Warren posted a few weeks ago about a small UK-only contest to identify
a new Protool accessory. It turned out that the accessory in question was the
SYS-Toolbox, but more importantly - I won!
My prize arrived yesterday:
so I thought I'd do a quick review.
Firstly, it's very well made, with thick section plastic (ABS I think) that's rigid & tough. The corners, as the most vulnerable areas, have sturdy columns to protect it, as you can see from the underside:
The toolbox is split into two compartments by a central divide, each side measuring approximately 360mm long, 120mm wide, and 140mm deep. There's a small (3mm dia) hole in the inside corners of each section, presumably to allow drainage of the compartment should the toolbox be inadvertently left out in the rain.
Whilst looking it over, I noticed that the handle moulding was simply clipped in from the top:
My first thought was that this might be a weak point, but my worries were unfounded. The handle is rock solid & the joint is very strong. In the above pic you can also see two of the 4 drain holes mentioned earlier.
The SYS-Toolbox is designed to work with both the 'Classic' and 'T-Loc' systainers. For connecting to the newer T-Locs, there's a pin on the front to connect with the locking handle, and the back two feet are angled to hook under the top of the systainer underneath:
I don't have any T-Locs to connect it to, so I can't show that. I do however have plenty of classic systainers, and the SYS-Toolbox will (probably) be put to use on top of my 'main' toolbox:
Additionally, the toolboxes are designed to clip to each other, with the handle of the lower systainer fitting into the central divide of the upper one. There are 2 of the old-style latches, one at either side, to clip them together in this configuration:
The toolbox tips the scales at a little under 1.3kg, so it's very light, and the height (excluding handle) matches the Sys-2 at around 150mm including the feet. The handle rises to around 65mm higher, making it 215mm high overall. The handle itself is nicely rounded, and very comfortable to hold (like the Tanos systainers, more so that the Festool systainer handle). It also has small slots in either end to take the carrying strap if you so wish. When attached to the top of my stack above, it's far more comfortable to lift the entire stack with this than by the 'classic' systainer handle.
BTW, the panel on the front with the Protool logo is clearly a removable/replacable section within the mould (evidenced by the very slight flash line around it) so I don't see any reason why there
couldn't be a Festool-branded version at some point, but that's no indication that there
will be!
In summary, it's a nice addition to the systainer family. At £29.75 +VAT it isn't cheap, but it's very well made & the quality is top-notch. Is it worth it? Well, I didn't pay for mine, but if I saw this in a store, picked it up, felt the quality etc., I'd have a hard time walking out without one, even if I didn't really
need one...
To clarify, this was provided to me by Warren (username:
toolfest.co.uk) of Bunnys Bolts in Woking as a contest prize.
