Tool storage Ideas

Okay i have been battling this for a while now but i still dont know what to do..... heres the problem, i always carry some tools with me wherever i go (socket set, and a medium size tool bag) and i have been just throwing them in the back seat. Well i use all my seats every day so that means i have to throw the tools in the bed, and when we get where we are going i have to throw them back in the truck...so on an so forth....but heres the problem...i also haul my crf 450 which takes up the entire bed with the tailgate down and i haul my bike AT LEAST once a week... so a toolbox is out of the question.....is there any where i can put these damn tools besides in my back seat??

 

Get a small Rubbermaid box. to keep in the bed.

 

Why not look into a Wheel well box or even a side mount....Big enough to hold tools and some extras but small enough to keep bed space to a MAX....Keeping tools on the seat or even in the underseat cubby's Sucks at best...My small hand chest still rides in the extra cab BUT that is due to EVERYTHING else being in the tool box ...

S

 

does it lock??

yea ive actually looked into the toolboxes that mount on the side of the bed...but the look kinda goofy IMO

 

something like what??

 

sorry dude brainwaves are still fried from last night.... thanks for the link thats pretty sweet and i have a few extra ammo cans laying around i needa try that

 

cole47,

the wheel well boxes made by Betterbuilt are 48" long ( tail gate to just over fender well) 18" high,( 2" over bed top) and 8" wide ( same width as fender).....I went out and measured off from my bed before posting ...


These are less cumbersome than the rail boxes and with yours being a small bed it may not work either....keep us posted with what you "create" for space...

S

 

thanks for the info man....im thinking about the ammo boxes since i have 3 or 4 laying around the house....i got to measure and see if they will stick out alot above the bedside though...im pretty sure that the 2nd gens bedsides are taller above the fenders than the 1st gens

 

Heres some progress on the ammo boxes thanks to secretsquirrel....didnt think i needed to do a whole write up considering that its basically the same thing....im not done with them yet...but instead of the u-bolts to lock them i used a i-bolt, which i havent got on the boxes yet...works the same just had them laying around the garage....i also mounted the boxes farther up on my fender wells because i do use my tie down hooks a lot. as of today just got one done. didnt take a whole lot of pics....but heres the couple i did take

holes drilled....




mounted and rattlecaned



ill take some better pics when both of them are done...

 

Looks good man, nice job!

 

Dam, That does look good....and by the sounds of it."Just enough" storage for what you need....

Now in the bottom left corner is an antenna mount,next project already in the works???

S

 

I separated my tools into 3 or 4 different pouches I use for camping on my motorcycle. I was able to get everything behind the back seats. It's surprising how much room there is back there

 

thanks for all the feedback....still got to finish up the second box tomorrow.....and the antenna mount had to be removed to put the boxes where they are.....gotta find a new place for it hahaa

 

Okay finished them up today, I took some more pics today to show the finished product......turned out alot better that i expected.....also tried some new spray paint....normally use duplicolor, but the stuff looked good and the finish is flipping sweet.....



all mounted up and ready to be tightened down......


they are almost flush with the bedsides....

 

I use the military surpluss canvass tool bags and segregate the tools (wrenches, sockets, etc) with ziplock freezer bags. Not as macho as a metal toolbox, but it doesn't rattle and doesn't tear up whatever it's residing in. If you don't fill it too full, it'll fit in the under seat storage bins.

 

How about mounting the cans behind the wheel wells? It's kinda wasted space anyway.

I'm looking for ideas about modifying the whole area behind the seat in an '06 access cab. Is it possible to remove the whole hokey seat/storage setup?

 

no lie it didnt cost me a dime, i had the ammo cans and some bolts laying around the garage, and i plan on getting a couple locks for em but like you said the money tree is picked clean on the old college budget lol

 

yeah man i hear those big ones are pretty sweet, all i really have in mine is chains, towstraps, gloves and what not.

 

You could build a bumper tool box, wont hold alot of tools, but for small hand tools it works good. We use to use them alot on our 3/4 tons for extra storage space on oilfiled service trucks. Basically you take a 4x4 or 5x5 square tube,cut it at the 90's on the top (both sides), hinge 1 side, put a place for a lock on the other. We have a truck @ work with flatbed that has this, I'll try and get pic to help explain it better.