Minimizing the kit and packing it efficiently

[007]

I've simplified/reduced the number of tools I bring by only taking what can be used. Sockets (Std & deep) are reduced to the sizes I have on my rig (including nuts/bolts added via mods). All tools are packed in canvas tool wraps/bags instead of bulky hard cases. This has cut down the space req. to store them significantly. I highly recommend this method over a hard tool box.

HTH.:smiley_drive:

I'm certainly going to give this a shot. If nothing else, I won't have to fend off a tissy fit everytime I open my craftsman tool set to discover that the metric and SAE's had an orgy. Nothing like doing a puzzle just to be able to close your tool case after an unschedualed repair on the road!

 

[alia176]

Another side benefit of using canvas tool bag is that the noise is cut down considerably on the bumps.

 

[Brian McVickers]

More and more I have been using our Mountainsmith modular bag system.
The box shaped bags stack next to one another nicely and since they are soft sided they can conform when needed.

Depending non the temperatures and duration of the trip we have had pretty good success with using three to five of them. We put our two kids clothing in one, Amy and my clothes in one or two, kitchen and food in one and misc in any remaining space. Our kitchen has gone from backpacking to full on double burner car camping and now back to the backpacking approach however I will often carry two backpacking stoves rather than just one.

So this past weekend, three+ day trip:
2x modular bags - clothing
1x modular bag - kitchen with food
1x Pelican 1600 - tools, spares, compressor, folding saw, hatchet, cables....
1x Pelican 1430 - spare fluids
1x 5gallon Jerry of water
4x camp chairs - small folding GCI
1x camp table - small folding
1x recovery kit
1x Adv Medical Med Kit
1x backpack
4x sleeping bags
This all fit, including the sleeping bags, behind the rear seats of a DII and below the top of the seat back. Actually the recovery kit goes on the middle floor behind the front seats, for weight, with the backpack on top of it.

 

[Streakerfreak]

I have gone back to my backpacking days for the most part. Still carry a shower, toilet, and shower tent, but everything else has been downgraded. I have always hated cooking on the trail, so all my meals are boil water, add to bag kind of stuff. My ONLY stove is Optimus Crux which as soon as I can afford it I will replace it for a stove that runs off of gasoline and my only pot is a coffee pot. Sure that eliminates a really decent meal, but I think I can live. I currently have all the rear seats out of my Cruiser and my current philosophy is that if anything has to be stacked than I am carrying too much. I only carry tools that fit my vehicle as most everyone I ever go out with carries their own tools. My sleeping pad of choice is a simple backpackers foam pad. I prefer firm surfaces anyways, so that's perfect for me.

I hate Action Packers as they do not seal, can not support my weight, and don't use space properly, so as soon as I can afford two Pelicans I will grab them. One for my recovery gear and one for my camping gear. Oh, I am still using my $10 G.I. Joes (Pacific Northwest) cheap camping chair that I have had for 6 years(SHOCKER!).

 

[7wt]

I totally understand Zen. It's something I strive for in my camping but don't think I will ever reach. This is my typical set up when I am not fishing. Fishing requires another action packer and a lot more stuff. Anyway, The two action pacers in the truck hold four gallons of water and recovery gear. Neither exist anymore as my recovery gear is in my tool box and the cap is no longer with me. One of the two action packer on the ground contains everything I need to cook with: a white gas backpacker stove and two bottles of gas, another stove similar to the first but runs on butane and then a MSR Reactor for boiling water in a hurry, a set of aluminum pots and a couple bowls and plates of various sizes. The three stoves all have different uses. The white gas stove works better at altitude, it's butane brother works great for simmering rice and it's just easier to use and the Reactor boils water NOW. I like them all and use them all.

