Common Tools to Carry for Overlanding?

You will not be able to make a one size fits all list that will be satisfy a very large audience spread all over the globe, with ever changing needs. Not going to happen.

You can definitely write up a list of tools that fit your needs and share them with everyone. Some may follow it to a "T".
Some may start with your list and either add or subtract from it.
Yet many won't even bother as they already know and have exactly what they need.
And finally some have good insurance or prepared friends/family and juat won't care.

Again, good luck with your venture here.[/QUOTE]

I never asked for that; I'm not sure where your comprehension issues are with this. I'll give you a little example: Pintos were known to blow up after catching fire when being struck from behind due to a lack of a non-metallic bushing in the fuel system. See, that's an example of a known issue with a car based on common failures (catastrophic in this case). If you have 200,000 2nd Gen Tacomas in the wild, and 25% of them experience a ball joint failure offroad, that'd be called a common fail point. To replace that in the wild, you'd need a given set of tools. Would you need a 5/8" socket? A pair of side-cutters? No? Of course not, but anyone who's done it might have some very good advice on the right tools to make the job as easy, safe, and efficient as possible. Is this confusing you? Seems like it is. You've yet to add anything worthwhile on that front. I suspect at this point you're being intentionally obtuse. Maybe I'm wrong (but we both know I'm not).

I'll take your advice to get a cheap Costco DeWalt toolkit and put it in the truck all the consideration it is due.

 

Let's try this a different way.

Out of all of the answers you received thus far from everyone in this thread, will you start a formible list that meets your query criteria?

Maybe update your very first opening thread starter with the rolling list. Build on that same list as you or others provide more input along the way.

Start with that, and I will further support what I can.

 

The question was worded a little broad initially. You said in red highlight tools. Based on that, a full metric set of wrench’s and sockets meet that plus the a socket for wheel bearing, it’s like a 35 or something.

It’s been said a bunch of times.

I didn’t see anywhere where you were going to carry spare parts. So, in the case of a ball joint failure on the trails, if you don’t have the spare parts or the ability to do a parts run, most guys have to limp out by using some straps, ties and clever ingenuity to close up the ball joint to get off the trail. The tools are useless, because something is broke and it can’t be replaced.

That said, it’s a little impractical to bring everything that COULD break in the bed too. So…there’s that. But a full metric wrench set, and overlapping 3/8s to 1/2 metric socket set, dead blow pry bar and things like that is what you’ll need to cover…everything.

 

How many trail repairs require a 6mm socket? A 7/8ths? How many places does a 3/4" or 15mm combination wrench fit? Would an articulating head work better in more places or not?

I have field repaired aircraft in austere conditions before; ingenuity isn't usually a challenge for me, but having the right tool for common failures makes things exponentially easier. I have a good, broad compliment of recovery gear and am prepared to use it as needed to self-rescue. But tools, particularly hand tools, are what I'm most interested in. No one needs a full socket set to repair these trucks; there are a lot of useless tools in a full kit, and that doesn't help to minimize tools carried (both for weight and space saving). It also helps to make decisions about when to abandon and/or move into different operational modes.

 

On a side note, I was not the one that suggested any specific tool kit.

Also, I missed answering your question about if I have had any experience with field repairs. The short answer is yes.

What makes my yes answer fairly out of criteria for your query criteria, is that I am getting the feeling you are trying to stay Toyota specific. Which generation, I don't think that matters much.

So, back to field repairs related to overlanding. That is what we are covering, correct? My field repairs are spread across many different aspects of overlanding, so my tool kit reflects this.

Examples:
1. Many tire repairs for unprepared motorists that ventured off the pavement with less than appropriate tires. Obvious tools involved to remedy.

2. Various trailer repairs for others, as well as my own. Be it a broken awning bar, loose shackle bolt, missing lug nuts, leaky water hose fittings, shorted wiring, stuck stabilizer leg, blown wheel bearings, etc. Appropriate tools to do the job.

3. Broken fan belt on older Ford. Creative solution using some folded beer can and some screws from his broken stereo.

4. Broken exhaust on a dual sport motorcycle that camped near me. Fixed with steel wool, fiberglass muffler stuffing from an other bike, and lots of bailing wire.

