If you have to transport your rifles in the bed

I've seen a few topics on transporting rifles...but I can't seem to figure out the best way to do this.

I'm heading out shooting next week with my family. I've got a DC and all 5 seats will be occupied so I have to carry the weapons in the bed. We'll never need to leave them, so I'm not worried about security. We might do a little 4 wheeling to get to our shooting spot as well so I don't want them bouncing around too much. We usually take a 4 runner and put them in the cargo area...but with a wide open bed, it's a different story.

So what do you think is the best way to secure 5 rifles in the bed of my truck. They all have soft cases.
I don't have any thing but an open bed at this point, but I'm willing to buy whatever I need to make this happen.

Don't know if I need a tonneau cover, or storage organizers...or what.

 

Tuffpak

Or Pelican cases for your rifles.

 

I would consider going to WalMart and picking up 5 of their cheap hardcases. This would allow you to strap them down with a ratchet strap to keep them from bouncing. Run the strap through the handle of the hard case. Soft cases I think would not protect to much if you do decide to do some offroading. Just my .02

 

im not a hunter so dismiss this if its stupid. lets say ya dont plan on doin this often and ya dont wanna spend all the beer money on this idea: hows about a plastic tub strapped down to the d rings? keep em in the soft cases supported and sepperated by some blankets to keep em from bouncin around. many have handles and strong construction so they wont collapse or split when things get rough. you can find these in home depot and wally world type places for under $40. bein a old time steel bed truck camper, ive keet tons of high end gear in these and theyve served me well over the decades.

edit: i just looked at 1 and they look kinda short for a rifle. doesnt mean ya couldnt mod the box a bit i suppose. got a 1" hole saw?

 

rifles.. tvs.. 2x4s.. what's the difference. If its not expecting rain, I just put em in a blanket (freaks people out to see guns and protects from chafing). If it was rainy (cap excepted) I would just cover em. What would you do if you were transporting them afield? I have a bed mat but if I was worried, wrapped in blankets then lashed to the auxiliary d rings would make em super secure and not chafing against anything. I may look at making a gun rack for the roof of my cap (inside roof).. that would be sweet. Easy to get em out if you were staying at a hotel or something (not usually legal or wise to keep em in the parking lot).

I treat my truck and rifles similarly though. They aren't jewelry, they're tools.
keep em oiled and use em.

 

i would say x2 to buying the cheapest hard case a store has to offer. i go off roading with my 5 rifles rolling around in their hard cases and no issues. i've dropped my hunting rifle off the top of my cab while in its hard case, straight on to concrete and it was not damaged.

 

you were probably like o shit

 

Definately - some sort of hard / cheap gun case. We have a couple of them we bought at Kinseys Outdoors. You can fit as many guns as you want into those hard cases. They're foam lined so they don't move around inside the case. We haul our airsoft guns in them as well as our AR. Our shotties have their own hard cases.

 

Those are good ideas. It's my first truck and not having a "trunk" kinda makes me uber cautious I guess for having thing rolling around back there.

 

X2 on Pelican cases!

 

ill echo the sentiments on blankets and straps

although if you guys shoot deer .... hopefully you have enough room to get your guns back home too!

 

are they really nice guns? nice scopes and rings are much much more difficult to knock off then people think. A girl i use to date dropped her 243 out of a 20 foot stand landing on the scope, it bent the eye receptacle on the scope. we shot it, still dead on. just saying.

 

if you have a spare deed to a house to sign over... Pelican cases are nice. Not anything like they're priced though. Maybe they have a cheaper line than those used by the federal government. I had to purchase some.. you don't want to know what you paid (and it was a decent price not an inflated govt price). Well more than my house is worth for a handful.

 

yea.. I don't know anyone that babies their rifles like this when they aren't traveling to foreign countries... even then.. its more for security than physical protection. Its a gun! You sling it through sand, mud, weeds, branches, ice... Something to think about. If you want to keep em like new.. that's your thing.

 

Soft cases are fine. Put them all close together and you can run some tie downs around them to secure them from flying around in the bed. I hate hard cases for my guns, they take up too much space and they get clumsy when you have a bunch of long guns.

 

so your concerned with looks? (Scratches on and what not). for that amount of money i would think that the guns would more then be able to put up with any abuse short of a serious wreck, in which case i wouldn't be worried about my gun.

 

what range will you be shooting at? we only do short range (out to about 350 yards) nothing more is practical in the southern united states.

 

I can understand that, i have a cheap case that i use for mine for long trips, i would recommend that route. if you rifle is like the other one you pictured with a large light collector on it finding a case that it will easily fit in can be very difficult.

You could consider putting more than one gun in each case to save space. with high weight long range rifles this can get very heavy, and hard to walk with.

Good luck with your choice and on your hunt.

 

If your bed is straight stock, I would suggest getting the rubber bed mat first. Not just for this trip, but for everything you ever put in the bed to keep from flying all over the place. Second, put d-rings on the bed bolts up by the cab. Then you're all set to strap your guns down in soft cases/blankets or maybe one of those cheap plastic cases made to slide under your bed (bedroom bed-think wrapping paper and crap). That should be long enough.

If you want something a bit more permanent and secure check out my thread over at TN - I installed a 2 gun overhead rack in the cab. It'll take care of 2 of 'em at least.

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/showthread.php?t=297767&highlight=gun+rack

 

I think I'm leaning toward wrapping them in blankets in a tub of some kind, maybe on a bed mat. straped down. That should be fine I suppose.

I think I'm eventually going to get some kind of bed organizer thats easy to put in and out. Don't know what kind or configuration. Any suggestions?

Since a couple people asked,
We're shooting less than 200 yds. Got some exploding targets...some old pumpkins. Going to sight in a couple new scopes.

Guns that we'll take are a 7mm long gun, Enfield .303, my new AR15, and a couple .22LR's.
Should be a fun time 4 wheeling out to the boonies and blowing things up.