utilizing unused space.

[sniderexciderr]

i was thinking about mounting on board air tanks in the space where my factory spare was located, and thought "i'm sure there are all kinds of places to hide equipment that i'm not thinking about". basically i want to utilize as much empty space as i can. if its practical of corse. who has made use of otherwise "useless" space? if there is already another thread on this subject let me know please. i have seen all kinds of great ideas in lots of threads but thought it would be nice to have them in one place.

 

[Jonathan Hanson]

What kind of vehicle do you own? Is it a 40-Series Land Cruiser as in your avatar? (It doesn't sound like it from your description of the factory spare location.) Many people have found ways to optimize the space in FJ40s and other similarly compact vehicles. I had a 12-gauge steel safe welded years ago, sized to fit under the driver's seat of mine. It's big enough to store cameras and handguns very securely. I also installed a raised load deck in the rear, at wheel well height, which hugely increased available space. There's a thread in the Land Cruiser section on 40s.

I'm curious about your consideration of air tanks. In general I don't see a need for on-board air tanks if you have a good (and much more compact) compressor, unless you commonly run air tools.

 

[sniderexciderr]

no i have a ford expedition, the fj40 is just my dream vehicle, if money and the chance permits i'll snag up a 40, alot of modifications can be adapted to almost anything as long as you have an open mind. i like to surf over lots of build threads, it generates lots of good ideas because mainly my vehicle has next to no aftermarket support. so i end up trying to engineer things i want by myself.

 

[sniderexciderr]

well most of it is just brainstorming i'm running 37's right now, and if i want to air down with a small pump it would take quite a while to air back up. but at this point my truck is still in the developing stages.

 

[mkitchen]

I agree with the post stating the preference for a compressor

There are compressors that will take care of tires 37" or bigger. The one I have from Viair does my 35" rather quickly and they have larger models too. I have aired up 12 tires at one time with mine and it did fine. I don't recommend doing that on a regular basis though. I have two vehicles so I like being able to transfer equipment from one to another. An on board would not allow that. My son has an Expedition and there are a lot of places to mount things, both in frame and in the cab area. I am a strong proponent of keeping things simple though. I do like the idea of mounting a shovel, axe and jack inside the cab area though. The less items outside the vehicle the better, in my opinion. It seems that everything a fellow does to the outside of a vehicle drops the mileage. Esspecially racks and lifts. My two cents worth.
Mikey

 

[sniderexciderr]

I am a strong proponent of keeping things simple though. I do like the idea of mounting a shovel, axe and jack inside the cab area though. The less items outside the vehicle the better, in my opinion. It seems that everything a fellow does to the outside of a vehicle drops the mileage. Esspecially racks and lifts. My two cents worth.
Mikey

i agree, i'm trying to go with the "keep it simple, stupid." mentality. i havn't done much research on air pumps yet if i can go with one like that, thats good. but i'm probably not going to go with a rooftop tent and gear strapped to the top. might put the shovel and axe on the swing out tire carrier i'll be making in a few months. i cant really see me needing more space then the expedition can offer. i won't be driving from alaska to brazil or anything. and i don't have a problem with striking a tent on the ground. if i want to camp on a giant windy rock. i'll just sleep in the truck.

 

[mudbutt]

This is a deck bag for a kayak..... I mounted footman loops on the plastic trim that surrounds the rear window. I use it for personal stuff, i.e. toothbrush, deodorant, t.p. etc.... Would make a good B.O.B. also as you can just unsnap it and go.... But I already have a B.O.B.

 

[sniderexciderr]

great, thats exactly the type of stuff i was wanting to see in this thread.

 

[snorkel54]

Have you looked in the storage solutions thread? http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/forums/91-Storage-Solutions

 

[Stumpalump]

On my XJ I removed the lower rear panels in the cargo area. I've got my tire plug kit, rain gear, climbing rope, 2 or 3 quarts of oil, rags and a bunch of other stuff into the cavity thats behing the plastic. I keep spare parts like the sepentine belt zip tied under the hood by the fire wall. Non- flamable fluid like radiator stop leak is all up under the hood as well. Spare drive shaft is tethered to the side of the seat frame and hi-lift fits under the passenger seat if you pop out the rear lower cuision to get it in and out. My last rig had the spare drive shafts mounted underneath along side the frame rail. Goodwill and thrift stores have all sorts and sizes of bags , purses, makeup bags and such that can be bought for little $. I keep spare bolts and various tools and things in the bags I bought. So what if I pull out my pink makeup bag with hearts and flowers on it to retrieve an allen wrench. I know where it is and can get a complete set quickly. FWIW Lucas oil comes in very thick plastic bottles that don't rupture as fast as other brands if you keep oil inside the cab. It was lot of work to creativly store all the crap I carry but was well worth the time to store the stuff so I have extra room for when I need it and I can find what I need without tearing thru all of my stuff.

 

[Buliwyf]

-you can use the tubes on bull bar bumpers as a small air tank. I've also seen people use thier bumpers as a tank to store extra coolant.

-ramps often can be used a skid plates under the truck, often under the fuel tank.

-some pickups have room under the bed for your shovel and axe to be mounted!

-I've seen people carry extra water in thier bed mounted spare tire. (Not for drinking, neat for emergency coolant refills, but I think he was just trying to add weight to his truck)

-If you don't use your rear seat in a pickup much, you can chop it's frame and make a box for tools, then just bolt the seat onto the box top.

-PVC pipes fit inside the bed, but under the top lips of the bed rails well. Good for storage, make a hook to retrieve the items tucked way in the back. Good for storing water. Not so good at being an air tank.

-electrical tape will hold nearly anything secure to a roll bar if you use enough of it.

-have you ever wondered how many foil wrapped hotdogs fit on the intake manifold of a Jeep YJ?

 

[getlost4x4]

i went up tire size on my range rover so the spare tire won't fit in the stock location anymore. i decided to start using it to hold my recovery equipment, jack, tool sets, TP, poop shovel, etc. it works nicely. i'll probably put my second battery back there when i get the time and then build some dividers to keep it all nice an organized. its nice because its out of sight and out of mind until you need it. then you just lift up the door, set the door prop, and you can get your stuff out easily, unless its full of camping gear and coolers.:elkgrin:

 

[Mc Taco]

...have you ever wondered how many foil wrapped hotdogs fit on the intake manifold of a Jeep YJ?...

Now that you mention it, nope. But I am quite curious now?

 

[sniderexciderr]

thats a good idea. i never thought to look for bags and pouches at thrift stores. i'm usually not even thinking about vehicle stuff when i'm in them. i have used the plastic cases that some tools come in, just cut out the inner part that is molded on the inside. then you have a hard case that is at least water resistant.

 

[eric1115]

-ramps often can be used a skid plates under the truck, often under the fuel tank.

-some pickups have room under the bed for your shovel and axe to be mounted!

Something to think about... When you've buried the truck, how do you retrieve the shovel and bridging ladders from underneath to dig it out? That's something that I try to think about when I'm stashing stuff: Under what conditions will I need to access this, and how does that change my ability to access? I've seen a few "stucks" that prevented a rear swing-out from being opened far enough to get the rear hatch opened... if you have your recovery gear stowed inside the cargo area (especially in a drawer system, and/or with a cargo barrier blocking access from the passenger area), how will you get to the gear that you need in order to get un-stuck?