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WTS: 13 drawer tooling cabinet

rjs3299

Plastic
Joined
May 2, 2020
This cabinet was in my garage when I bought my house. I can't find a brand on it anywhere so I'm not sure how to tell exactly what it is. I don't have a use for anything this heavy duty so I would like to sell it. Does anyone know how I can identify it and what it might be worth? Any interest in buying/picking up? Located in Jamestown NY.

Dimensions are 28d x 30w x 44h.
 

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Agree, probably Lista. Depending on condition, $80 to $100 per drawer in my location.

Would be easier to advise if you posted dimensions.

L7
 
The drawers look too shallow for a Lista..more like something to hold blueprints or paperwork.

Stuart

Or nuts, bolts, washers, rivets, snap-rings, O-rings, terminals, bushings, ... note the slots for MANY arrangements of sub-dividers.

As to "too shallow"? Found the same here with a pair of recycled Architect's flat files.

BFD.

- Pull the next to last drawer at the bottom, entire.

- Pull the steel drawer-front facing and rail handle off the side rails.

- Flat-bracket that facia from behind to the drawer front below.

And I had a double-height drawer with room to lay a stiffener into it as well.

Got serious weight? Put a plate to each side and pick-up the missing drawer's slide rails, too. Won't show atall when shut. Won't intrude into storage when open, either.

Yah can do more than one like that, cabinet this tall ... and it don't even get ugly as yah go.
 
This cabinet was in my garage when I bought my house. I can't find a brand on it anywhere so I'm not sure how to tell exactly what it is. I don't have a use for anything this heavy duty so I would like to sell it. Does anyone know how I can identify it and what it might be worth? Any interest in buying/picking up? Located in Jamestown NY.

Dimensions are 28d x 30w x 44h.

Not a Lista Cabinet, doesn’t have the grid of holes in the bottom of the drawer for all the dividers.......looks more like a Vidmar cabinet?

I’m pretty sure Lista cabinets have the lock in the center of the cabinet as well?

I would think the value would be somewhere in the $500-$750 range?

Kevin
 
Not a Lista Cabinet, doesn’t have the grid of holes in the bottom of the drawer for all the dividers.......looks more like a Vidmar cabinet?

I’m pretty sure Lista cabinets have the lock in the center of the cabinet as well?

I would think the value would be somewhere in the $500-$750 range?

Kevin

Maker's of OFFICE furniture are legion, so could easily be "none of the above" as far as Lista / Vidmar / Stanley for the "usual suspects" among tool cabinet makers.

My two Architect's files are about the same width 29"+ (30" for planning) external, but 40" DEEP. Two combined are only 34 1/2" tall (18" each, nominal for planning). "Cube" is similar off the back of my drawers being deeper.

As to value:

Going rate, coupla years back, Metro DC, major high-volume office furniture recycler for used Architect's / blueprint flat files was $200 each, so about $400.
And they were sore HARD to find, so much being electronic, no longer dead-tree.

Shipping is commonly done all the time, but dent damage is not uncommon, either.

2 sorta-comparable cabinet's worth, and the usual standard-PM-excuse-number-one:

"wish it was closer.."

:)
 
Not a Lista Cabinet, doesn’t have the grid of holes in the bottom of the drawer for all the dividers......

Kevin

Actually does have the holes visible in one of the photos. Lista keeps changing the lock cylinder style too. Might be a special.
 
Just out of curiosity did some google fu. This is a Lista cabinet. Found numerous examples with exactly the same drawer pulls, same lock location, as many drawers, and same dimensions as OP’s.

If I were the OP, I wouldn’t sell it. You’ll find uses for it.

L7
 
Actually does have the holes visible in one of the photos. Lista keeps changing the lock cylinder style too. Might be a special.

I saw the holes, Lista cabinets have a grid covering the whole bottom of the drawer.

Here’s a picture of the grid of holes in the drawer bottom.....

Used Lista 5 drawer cabinet 42 inch tall industrial tool storage #1635 Vidmar – Industrial Cabinet Store

Just out of curiosity did some google fu. This is a Lista cabinet. Found numerous examples with exactly the same drawer pulls, same lock location, as many drawers, and same dimensions as OP’s.

If I were the OP, I wouldn’t sell it. You’ll find uses for it.