The second action packer holds everything I need for sleep: a tent, a sleeping bag, a roll up mat, a foam mat for extra ground insulation when it gets cold and a small pillow. I like having my stuff condensed down to two containers because I can chuck the on the ground whenever, pack fast and not feel like I have to baby sit my junk when I want to go for a hike or something. Looks like I am in the minority here but I really like the action packers. They are a light weight, easily carried place to put stuff in. Sure they aren't as strong a the Pelican cases but I don't need them to be. I don't really care about not being airtight either as my two packers generally go behind my seat.

All in all I still have some work to do. This summer I am going to try ditching the tent as I rarely use it and hate waiting for the dew to dry before taking it down. I will be replacing it with a hammock and tarp. The more I read about it the more it looks like the perfect fit for me so I am going to try it. To make it even cooler, I am plan on making my own.

Cloths go in a Black Diamond backpack I picked up on sale at a EMS in New Hampshire. It was a $90 pack I picked up for $30 or so and it works great. It's a top loading tube design made for day hiking. Food goes in either another action packer or paper bags depending on how long I am going out. I like the paper as it gives me something extra to burn.

Throw in a copy of Walden and a headlamp and a plastic tub to wash dishes and I am all set. I still have some fat to trim but things are pretty good now. Once my fiance get married and move into a house it will be even nicer as my boxes will be sitting in the garage waiting to be tossed in the truck. This pic was day one into a five day roam of New England, somewhere in North East CT which wound up in New Hampshire. Fast and light, there is nothing like it.

 

[Stumpalump]

I removed the interior panels in the rear of my XJ. I can stuff a whole lot of stuff in there like oil cans, rope and gear that I don't use often. Under the hood I store things like sepentine belt and break fluid, power steering and tranny fluid. I put heavy stuff like 2lb hammer ,chains, hatchet and heavy tools/recovery gear down as low as I can under the rear seat. I also use the bags that women allways seem to have hundreds of. Makup bags of all sizes. they buy shampoo and it comes in a nifty bag with some other dipity doo and smelly stuff. I just pick bags that fit the areas I need. They are flexible and fit into the tight spots I've created or have left. Goodwill stores are also loaded with all kinds of bookbags and womens leather carry bags that may be just right size to stick in those tight spots. Basically I carry everthing but the kitchen sink in the jeep but to look in back all I have is a tool box, a tool bag ,a spare and a compressor. Even the high lift and spare rear drive shaft is tucked along side of the passenger seat and is out of the way, low and hidden.

 

[Christophe Noel]

More and more I have been using our Mountainsmith modular bag system.

I bought a bunch of those for the store. We couldn't sell those if you got a free pony with purchase. I think many people just don't understand how useful they are. I love those things. Since it's just my wife and I, we'll often just slip a couple of those soft cubes behind the seats. On longer trips we'll take them into the grocery store and load them up right there at the check stand.

I even have the K-9 cube for my pooch.

Good call, Brian. Those are a great product.

 

[RusherRacing]

My packing list is very minimal. I can do a 3day camping trip out of the trunk of my vette including food and golf clubs. however when the wife comes along then its a whole different story.

My packing list

softsided for easy compressablitity
Cabelas XPS tent
Colman queen air mattress(could probably do without but its worth the little space it takes)
1x sleeping bag
small backpack for clothes
Forgot the Maglite and Lighter

If I want to cook
old colman camp stove, 2x propane cans
latern
1 grociery bag of food
small pan and a fork and knife
(don't pack anything that needs to be cooled)



Now if the wife comes along
1 rubbermaid container for dry food
1 rubbermaid container for misc kitchen stuff
1 rubbermaid container misc camping stuff, extra bugspray, sunscreen lotion, rope, stakes, 2 hammers...... way more than what we need
1 large cooler in the back of the car
1 small cooler within reach from the front
numerous small bags for munchies
All the camp gear, couple extra pillows and blankets just in case
Everything listed above
Another sleeping bag
...

Next thing I know our ford flex is stuffed so damn full you can't see out the back window. Its even worse when we take the Tahoe...

