Guide
Chief vs Island Chief vs Pull to Open vs Warrior
Four Cato cabinet series, four ways of getting the door open. How the break panel, pull panel, hinged door and locking seal differ, and where each fits.
All four Cato surface-mount series are molded from the same .110 high-impact polystyrene with UV inhibitors, in red or white, and the Chief family shares the same three tubs. What separates them is how somebody gets the door open in the ten seconds that matter.
At a glance
| Chief | Island Chief | Pull to Open | Warrior | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opening | Break panel | Hand-pull panel | Hinged door | Lift-off cover |
| Front material | .080 acrylic, grid scored | .030 PETG, oval notch | .080 acrylic, hinged | .100 crystal polystyrene |
| Tool needed | Hammer or break bar | None | None | None |
| Metal in the cabinet | Break tool, cable | None | Hinges, roller catch | None |
| Lock | ABS hex lock, 2 keys | ABS hex lock, 2 keys | Hex lock, 2 keys | Plastic locking seal |
| Sizes | 5, 10, 20 lb | 5, 10, 20 lb | 5, 10 lb | 5, 10 lb |
| Front colors | Clear or red acrylic | Clear only | Clear only | Clear or red cover |
| Consumable after use | Panel, sometimes hammer | Nothing | Nothing | Seal (part 95505) |
Chief — the break panel
The original. A .080 acrylic front panel, grid scored for improved emergency access, struck with a break tool. The security hexagonal lock and key open the cabinet normally, removing the trim and panel for inspection.
Two break tools:
- -H (hammer) — polypropylene injection molded, aluminum-tipped hammer with a ribbed grip handle on a clear nylon-coated stainless steel cable that matches the trim color. Parts 10011W and 10011R.
- -B (stainless steel break bar) — part 10008SS, about $2.50 more at cost.
Acrylic comes clear or red, and Cato specifies red for the best outdoor UV resistance. The Chief is the only series offered in all three sizes with a choice of front color, and the only one where you can buy a Customizer panel (10575C, 11075C, 12075C) — a scored acrylic blank you trim to size on site to fit most other economy cabinets.
Choose it when you want a visible, conventional break-glass style cabinet, you want red acrylic outdoors, or you need 20 lb capacity.
Island Chief — the hand pull, and the MRI answer
Same tubs, same lock, different front. A .030 PETG panel with an oval notch cut out forms a hand pull. There is no hammer, no cable and no break bar — which is the point, because the Island Chief is built with no metal in it at all. Cato labels it MR Safe as defined in ASTM F2503: electrically non-conductive, non-metallic and non-magnetic, and safe in a magnetic resonance imaging environment. NFPA 99 16.10.1.1.1 requires exactly that of extinguishers and associated hardware in MRI rooms.
It also carries a "Tampering is a Felony" label on the pull panel, standard, plus the MR Safe label.
Choose it when the cabinet goes in an MRI suite or an associated space, or anywhere you want a tool-free opening with nothing to replace after somebody uses it. Panel color is clear only.
Chief Pull to Open — the hinged door
Availability: on production hold at Activar. Ask us to quote lead time before specifying it.
A hinged .080 clear acrylic door on two stainless steel hinges, held by a zinc-plated roller catch and strike plate, with a black ABS handle 3.75 in. long and a 1.25 in. projection. Pull the handle firmly and the door swings. A hexagonal lock with two keys is installed, and a "In Case of Fire Pull Handle Firmly" decal comes with it.
Nothing is consumed when it opens, which makes it the cheapest series to live with in a building where the cabinet gets used or tested regularly. It is offered in 5 and 10 lb only — there is no 20 lb Pull to Open.
Choose it when you want repeat access without replacing a panel and the lead time works.
Warrior — two pieces and a seal
The odd one out. The Warrior is two-piece construction: a tub, and a .100 crystal polystyrene cover with a pull handle at the bottom and an etched "PULL" legend. A plastic locking seal holds the cover closed — no padlock required. Pull up, the seal breaks, the cover lifts off.
The Warrior also has its own, larger tubs: 95-5 at 8" x 19" x 6-3/8" and 95-10 at 9" x 23" x 7", noticeably wider and deeper than the Chief tubs of the same nominal rating. That extra room matters for fatter cylinders.
Four color combinations, each a separate catalog number: WC white body/clear cover (95051, 95101), WR white body/red cover (95052, 95102), RC red body/clear cover (95551, 95151), RR red body/red cover (95552, 95152). Cato specifies the red cover for the best outdoor UV resistance; a clear cover lets an inspector read the gauge without opening anything.
After each opening you replace the seal, part 95505 — pennies, but it has to be stocked.
Choose it when you want the simplest possible opening, tamper evidence that is obvious at a glance, or a roomier tub in a 5 or 10 lb size.
And the fifth: Classic Semi-Recessed
Not a surface-mount cabinet, so it sits outside this comparison, but worth knowing it exists. The 405-10 (41001) is white polypropylene, .15 thickness, with a hinged acrylic-window door and a 2-7/8 in. trim projection — the Cato model built to sit inside the ADA 4 in. protruding-objects limit. One size, 10 lb, with an optional cylinder lock (41001L). Cato's price sheet allows no freight discount on it.