L7

I still disagree, everybody says they have a Lista cabinet!
There’s been probably a dozen different manufacturers of these cabinets over the years, Vidmar, Bott, Rousseau to name a few!

Lista started manufacturing these cabinets in the states around 1970 according to their website?

History :: LISTA

If you look at the pictures on Lista’s website you will see the lock location is in the center, it is connected via rod from the lock to the latch mechanism for the drawers that’s located in the center of the back of the cabinet, if you have ever locked your keys in one you know what I’m talking about!

Not all cabinets have the locks either, that was optional.......

Kevin
 
I thought Stanley Vidmar at first too, but it looks like they use a different extrusion for the drawer pull. the one on the op's is very nice, quite solid looking.
of corse any of the manufacturers may have changed their extrusion, but it doesn't look like my listas, or any that I've seen that I recall. they have full width pulls for example.

yea, nice one, keep it if you can I'd say!
 
Yeah, keep it! Too much valuable storage space in such a small area! <drool> :)

Word of advice. While it's empty, flop in on it's back and mount a section of a pallet or a couple 4x4 beams under it, so as to be able to easily slide a pallet dolly or forklift forks under it to move it from place to place. SO much easier than pulling all the draws out and then shuffling things around until they fit!
 
Thanks everybody for the responses so far. Here's a few more pictures if it gives any more clues.. I took a picture of the locking mechanism and I noticed about half the drawers have one style of locking tab and the other half have a different style. Other than that they all seem about the same. I don't have a key to see if the lock actually works.
 

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Yeah, keep it! Too much valuable storage space in such a small area! <drool> :)

Word of advice. While it's empty, flop in on it's back and mount a section of a pallet or a couple 4x4 beams under it, so as to be able to easily slide a pallet dolly or forklift forks under it to move it from place to place. SO much easier than pulling all the draws out and then shuffling things around until they fit!

One can do better-yet, and it is WORTH it.

Essentially ALL of my goods are on skates or HEAVY DUTY casters (some of them Cast Iron wheels, greased Bronze bearings..).

First, add steel or aluminium "ell" rails, ELSE Oak stringers to the edges and underside IF need be where the folded sheet metal structure isn't as good as it could be. A 3/4" ACX ply base gets the casters, all four steer attached with carriage bolts from the back, NEVER mere screws. Use steel channel and machine bolts if the load requires that. This is a "once in a lifetime" need and worth doing well.

THEN the plate is fastened to the already-prepped Ell rails or stringers.

Now there is space to clear lift forks if/as/when/where the casters are not good enough. Such as loading onto a truck.

Keep in mind the mass in the drawers ADDS UP! Not hard to go over a ton on large enough cabinets, and that casters fail when moving and suddenly ALL the load is applied to just ONE caster, too often from the side, as it balks.

So this is NOT a job for wimp-ass casters. At all.

Every truant caster I ever had a disagreement with has proven more suicidally stubborn than I am, so I've learned to JF CHEAT! It pays to "pre-point" them in a favourable direction before starting a move rather than fighting them.

Life is good when you can move stuff wthout having to go get forks, pry bar, or lifting gear and squeeze it into a tight spot.

"Scotch blocking" casters or lifting up and running skids under, wedging to level, (shim packs from Big-Box are cheap enuf'..) is not hard, nor hard to undo, either.

And then the doors and drawers all open and close more easily and don't even rub the paint!

2C.. and "many wheelies" - worth.

Cheap ones, beefed-up, mostly.

By the time I could AFFORD better?

I no longer had the time, energy, nor inclination - to relocate all my s**t!

Might not exactly be "the Lone Ranger" on that last part?

"Run what you got!"

:D
 
I have a similar cabinet, the dimensions of my cabinet are close but the locks look identical. The maker of my cabinet is RACK Engineering CO. My personal advice is, keep the cabinet and add a set of heavy duty casters - you'll love it! I've attached a couple of photos of my cabinet for comparison.
 

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I have a similar cabinet, the dimensions of my cabinet are close but the locks look identical. The maker of my cabinet is RACK Engineering CO. My personal advice is, keep the cabinet and add a set of heavy duty casters - you'll love it! I've attached a couple of photos of my cabinet for comparison.

Good on yah!

I think we have "bingo".

Nu Era examples with decent photos are all over eBay, and also have prior threads "Right here, on PM":

Nu Era cabinets

Homepage - Rack Engineering Division
 








 
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