5. Broken throttle cable on a Baja bug in the desert. Only about a mile from camp, so I fixed it with yet more bailing wire, a few hose clamps, and duct tape.

6. Massive amount of repairs on ocean kayaks both on the water and back at camp. I carry spares and keep old replaced parts available for cannableizm as needed.

7. Not too many 2nd or 3rd gen Tacoma repairs, as these don't break as often as assumed. There are millions of these Tacos on the road/trail and most folks I hang out with are not the type to abuse their rigs, or they/we take appropriate precautions before leaving the driveway.

8. My 1st Gen Taco. I've had to do spark plugs on the way to camp 4 hours from home. We had auto part stores available along the way, so no issue. All other "field repairs" were not overland related, as they were normal high mileage items that were taken care of within 25 miles or less from home.

My tool kit has quite the range of available tools because my experience has led me to have enough tools to fix nearly anything that has to do with overlanding, not just Toyota specific.

BTW, the list above is by no means everything. Those were the most frequent or in the most recent years.

My view of overlanding is doing pretty much anything that is away from home, on or off road. Your mileage may vary.

 

@DangerPudge

What are you looking for exactly? The only way to know what you need is to do the actual work (i.e. garage and field repairs). Why not just get a metric set of sockets/wrenches? Even if you won't ever use a 13mm, it's nice to have a decent "kit". I'm a fan of the Milwaukee line...

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Milwauk...VFyGtBh2VXgwuEAQYASABEgIX0vD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

One more thing regarding Toyota field repairs, or any other brand.

Most folks that do field repairs for themselves or others use what is available until the job is patched enough to get to camp or home, or completely fixed right then and there. With that, I couldn't tell you what specific tool was used at that particular moment. Odds are good that different tools might get used the next time the same field repair happens.

It's just a game of Get 'R Done and move on.

 

Lets see, I’ve got a wrench roll, air compressor, plug kit, vice grips, work light, wd-40, bailing wire, vice grips, road flares, and an orange vest

 

I mean I can go measure the bolt heads
but I think it's best to eyeball an assorted kit that goes from small to big.
And you an even know just looking at the kit, if it looks good enough.
Like 5.5mm? It's probably not gonna have that. And the Taco probably doesn't have any 5.5mm fasteners. When a vehicle does have a tiny fastener like that, or 8mm, it tends to be on the interior. Something not that commonly repaired on the road.

It's like a Snap-On SOEXM710 wrench set. I'm pretty sure they run something like 8mm-22mm wrenches in the set. And any time you need anything bigger people just buy it separately to add to their collection.
I think the stock alignment hardware on a 2nd gen front end goes up to 27mm. For that reason I did get a while 25, 26, and 27mm wrenches. Probably Tekton or Craftsman to be cheap.

I've seen a lot of SOEXM710 sets secondhand on eBay for $200. If there is 10 wrenches in a set, math means each one should be $20 used. I've bought many that way, going one at a time instead of the whole set in one go, which I kind of regret now.
Because to complete my set, people always want more than that "theoretically what it should be used" $20.
Like right now I should probably get a 16 and 18 to replace my cheap Tekton.
Which I'm sure on eBay right now is gonna be $40.

Not that it has to be Snap-On to keep in the truck. It doesn't. And shouldn't, lol. Because if someone breaks in and steals that set of wrenches, not good.

Another thing I've noticed is that shitty tool sets always have a skip.
Like a 10-19 set might skip the 13mm for some reason...seen this more in socket sets.

 

Great post.

That reminds me, I had to pull my ARB twin out of my engine bay this week to fix a hot squeal. Turns out my truck kit doesn't have an 18mm for the compression fitting I used to plumb the OBA system with. Apparently I used an 18mm from my garage when I originally installed everything.

Being lazy, I really didn't want or need to yard a bunch of tools out to the street where my truck was parked, so I just used what I had in my truck kit. Magically I was able to improvise and use my metric adjustable wrench on it.

