Boxes to hold gear in the car/truck

[Fred L]

ah, that changes things of course. I made a couple of wannigans for canoeing and camping out of 1/4 birch ply but 3/8 would have been better. Long story short is it has a hinged lid as well as a drop front which doubles as a counter/ ledge. I used bullet catches but didn't do a very clean job of it but it works.

Ralph's workmanship is light years ahead of mine and damn fine looking. Don't have the patience to do fine woodworking etc..

As an aside, not sure where you're located but this place is a candy store for woodworkers if you like hardware and such.

http://www.leevalley.com/home.aspx

How much gear are you looking to store in it ?

[Dave Hally]

I use a large "soft cooler" to pack my toyo field and lenses and film in the van. It has a rigid liner and doesn't look like camera gear. I've also used this on my bMW motorcycle, strapped on a rack behind the solo seat, with the tripod in a bag from a cheap folding chair- nobody has ever bothered it. My only problem was that my cycle boots are a bitch to hike in!
Dave Hally

[John Kasaian]

If you're serious about security a steel truck box is about as good as anything else I've seen. Keep your gear in an Igloo Playmate stashed inside the truck box so you can grab it and go. Before using the cooler tie a rope to it and drag it a few blocks with your truck for "effect." Put lots of duct tape on it (a leaky cooler is next to worthless)and some cheesey decals (Women's Christian Temperence League or other decals suggesting sobriety) on the Igloo to out fox thirsty thieves.

[Turner Reich]

A teacher once suggested an old dirty suitcase, the old cardboard type, rub some stinky smelling stuff on it, no one will touch it.

[Scott Schroeder]

Ed, what kind of truck do you have?
Actually, it's no matter. I think this would work in any vehicle. I have used a 'skid' for many years for various reasons. In my truck it increases my storage room and gives me a table to use. Currently it's become part of mobile darkroom for wetplate
Here's a pic about what I'm talking about

You could put all your gear under the skid and from the outside it just looks like a floor. If it's a trunk you could put a hinge on the middle of the skid to be able to get to it. You could carpet if you wanted to go for the ultimate in stealth....
This was easy to make. I think I used 3/4 ply and some 10X2s. I needed it high enough to go over the wheel wells. That way I am not limited to just a flat area between the wells, but can go wall to wall. It really is a helpful little piece!
If you look at the swing out door in the pic above you'll see a whitish square. That's another mod I like. It folds down like that while moving but can open up into a table to be used for cooking (or for collodion, where I can pour and fix the plates).



Anyway, I hope that helps in some way....

[Ed Richards]

Thanks Scott! I have also been using a shelf, but I stack stuff on top. Maybe I need a double decker, so the stuff on top will be out of sight.

[Jean-Louis Llech]

And what happens to what is inside the double deck if someone breaks the door's lock ?
I would prefer a case securely bolted to the car's floor.
Otherwise, buy a hearse and place the camera and lenses into the coffin.
Or simply a box with a coffin shape. Needs the car to be painted in black. Not very secured, but impressive...

[Ed Richards]

Jean-Louis,

A lot of the issue in the US, or at least where I live, is break-ins driven by seeing valuable stuff in the car. Keeping things out of sight and the car locked solves most thefts. OTOH, a serious thief with a good bolt cutter can get through most locks in a few minutes, so security is limited even with a case bolted down. As someone suggested, a truck box will need an extra lock because truck boxes are pretty easy to break into. So security is always relative. I do like the idea of a Pelican case chained to the car as a good way to deter all but the most serious thieves. It will also protect your gear if you get flooded - not that we worry about that in south Louisiana.:-)

[jwaddison]

You can buy locks and chains that normal bolt-cutters won't even dent.

[Ed Richards]

> You can buy locks and chains that normal bolt-cutters won't even dent.

But you get back to the problem that you are connecting them to a plastic case. You might not be able to cut them, but you could bite through the case where they are attached. It is just a question of making things difficult, not impossible. Even the hardened steel can be dealt with - a thief with a battery powered Rotozip with the diamond wheel could get through anything fast.