shelves for stainless toolbox

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hey everyone,thought i would ask the creative minds of the weldingweb forums for some ideas, or even one. i don't post a lot, but enjoy reading all your guys'.i got a very good deal on two stainless steel toolboxes at princess auto (any canadians here), that i am planning to mount on my welding truck.  they have a really nice finish on them, kind of a machined swirled effect. the inside of the tool box is empty and ready for some shelves for rods, grinding discs, tools, etc.here's the question...i don't want to weld in any shelves cause i'll burn the finish on the outside of the boxes, how do i mount shelves inside of them.  i was thinking of wood shelves, or riveting in some shelves(not really wanting to drill holes in them either).am i screwed here or what? please help if you can, thanks
Reply:We have a set of similar boxes on the one flat bed at work. We made an angle iron frame to support a wood shelf. To hold the shelf to height we made some legs that we then bolted to the frame on the ends inside the box. No holes in the box at all. Gravity keeps the shelf in place. The legs are bolted because there was not enough room in the box to install the frame with the legs attached. The frame went in and was tilted into place, then the legs were bolted to the frame. The one box has a 1/2 length shelf and thats the easy one. The other side has a full length shelf and that needed to be built in 2 sections and bolted together once installed to get the frame to fit the full length.Pop rivets was my other thought, but like you say why drill holes if you don't have to.
Reply:Easy, you need to bend up a panel that sits just on the inside of the box and the edges of the bent piece should run right into the corners.  Weld to the corners and you wont see it on the outside.  Now weld the shelves to the piece you welded on and your done.You might be able to get away with just a flat piece instead of a bent one, we usually bend it so it keeps stuff from leaving dents in the door.  (The toolboxes we make are usually mirror finish stainless)Have we all gone mad?
Reply:very nice fellas, i will take both those ideas into consideration.i will of course post pics, and some of my welding deck too. thanks for the quick replies
Reply:At risk of being flamed, 3M VHB tape, a very high strength bond tape, used on stock (cattle) trailers here for holding the cladding on. Or rubber silicon, or a toughened acrylic two pot glue, Loctite have one and also I've used Flexon 241 with great success before."One of the things we have to be thankful for is that we don't get as much government as we pay for." (Charles Kettering)Mitch 180 (NZ)Lincoln SAM-400-220 + ?-400 Fordson Major + 2 x Tractapac Humber 80 + Procut 40 PlasmaMiller Spectrum 375
Reply:Hard to tell how the box opens/closes from the pics... but if the lid doesnt hinge down too tight- perhaps a system of thin gauge sheet metal that hooks over the lip of the top edges?  Another thought for mounting them without welding is drilling and tapping (threading) them, although you are drilling again (and if the walls are thin, which I suspect they are, this is out.  A final idea- albeit very elaborate, is a type of hinged-scissor tray system that hangs from the top cover. Hard to explain but if you're a fisherman, picture those tackle boxes that when you open them, the neatly stacked trays also open up and slide apart, exposing them fully.  Make any sense?Lincoln AC225 & MigPak 140, Lincoln Magnum SpoolGun, Miller Spectrum 375-X Plasma, Syncrowave 200 TIG, Millermatic 252 MIG, Miller Digital Elite, General 7x12" horiz/vert bandsaw, 3' box/pan brake, 20 ton press, milling machine, 12x28 lathe, etc.