A Minnesota inventor, Andrew Anderson of Crookston, Minn., has devised a portable tool chest which also serves as a workbench. It consists of two parts which can be hinged together, side by side or back to back. If the chest is to be used as a workbench, the two parts, securely fastened together, are raised to the proper height by foldable, firmly braced supports. These legs are hinged to the body of the chest and give sufficient stability to the bench for any ordinary work, like sawing, planing or sandpapering.
One of the parts has two large drawers for saws, planes, and other large tools. The other has three drawers for smaller tools, sandpaper, and light hardware, including screws, nails, brads, hinges, staples, etc.
For convenience in transportation the two parts of the chest are fastened together face to face by an ingenious arrangement of clips and bolts, and secured by a strong lock.
We are all of us quite accustomed to the sight of a carpenter carrying his tools in a bundle or bag, but a carpenter carrying his bench will certainly be something new on the horizon. It should prove a great convenience to the rural carpenter who must move about from place to place, often handicapped for lack of a proper bench.
Popular Science – December 1919
– Jeff Burks
If only there were camels in Minnesota to tote the campaign tool chest!
Sandpapering?!?
The drawback compared to a normal chest would be always having to open and close the drawers. I assume they weren’t full extension slides either.
Why have a good bench and a good chest when you can have a poor one of each?
“These legs are hinged to the body of the chest and give sufficient stability to the bench for any ordinary work, like sawing, planing or sandpapering.” – Marketing lies sounded the same back then, it seems.
The individual boxes look very similar in size horse pack boxes. I’ve seen collapsing camp kitchens built on similar principals. I wonder if that’s where there original idea came from?