Tools to tote

4x4x4doors

Adventurist
Wife and I just returned from 11,100+ miles trip in 38 days. In carrying clothes for different seasons and all the other paraphernalia that goes along with that trip, I made a conscious decision to limit the amount of weight to be devoted to tools. All went well until about 40 miles from home on the return when we got rear-ended in heavy interstate traffic. No injuries but took a pretty good hit to the rear of the truck. Most of our gear and cargo shifted a little but essentially stayed where it started.
My fiberglass cap is secured with 4 of the standard clamps that go under the bed lip and over the ledge inside the shell.
In getting whacked, some combination of bed flex resulted in the cap coming free of most of the clamps and shifting.
One tool I did not have was a socket and ratchet to fit those clamps. We were able to get it secured using the pliers in my imitation leatherman but think I'll make sure to include a ratchet and socket in the future.
DSCF6386.JPG
DSCF6387.JPG
 
Is that shell designed to lip over the edge slightly and those plates are preventing it from being seated as designed, or is it simply a flat bottom topper?
 
father's day sales will start next week. I've got my eye on a craftsman set in a blow molded case (no rattles).
 
A socket set is the smallest tool kit i'll bring. the expanded set has stuff to handle when ball joints split, cv swaps, rebooting, or broken brake lines, missing suspension bolts. basically the most common trail problems we encounter.
 
A socket set is the smallest tool kit i'll bring. the expanded set has stuff to handle when ball joints split, cv swaps, rebooting, or broken brake lines, missing suspension bolts. basically the most common trail problems we encounter.

This. I'm re-evaluating my own toolkit after suffering two major breakages in Moab. Didn't have a big enough open ended wrench for a trail repair and then another item I needed to replace, my sockets topped out at 24mm and I needed a 27mm. One thing I know for sure, you need tools to fix most common suspension problems.
 
An old timer buddy of mine only used tools he carried in his Jeep for repairs, even when he was sitting in his driveway. He figured if he needed it in the driveway, he'd probably need it on the trail at some point. I come from a rock crawler back ground...we had significantly more vehicular carnage than what we do around here.
 
An old timer buddy of mine only used tools he carried in his Jeep for repairs, even when he was sitting in his driveway. He figured if he needed it in the driveway, he'd probably need it on the trail at some point. I come from a rock crawler back ground...we had significantly more vehicular carnage than what we do around here.

I use this rule of thumb with my motorcycle tool kit. If I use it during maintenance or a repair in the garage the tool ends up on the bike.
 
Is that shell designed to lip over the edge slightly and those plates are preventing it from being seated as designed, or is it simply a flat bottom topper?
Although the bottom edge is flat, the plates do keep the lower edge from as much contact as it was designed to have which likely contributed to its shifting.
 
An old timer buddy of mine only used tools he carried in his Jeep for repairs, even when he was sitting in his driveway. He figured if he needed it in the driveway, he'd probably need it on the trail at some point. I come from a rock crawler back ground...we had significantly more vehicular carnage than what we do around here.

And if you use the kit you keep in your vehicle, you know where things are. When you're stressed out on the trail, or side of the road that familiarity is invaluable because it doesn't add more stress to your situation. I don't like working on my Jeep when I'm stressed or frustrated because that's when I make things worse.
 
I had one of those plastic boxes I used for a while but it's a huge waste of space. I use a tool bag now (just an inexpensive Husky like this one: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-12-in-Tool-Bag-82004N11/203224030) and I keep things like sockets in zippered pouches like these:https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-3-Pack-Organizer-in-Black-GP-45824AN13/204853188 You can get a whole set of 1/4" sockets, an extension and a ratchet in one bag and I've got a 3/8" set in another while my 1/2" sockets (without the handle) are in another. Most of my tire repair junk fits in one and I've got an assortment of electrical junk (test probe, leads for the multimeter, a small assortment of wire ends, tape, etc) in one plus goofy stuff like Torx in yet another.

You might want to consider going with six clamps instead of four. The place that first put my current shell on said he had much better luck with them staying in place and not leaking with six vs. four.
 
Last edited:
Familiarize and learn your vehicles tool needs and pack accordingly. (21mm, 19mm, 17mm, 14mm, 13mm, 12mm, 10mm are Tacoma staples)

Packing different drive sizes (1/2" for the bigger torque necessities) have also proven useful when attempting stubborn driveline/lug bolt/nut maintenance in the field. A breaker bar for really sticky hardware in both 1/2 and 3/8 has also come in very handy on occasion.

Been using one of these to keep things organized, easy carried/stowed during our outback explorations: https://www.blueridgeoverlandgear.com/Tool-Bag-p/21tb-l.htm
 
11,000 miles - my butt hurts just thinking about that!

Bummer about getting hit - does this mean the new truck is a higher priority? ;)

As for tools, I bring a rather full tool bag, both SAE and metric. Most of which never get used, BTW. 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" drive sockets, pliers, screwdrivers, combination wrenches and a few specialty tools (oil filter pliers, hack saw, tie wraps, ...)

I am going to get a BROG bag like GeoYota mentioned - and probably refine my kit.

Sounds to me like you need a bigger truck.................................................................
 
my girlfriend gets those free make up bags that I used to keep all the smaller stuff like torque and allen sockets
finally 14 Pocket Tool Roll for screw driver ,adjustable wrenches

I also keep an electrical bag with different gauge wire, fuses ,connector, cutters

Wrenching with a fresh face is imperative @Jayrat ;)

I too bring a separate electrical bag with fuses/wiring suited to the truck's/trailer's/fridges needs...also comes in handy for lacking friends with social sparklers in trade...

:beer
 
I use to carry a whole slew of tools, but rarely used any of them except for the same ones over and over. Now that all my rides are brands with straight metric fasteners the number of tools has been cut back severely. Maybe too severely and it might bite me in the ass some day.
 
I use to carry a whole slew of tools, but rarely used any of them except for the same ones over and over. Now that all my rides are brands with straight metric fasteners the number of tools has been cut back severely. Maybe too severely and it might bite me in the ass some day.

Of course, your added on parts are probably not metric.

Just sayin'.........
 
11,000 miles - my butt hurts just thinking about that!

Bummer about getting hit - does this mean the new truck is a higher priority? ;)

As for tools, I bring a rather full tool bag, both SAE and metric. Most of which never get used, BTW. 1/4", 3/8" and 1/2" drive sockets, pliers, screwdrivers, combination wrenches and a few specialty tools (oil filter pliers, hack saw, tie wraps, ...)

I am going to get a BROG bag like GeoYota mentioned - and probably refine my kit.

Sounds to me like you need a bigger truck.................................................................
It's taken about a week to get the kinks out of us. New truck still in the mulling stages but unlikely to be bigger.
I had gone overboard in the amount of tools and spares I carried and have swung too far in correcting that. The most recent 90K miles have been mostly long distance and free of the need for most tools except for some electrical doo-dads for add-ons.
Will get some re-thinking over the coming months.
 
Back
Top Bottom