 

[burn_e]

Thought about all this and developed a plan!

the next three camping trips I will carry this little dot stickers with me and I will mark everything I use during the trips.
After that all without sticker stays home.

 

[RusherRacing]

^^^ Now thats a great idea. I could probably convince the wife to take 1/3rd the stuff!!

 

[UK4X4]

I picked one of those mountainsmith things at walmart for 1/3 of the price

identical item........we are a family of three so every one gets one !


Flights wise I got into hard cases when travelling regularly,but my trips now are usually transcontinental and very ounce means a shopping item left behind

Our holidays double as shopping trips for things not available locally.

we have found that TNF duffles are awsome for this in the large size

Travel out with 6 packed into two along with a 4 day supply of clothes

then the 6 to return with.

Weight - probably 3-4lbs max

They double on camping for the light gear relagated to the roof sealed and dust free.

On the truck I use home made drawers for the standard carry gear, fridge and clothes on top.

Comfy camping makes for a happy wife !

 

[UK4X4]

rusher racing

I can see a 15kg missile behind the wife and a similar weight of bottles behind your head.

The water and heavy gear needs to be behind the seats on the floor or tied down in the rear. put the crisps and snacks up high

a packet of chereos in the noggin won't kill you but 10 ltrs of water will !

 

[theksmith]

Another side benefit of using canvas tool bag is that the noise is cut down considerably on the bumps.

i have yet to identify only the needed sockets/wrenches for my vehicle, so i still have an entire kit.. however changing everything to the OTT Socket Holders instead of the socket set's original blow-molded plastic case cut it's amount of storage space in HALF! (then those are in my pelican case with other tools and spares and such.

 

[off-roader]

I'm certainly going to give this a shot. If nothing else, I won't have to fend off a tissy fit everytime I open my craftsman tool set to discover that the metric and SAE's had an orgy. Nothing like doing a puzzle just to be able to close your tool case after an unschedualed repair on the road!

LOL, I used to keep my craftsmans in the plastic tool box they came in. Wasted a good 24x18x4" space doing that due to all the extra room those plastic molded boxes have built into them.

Here's a couple of pics of the tools that fit into my 2 bags...

The bags fit into a single 18x6x10" space (stacked one atop the other). That's more tools into a space smaller than my original craftsman toobox.:smiley_drive:

 

[Corey]

Success, I was able to go from two of these ECS cases to just one to pack in the rig now.
I had stored some stuff in the second one that I can fit behind the drivers seat easily, and some of the stuff can go inside of the chuckbox.

Here is the case with two upper trays in it holding the LED lantern, baggies and garbage bags (which may fit into the chuckbox too), sunscreen, insect juice, batteries, rope, misc stuff.

With the trays out there are the bath towels, some hand towels (may take them out as I have a few new ones inside of the chuckbox also), MSR water filter inside of the container to refill up a water jug, Zodi shower, propane for the lantern and Zodi shower, propane lantern, BW (self explanatory), that new dish drying gizmo I bought in its bag, and a water sack and a water carrier/sink (the yellow thing), have had both of those two items since my backpacking days a few decades ago.

This will save me a lot of room and I will be able to carry the water jug (going back to an old one I use to use long ago (Reliance Aqua-Tainer), so no more battery pump one on the water cooler type bottle) and the 11 lb propane tank on top of the ECS case and strapped to it.
Should have room for the Cabelas lounger, folding picnic table, and maybe some other stuff I carried up front on the seat like my duffel bag.
Either way only one case to take out of the rig now instead of two.

Some big items I simply refuse to leave at home like the Cabelas lounger.
Once you kick back in one by the campfire at night, the other chairs out there do not compare.
And I did pick up a second one too, only in regular size so it is 4" narrower, so it will fit in the rig better.

Instead of hauling that deluxe Cabelas table I bought a few years back, I can probably leave it behind and just use the picnic table to set the chuckbox on top of.