How do you carry your tools with you?

Right now I carry my tools in a soft sided carry case. I don't carry too many things but a set of wrenches, sockets, hammer, torque wrench, fuses, a spare belt and some other small items. The odds of being having a breakdown or being able to actually fix it are low. I am a good boy scout and like to be prepared and I have helped other people broke down on the road.

I am thinking about getting a DeWalt or Rigid hard sided case just for easier access and organization. What do you have or suggest?

 

Home Depot storage box with one of the husky mechanic tool boxes ($100) fits perfectly inside, then any basic other tools which is usually a crescent, vice grips, pipe wrench, ratchet strap, hammer, fluids, shovel, strap, screw drivers, and other basic shit. That way everything is contained into a SHTF box to easily move around.

I don't carry that with me all the time, it's my "chase/race/camping" setup that I throw in the bed though.

 

Several soft bags with different Dewalt 20v stuff depending on the day. I have several preloaded Toughsytem rolling hard-boxes for various things as well that I have been carrying. Im trying to minimalize how much stuff I carry on a daily basis so I have actually been looking at doing at least one “UnderCover” swing mount to hold a few things.

Im coming out of a long bed dually Ram that I had a bed toolbox in and literally the truck became a rolling hardware store. It was always full of stuff I didn’t necessarily need every day.

 

I'm one of the weirdo old farts who still puts truck boxes in every truck I've owned. Sure helps when you have 200+ lbs of gear you wanna take with you everywhere you go.

 

I use Ridgid cases.

 

I use the rigid and dewalt pack out cases. I attached them to the rails in my bed to keep them from sliding around. One stack with recovery/roadside tools and another with my power tools. The bed is almost useless to begin with at under 6 foot so a toolbox was out of the question.

 

But when you need something...the convenience of having it is rewarding.

 

Lots of good suggestions so far, one thing I learned keeping a set of “truck tools” (especially my climate) is they really like to pick up the rust and anything fabric-like tends to enthusiastically embrace the mildew if sealed up in the dark. Being as they aren’t cracked out often, this can come as a surprise at an inopportune time- ie seized up adjustable wrenches that you included to save yourself hauling around a full line of metric and imperial, subsequently forcing you to press your Leatherman into service well beyond what is reasonable;/

A good shot of fluid film on anything metal helps, you might also consider tossing in a couple desiccate pouches or diy version with silica crystals.

 

I believe a shallow box can fit. They also have the boxes that don't sit on bed sides for ppl with bed covers

 

Its not that they wont fit, its that its already too small in my opinion. Luckily I have a work truck, cause it would be a pain hauling materials in a 5'7" bed. Makes for a good looking truck, just not a very utilitarian one. I almost bought the DC because of the bed alone.

 

Im not an engineer by any means and Im sure there is a reason behind why they didnt, but an extra foot on the bed would be *insert chef kiss*

 

Funny you say that because engineers obviously agree since the 22 CM has the option of a full bed.

 

I use the same but Milwaukee's version. Same difference. I've also got a bug out Milwaukee that's loaded for bear too. A true bug out. Not doing the big permanent bed tool box thing anymore. I understand that it depends on use of course...

 

This is my bug out bag...prepper..

 

I love the red tool boxes but man they are pricey. I bought the Ridgid when on sale and got them for a steel otherwise nope. I’m going to take a look at that bug out your using. I have the largest of the 511 packs and it has served me well for years. My wife has the 3 day pack too.

 

This picture was from something completely unrelated but you can see the mess in the background of some of the Dewalt shit and other things I pulled out if my Ram’s truckbox and backseat. I haven’t done a count but I have every 20V tool from roofing, trim, and framing nailers, to fans and lights, radios, a caulk gun, a 60V air compressor, jigsaws and skilsaws (4.5” and 6”), a pressure washer and even a caulk-gun. lol. Oh yeah, and hedge trimmers and a poll saw, and two vacuums…
For what it’s worth, it has been nonstop work since the last hurricane, but needless to say I am happy to have downsized to a 1/2 ton and actually use the rear seat without having to unload tool-bags and boxes.
Having a smaller bed seems like a pain until you realize it forces you to be more efficient vs the alternative of carrying around enough crap to rebuild an entire house. And that’s not my line of work. I’m also taking a bit of a step back from being as hands-on anyway, so all the better.

 

Impressive !

 

I use a .50 and .223 ammo cans.
All the sockets and such are in plastic freezer bags....

 

lol. and the 2 leaf blowers, about 3 or 4 impact drivers, 2 drills, a reciprocating saw, a multi-tool, a sander… and countless batteries of different sizes. too much.

My buddies give me shit for having dewalt over milwaukee but I honestly cant tell the difference, and most milwaukee tools feel too plastic to me. I doubt there is much difference in performance between either.

 

Ain't a damn thing wrong with Dewalt. You're clearly an aficionado lol

 

I own red, yellow, and blue. there isnt enough difference on the job site to justify bashing any of them. Pick a color that you like and run it.

 

I run red simply for the sheer number of impact tools they offer (I believe it has more offering than the others). But yup, if you don’t need that then run whatever

 

I keep the m18 stubby impact in my truck. It’s one of my favorite tools.

 

Exactly. Biggest reason I ended up continuing with Dewalt past just drivers and drills is because they beat Milwaukee to the cordless roofing nailer.
If Im installing a full roof, sure Im gonna run pneumatic, but I dont do that anymore. My crews do. Most of what I do is repair work, occasionally 100 or 200sqft slope or so. Having a battery roofing nailer is a godsend. I have two of them. One I have used since it came out and the other still in the box.

 

I used to do roofing in the late 80's and my back hurts just thinking about it. We didn't have a lift or elevator and had to carry bundles up the ladder on our shoulder.

 

We still carry them up the ladder. I leave it up to my crew foremen if they want to buy their own ladder-vator. They’re pretty expensive.

We used to be a roof load market, meaning all the suppliers had conveyor trucks or knuckle booms to offload on the roof. That changed a few hurricanes ago due to how many orders they had to fill every day. Now everything is ground dropped and carried up the ladder.

 

I’ve got a Camlocker bed toolbox with a few toolboxes and bags inside. I don’t usually keep the box full and kind of use it like a trunk, packing it only with specific trips in mind. Also makes it a little easier to take it out when I need the extra bed space.

 

Wow, that is crazy. When we acquired a scissor bed truck i thought we were really moving up! We occasionally used a hay elevator to put them on and later we had a terralift.

I have good friends in Metarie and we were down there after Katrina to help clean up.