Milwaukee Packouts

[herr_oberst]

I have no interest in buying any of this, but my YouTube feed is full of people showing off their setups, or trying to convince people that brand D,R,K or HF are superior. It looks like a very (very!) expensive way to keep a few tools and supplies together, but I suppose for a tradesman that goes site to site, or folks with lots of property that needs regular maintenance, the system probably has a lot of merit.

Anyone here using packouts for home or work?

[pwd72s]

Great system for service people. But for the DIYers? I still think a rollaway works best.

[rwest]

I have maybe a dozen or so Festool ones on two wheeled bases in my shop. Most of them contain the tool that I bought that included the container. I also bought a few empty ones to keep other small power tools in and keep other related tools and hardware in one place.

Very expensive, but it does keep me organized and I can roll the two stacks out of my way when needed.

[rwest]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

Great system for service people. But for the DIYers? I still think a rollaway works best.

Good point Paul, I do have to unstack frequently to get to each tool, where with a tool chest, I could just open the drawer I needed.

[Arizona_928]

I have the harbor freight one. Use it for hand tools when i go junk yarding or the auto skills shop.

[look 171]

My guys use them. I tell ya, once that damn thing is full, don't try to carry it. Its heavy.

[herr_oberst]

I get the trades using them; it's this kind of stuff that makes me shake my head:

Sorry, I've never learned to embed YouTube shorts

http://youtube.com/shorts/WCl6W2e_SyI?si=wXjnkEMdtcQf-qZ9

[pwd72s]

LOL! at the video. It looks like those never leave his garage. So, go to the kitchenware dept. of Wal Mart, look at all the kitchen drawer dividers offered at a fraction of the cost of that packout tray, put 'em in a rollaway drawer. For really small nuts, bolts, screws, washers, etc? Ice Cube trays.

Packout is great for taking tools to a job...but otherwise??? I'll stick to my rollaway 3 chests...but do wish I'd gone wider & lower. Never have heard a guy say he wished he had less tool storage.

[URY914]

That's a lot of plastic. Crazy that man has made it this far without cool, trick toolboxes.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by herr_oberst

I get the trades using them; it's this kind of stuff that makes me shake my head:

Sorry, I've never learned to embed YouTube shorts

Good grief. He's organized, and maybe he really loves the fact that it's all red and black, but it seems like that's a lot of money and a bit of wasted space compared to other sorts of cabinets and organization. I guess in this case, it's got all of the integrated small drawers with individual spots, etc.... This guy has clearly spent money to make sure that he has several of a bunch of sizes of nuts, bolts, rivets, etc....

[911 Rod]

Doesn't look like an efficient use of space.
I use 3700 fishing tackle boxes that take up 1/4 of the space.

[DonDavis]

Virtue signalling a-hole.

There’s zero chance he uses all of that regularly.

[rwest]

Originally Posted by 911 Rod

Doesn't look like an efficient use of space.
I use 3700 fishing tackle boxes that take up 1/4 of the space.

I love the Plano stuff, very economical and most of it made there in the US. Only drawback is trying to get small fasteners out of a small compartment can pull up the divider and mix with other parts.

[MBAtarga]

Adam Savage (of Mythbusters fame) has a wide variety of hardware which he stores in a customized system of containers. Unlike the guy with Milwaukee overload in his garage - Adam uses his hardware.

[URY914]

^^^I didn't watch the video but how it the world does he remember witch drawer something is in if they all look the same?

[zakthor]

I keep my tools in sealed cases to protect from humidity because they live on covered outdoor racks. They organize and make it easy to move stuff into my truck. Its also convenient to keep the blades/discs/paper together with the tools.

The cases I started with were cheapos and they all broke.

I have one milwaukee packout box, a medium thick case that was $20 used and its full of screws so weighs like 35 lbs. It seems tougher than my other boxes but their bare cases are also heavier. I have a slightly bigger rigid-brand organizer full of bolts and its even heavier. The rigid is more flexible but has held up just as well. Sure does beat storing fasteners in cardboard boxes and coffee cans.

I really like the rigid pro gear brand cases from home depot. I just bought another medium sized rigid box case on sale for $30. I checked before I bought and the slightly smaller non-sale milwaukee packout was $140. Holds my angle grinder and all my discs.

For what they charge per hour I guess a pro doesn't need to care what the toolboxes cost but jeese those milwaukee seem like a complete ripoff.

[911 Rod]

Originally Posted by rwest

I love the Plano stuff, very economical and most of it made there in the US. Only drawback is trying to get small fasteners out of a small compartment can pull up the divider and mix with other parts.

Ya, washers will drive you mad!

Once I set up the box, I use my glue gun and put a drop where the dividers join.

I also us a magnet to pull small pieces out.

[herr_oberst]

A little virtue signaling here; (sorry!), and most likely this picture has been posted to this site before. I built these about 20 some odd years ago out of scrap and some HF sorting bins. I doubt if there's more than 20 or 25 bucks in this.

It's not portable like a genuine packout, but I don't need portable, just organized.

[DonDavis]

Yours ain’t “signaling” and looks like a nice setup.
Well done!

The goofball in the video above has all least 30 times more and he makes it sound like only punks and losers go to hardware store for a few items. He needs to get over himself, or admit he’s just kidding around.

Neither will actually happen.

Party on, Garth.

[MBAtarga]

Originally Posted by URY914

^^^I didn't watch the video but how it the world does he remember witch drawer something is in if they all look the same?

He has a database for inventory with a photo of every container. There are written labels on the front of each case for the hardware category as well.