I would like to get some suggestions as to what type of tool box would work best for the classroom competition kits of VEX. I want to make sure there is plenty of space and I am limited in what I can actually look at, since I live in a smaller town.
Thanks!
I use Milwaukee parts organizer.
I have six competition teams and have multiple sections of robotics in my middle school. Using three of these provides ample access to parts for all the robots being built. They snap together, so you can put them in the car and they won’t slide all over the place.
I also use the Rigid Tool Organizers for batteries, tools etc… It is part of a system with a rolling base which is awesome for trucking metal to competitions. They are interlocking.
Between the two systems, you will have a mobile solution that stores and scales very well!
As mentioned in earlier thread, you can also use Tool Tote as a battery charging station. You velcro the chargers to the inside sides of the tote with the LED and switch accessible, and have the batteries in the outside pockets. Very clever solution from VEXmen.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/21462499
Keter 18" cantilever toolbox has worked well for us. Rugged and you can’t hoard too many parts in these. Or you could move up to the 22" variety.
We like to use either a Husky 22" toolbox or a Stanley FatMax. The Husky is good for keeping up with everything, the FatMax has more room and sections that can help with organizing your components.
I see more Husky 22" toolboxes at tournaments than anything else. I also see a lot of these and boxes like these. We used to use large Plano tackle boxes, but they don’t hold 17.5" metal and the handles fell off. Lately, I’ve seen a few teams use Stanley rolling tool boxes, but it’s definitely a minority. Personally, I worry about the large capacity of the rolling toolboxes since it would be easy to overload them.
Coaches dream of the perfect storage solution, but it’s like El Dorado, we search but never find.
My teams have had the best success with the Husky toolboxes. They have been a good balance of size, durability, and cost.
We really like the Dewalt Tough System. It’s modular, highly portable, and allows us to change configurations depending on where we are, school or a local tournament we can mix and match. A local Do-it-Best center was great and sold it to us at cost since it was for our robotics team. We also found some good deals at our local Black & Decker Outlet Store.
I did look at the Dewalt Tough System, but found each component to be high priced that the Rigid equivalent for the same quality. The real kicker was the hand cart for the system cost $189 - which is more than the whole Rigid system.
However, the concept of an modular system that you can mix and match is good.
Dewalts T-stak system is modular, and less expensive than the Tough System. Several of our students have gone that route: The clear-top organizer along with one or two-drawer units.
As odd as it sounds, we use fishing tackle boxes to sort our VEX parts. This Walmart post says $84, but i believe we got ours on sale. They work great for hauling/storing parts. I’m sure you could find Tackle boxes similar to this one for less than $20.
We used to use a variation of the Plano stow and go series box. We found that the front clasp could come loose over time and when that happens the contents of the box go all over the place since the handle is attached to the lid.
The Keter/Husky brand boxes have the handle attached to the main part of the box so when their front latches break, the plastic top lid is loose, and does not automatically spill its contents. it can, but it is not always the case
I had the problem with the latch coming off, I called Plano and they sent me some spares.
I put a small spring clip in the hole to the right of the latch as a safety. That way if the latch pops open the spring clip keeps it shut.
Love the Plano boxes, they are my favorite.