 

This might work better than a crescent wrench because it can squeeze with the handles
I have a few but the main purpose was for use on counterholding the top of shock absorbers when working on them, that flat skinny section thing at the very top of the threaded rod that you have to counterhold to tighten the top nut.
I don't have any regular wrenches small enough to fit it

Honestly even one of these (depending on size, they have 3 versions) might not be a bad idea to keep in the truck for its universal ability

 

If you have all the answers then why are you asking? How many spare drive shafts are you going to carry? No one needs ANY tools if they don’t have the materials to replace things with. No you don’t need a 6mm for trail repair, but like I said, it would cover…everything.

That seems to be the disconnect. You’re talking garage. Some of us are talking trail. You use whatever you have. You can bring the garage with you, or don’t. Again, the repair tools are useless without the spare parts/fluids or ability to get them. I have no idea what you are thinking you’re planning on doing or repairing.

A full metric kit is over kill, but the “common” metric tools you’ll (might) need have been mentioned for critical components. If you already know what you need for a ball joint work and it has you concerned, bring it. Or don’t. But something to use as a pry bar, bailing wire and ratchet straps can get you off the trail if you find yourself pinched between two boulders near a cliff with a broken suspension in the most inconvenient off camber position…

 

Here’s basically what you’re asking for I think?

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...ckets-and-wrenches-for-2nd-gen-tacoma.158302/

It’s not actually a huge list.

 

Instalanding at it's finest. Reminds me of a story - I was out in the boonies fishing for winter steelhead and I came up on a guy stuck in a ditch with his decked out Tacoma. Had everything you said but also had armor, winch, RTT, etc. Dude is clearly stuck so I pulled over to offer some help.

After a few minutes of talking to him I came to realize the kid had no idea how to use his winch. Meanwhile his girlfriend is taking pictures with a fucking selfie stick. And I don't just mean rigging it up, I mean he literally no idea how to even operate the damn thing or even where to plug in the remote. I ended up doing all the work for him and getting him out.

I will say having an electric chainsaw is pretty nice. I have that on my list of things to add to the collection.

 

Sounds like he didn't know how to operate the wench either. At least two of my ex girlfriends and my ex knew how to help rig up basic recovery setups and to stay away from the equipment under load.

I've seen plenty of people who didn't have a clue how to operate basic equipment though- good example, years ago I came up on a Discovery stuck in the snow in northern AZ that didn't know how to engage his 4wd, he just thought it was always in 4wd (because it's a 4wd vehicle, duh) and he and his fellow NAU buddies had gone for a drive in the snow for the day- no recovery equipment or gear for spending the night if anything happened. Between me anchoring my truck to a tree and using my winch we were able to get him unstuck and he was able to get off the mountain- or at least he didn't call me for more assistance. I'm usually alone so I tend to carry a fair amount of gear for self recovery but I'm also pretty conservative about where I'll go- 4wd wreckers are really, really expensive and recovering a broken/smashed vehicle is even more expensive.

I'd really like to get an electric chainsaw too; I hate messing around with my gas saw for small jobs, especially around the house, plus the electric is much stealthier.

 

I added an a Dewalt electric chainsaw to my camping/overland arsenal.

I don't usually take it with me unless I predict possible down trees on backwoods trails, or have a need to process firewood for camp. It is much quicker, cleaner and easier to get going than gas.

 

YES!!!! Thank you. For whatever reason I could not dig that up via search.

The only other bit would be specialized tools required for particular operations (like maybe a press kit... or parts of one, to reinstall a ball joint). The bits to make installation easier for a job would be cool. I'll dig around in that thread for some of that data.

With that data, I can get much more specific tools narrowed for the carry kit.

Thanks again!

 

LOl. I put this link in the second post of your thread.

The mighty Crom has a wealth of knowledge in his build thread for 2nd Gen owners.

 

Ha! I almost said something but figured OP wanted something beyond that list, even though that list is pretty extensive

 

, it’s even a sticky.
I actually used Nicks tool list as a starting point and added some things pertinent for me and my truck.
Stumbling across this thread has me re-evaluating the tools I’m carrying full time. For me weight is everything and reducing every little bit I can adds up.
I considering a tool kit that stays in the truck at all times and a additional second maybe even a third kit depending on the outing.