless you go for the bottom shelf- which is left for the pipe threader, oil buckets and other nasty shit people don’t want thrown next to their personal tools.
Basically, maybe good for a service van- but If I’m spending 110 on a bag, I’m just throwing in the extra 60$ and getting one of the Veto OT’s
Wayne R.
I’m no security freak (no cameras or gates at the house, etc.), but I do like closing & locking doors as a habit. The Veto Pro bags I use zip up nicely, so I don’t have to think much about bags tipping or casual borrowing. And all the flights I’ve been on show how ridiculous using open-top bags can be, tipping & spilling their contents.
We put a lot of money & effort into collecting our tools, I don’t want to find that any have been carelessly lost.
That’s what stops me from using bags like these.
Philip
I agree, Wayne. I don’t mind giving tools away, buy only with my permission, not somebody’s “five finger discount”.
That’s the same reason why I never bought bucket organizers with outside pockets.
Jay k.
I like closed bags because it always seems like people are sanding drywall around me… Lol
Jared
These look pretty nice to me. I like the plastic bases.
I have a few tool bags I use for different purposes. My main go-to bag is an electrician’s style open-top bag. One of the things I don’t like about it is that when it’s fully loaded up one of the sides collapses somewhat from the weight – it doesn’t sit flat and can tip over easily. I’m not sure either of these bags would make a good replacement for me, but the overall design looks good.
A couple features I really like about my current bag are the exterior metal mounts for a tape measure and a drill or impact, slung by the belt-hook. They both work really well and, because they are metal, are easy to clip to.
Crescent’s product imagery shows a tape measure hanging from one of the exterior pockets, but that’s never as nice because I find I have to use two hands to get the clip over the material and it hangs away from the bag.
Evadman
I have used open top organizers for millwork, GC and electrical work for a while, about 15 years ago it was daily usage in and out of my truck. The best one I ever had was for a 5 gallon bucket that was maybe $5. My last one finally died, and I tried the milwalkee one, but found I needed the inside too. I ended up with one from klein for about $30 that has worked well so far.
The only reason I liked the husky open-top tool carrier was the handle. it wouldn’t hurt as much as a bucket handle if carrying it longer distance over uneven ground such as to a house under construction with a torn up yard. That box couldn’t carry as much as my usual bucket, but it was acceptable. The husky was also only like $20.
Looking back at it now, I would much rather have a backpack with a hard bottom like the Milwaukee than I would a 5 gallon bucket & organizer or a few open-top tool bags. Especially if all the options were all roughly the same cost and build quality. The bucket could carry more, but that isn’t always a good thing.
The What?
Yep
The What?
Nothing beats a 5 gallon bucket because not only can you carry tools and materials with it but it can be used as a toilet, a trash can, a step stool, mixing container, a saw horse, a container for various liquids, a masonry adhesive container(grout, mortar etc), and a whole lot more. A tool bag can’t do but one thing and is considerably more expensive than a bucket. A bucket costs $3. It’s very difficult to misplace tools in a bucket because there’s no pockets or straps unless you have an organizer. Even then you really can’t misplace your tools in a bucket. It makes picking up your tools extremely easy to do because you’re not wasting time putting each individual tool in its pocket. You simply pick it all up and put it in. It’s typically better to have several buckets each one containing the corresponding tools for the type of task that you encounter. Keeps from having to carry around a bunch of stuff that I don’t need that isn’t pertinent to the job I’m doing. As for this crescent tool bag, I’m not seeing crescent in any position to command that sort of price for a tool bag with their name on it. They aren’t the same brand of quality tools that they were decades ago. Most of their hand tools are in the same class as husky and Stanley and I’ve never seen a husky open tote tool bag priced for this amount. As others have said if crescent were a premium brand of tools I could see the price, but that hasn’t been the case for many years.
Tony
It appears that this design has been copied a lot. I prefer the far cheaper version of this at Lowe’s (AWP brand) with a fold down handle.
Matt
Its funny to me because I just hit the market for an open tote and in doing my research have found that there is either the $20-$60 bag which is made of(usually) cheaper material, is barely robust (some Husky bags seem robust but the pockets are oddly designed), the side walls fold when bearing normal weight, the outer pockets are next to useless and most pockets lack a bottom so smaller tools end up in the bottom of the bag…. Or we have Klein, Veto and Milwaukee. I like the Veto bags I have but their open totes do not seem appealing. The Milwaukees are way over priced for what they are and Klein… Well…. Klein’s options are limited. So when I saw the title of your article a little jolt of hope ran through me. $100 for that 14″ bag seems to be pushing it. But no one can attest to their job site tolerance yet.
blocky
Stuart, under the amazon listing, if you select 20″ contractor tool bag, there is a product shot with a rafter square in the foreground that has a fold-out extension rule – have you seen this before or know what it’s called? I tried to google around for it.
Stuart
I’m not familiar with it, will see what I can dig up. Great catch!
yadda
Branded Crescent.
Stuart
Yes, I know. Still waiting on my Crescent PR contact to see what they can share. I’m not familiar with that square, it looks like a new model.
Dale
I’ve seen these fold out squares at Lowes in the Holidays Specials section.
logir
That strikes me as obscenely expensive for, well, a bag.
Didnt’ DeWalt have some similar bags in the last few years that retailed for a lot less?
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=dwst08206
This Crescent stuff must be made in NA (Apex, as far as I know, manufactures at least in Mexico, if not in US – both of which have higher labor costs than China) to justify the price, or be made of WAY beefier materials. I think the Keter/other Milwaukee stuff is better bang for the buck if I remember correctly.
Dean
Great bag if you don’t mind picking up your tools all the time!!! This bag will tip over at the slightest turn in your vehicle if it not stacked between something. HATE IT…
Philip
I might be showing my age , but for that much money I’d rather buy a USA made Kennedy Cantilever tool box. But I guess strong metal toolboxes aren’t in fashion anymore.
Robert Adkins
I like straps, not metal handles. They make for a lower profile, easier to stow in a cabinet or large drawer. I prefer natural fiber with no plastic coating inside or out. That lets the tools breathe so they won’t rust as easily when brought outside in heat and humidity.