I'm running over my list of equipment to take to the next shoot, and was thinking I needed to get a tote to keep it all together. Rounding up a tarp, elbow pads, shoot mat, tools, safety gear, etc. every time and then putting it all away is time consuming and a great way to leave something behind.
Then I got to thinking how big of a tote or crate I would need.
Then, logically, I wondered if I should put a tag on it to remind me to grab a chair and my canopy since those won't fit in my hypothetical crate.
Then... Then I was thinking about instructors that also have all the paperwork, the banners, the targets, the spare parts, the loaner rifles, FAK, loaner ammo, etc. etc. etc. I've seen your trucks and they are loaded to the gills.
I can honestly say that if I were an instructor I would seriously consider building or buying a small enclosed trailer to keep everything in. Hook up, grab the rifles, and go. Replenish the trailer after every event so it's always ready. I bet with some ingenuity and a cheap chinesium trailer from Harbor Fright you could build one under $1k. With the big bucks instructors are paid (SARCASM O0) it would be a pittance.
I feel better now, but I feel bad for the instructors! ;D
I'm a kitchen sink kind of guy, even when I go to the local range I have a large tote with bags, target stands, first aid, tools etc. Plus a second tote of targets.
For Appleseed I have my range bag, rifle cases, Cooler, chair, mat and Pop Up. Plus two medium ammo cans, one for tools and spare parts, cleaning kit. The second for Personal stuff, Sun Block, spare hat, pads, waterproofs, notepads, pens etc.
I use two of this style: https://www.amazon.com/MTM-ACR5-72-Crate-Utility-Medium/dp/B00T4XL2MO
So as another guy that likes to be prepared, here's how I solved this:
First - I have an Excel file for packing. Each tab has a different scenario.
- Appleseed
- Business Trip
- Camping - solo
- Camping - family
- Hunting
- etc.
Then, I have a backpack 'o stuff that I throw in the car when I leave. Stuff that covers a bunch of different events goes into a ruck backpack. That way I'm not forgetting stuff, or stuff doesn't get left behind because it's in a different backpack. All I have to do is focus on items that are specific to a certain scenario.
All sorts of stuff in there - multitool, light food, bug spray, a hat etc. I even have a small chair zero that breaks down nice and small / light.
As I go through an event - Appleseed, camping, whatever - if I come across something I forgot / could have really used, I make sure to add it to the list for next time.
Eh apart from carrying water for shooters everything i need to bring fits in a large 5.11 range bag or a 34l backpack. I've done many shoots on a motorcycle with 1 small saddlebag If you don't use it over a weekend you probably don't need it. ( first aid items excluded from this logic obviously)
"I" have never needed the tools I bring, but they have been used by others at all 3 events I have attended LOL.
**)
Ok, this thread is almost perfect timing. I'm actually in the process of trying to find a small trailer for this very purpose. Well, honestly it will serve a dual purpose. As most of the Appleseed events, I attend are at least an hour away, as far as 3 hrs. So I've decided that I'm just going to make it a camping weekend. But even without the camping, I have a lot of gear; fold out table, canopy, cooler, rifle bags, equipment bag, etc and I don't have much room. Add in the camping gear and it all goes down hill from there.
Appleseed event last month, my wife and son took the trip with me. We camped out at a near by family site. I did the Appleseed thing, they hung out at the camp. There was so much stuff in the car, my son had to climb through the front seats to get into his carseat. That didn't include the things I strapped to the roof. haha
So I'm on the market for a small trailer, this one https://www.lowes.com/pd/Carry-On-Trailer-3-5-ft-x-5-ft-Wire-Mesh-Utility-Trailer/3680952 or something simliar. It will be modified heavily, to enclose the trailer and put a rooftop tent on it. The inspiration is this youtubers build, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UK3CyHpTug&t=65s.
I like the 27 gallon and smaller totes. The heavy duty ones like "Strong Box" that you can actually stand on the lid and are stackable. The flimsy ones just don't hold up to being moved often with the amount of weight I keep in them. One for t-shirts and 2 for gear to run the shoot.
Don't go too cheap on the trailer. Some of the HF trailers have a maximum speed of 45 miles per hour! You really don't want the bearings to go out and lose a wheel.
My two cents: How much stuff would Rambo bring to an Appleseed? A knife, a rifle, and whatever he has on his back. You can fashion everything else from the stones and sticks you find at the site. This is coming from an IIT who abandoned his subaru in a swamp and retrieved it three months later using sticks and gravel and a shovel to divert water. Got submerged/stuck in october, waited for the frost to set in....
Quote from: medved on July 19, 2023, 07:01:27 PM
My two cents: How much stuff would Rambo bring to an Appleseed? A knife, a rifle, and whatever he has on his back. You can fashion everything else from the stones and sticks you find at the site. This is coming from an IIT who abandoned his subaru in a swamp and retrieved it three months later using sticks and gravel and a shovel to divert water. Got submerged/stuck in october, waited for the frost to set in....
Well that wasn't very nice. Some bear thought he had found the perfect den for winter and then when he goes to hibernate, IT's MOVED on him..... **)
At least the bear wasn't already hibernating in it.
I used to scuba dive, and I'm mildly forgetful. So each bag had a list of things that went in it, including other bags that had their own lists. As I go to more events, I'm going to do the same thing; lists and lists of lists. For example, a spare parts list for my AR, some armorers tools for those range events that shouldn't happen, etc. The easier I can make "get up and go", the more I can go.
Have you SEEN Captain's van? ;D
I'm definitely a "kitchen sink" Shoot Boss...
I guess this makes me more of a 'whole kitchen' kind of guy.
New AS participant here. I do appreciate the equipment list provided and I used it as a checklist over the last several weeks to make sure I had everything.
Well, needless to say, the back of the cab of my truck is full. I managed to put a lot of things in a "go-backpack" but I think I may want to find a dedicated duffel and keep all the auxiliary stuff in there.
I bought the Huskey modular rolling toolbox system from Home Depot as my new solution. Keeps everything in a corner of the basement and has wheels to roll about...
Also not that badly priced for their new 2.0 system. At least compared to DeWalt or Milwaukee.