Rubbermaid Actionpacker (1 Viewer)

[rusty_tlc]

My big complaint with most plastic boxes is the tapered sides which waste a lot of space.

I use a Military medical box (Pic below) they are made out of aluminum and are 100% water and dust tight. The downside is they are a bit heavy when loaded, empty they are lighter than an equivalent size plastic box.

We also use regular old cardboard fruit boxes a lot. They are light weight, priced right and maximize the use of available space. Lined with a plastic bag they are fairly water/dust tight, and the cardboard used is somewhat resistant to damp. Someday I'll build a few boxes of similar design out of 1/8 Luan and give them a few coats of poly.

 

[NQCruiser]

Maybe it was the torture test video from ECS that got me - Torture Testing Shipping Cases - Extreme ECS Case Tests - YouTube
Maybe I just don't wanna keep giving Corey credit for my list of must-haves...

In any case, I work for a Trimble dealer and every $10k-$30k system that ships from their factory comes through our door in a bright yellow Pelican case.

As the Inventory Manager I love these kinds of cases because they protect gear so well when they have equipment-specific cutouts in the stiff foam. We work with a dealer in D/FW who will do a 3-dimensional scan of any piece of equipment so they can CNC cut the foam repeatedly for any case. I've had them design a shipping case for a $9k laser detection mast that was 4.5ft tall and weighed 80-90lbs. They told me it would still float with the mast inside, lol.

I know that Pelican makes a bunch of sizes (I've just about seen them all), but they've always been an equipment case to me versus ECS' being more of a shipping-oriented case with more square-ish dimensions that lend themselves to packing camping items better. It's really a case of oranges vs nectarines I guess.

And for the record, there are still two 8gal Action Packers in the back of my FJ from this past weekend.

Hey, another fellow Trimble dealer here from Australia! I know what you mean about the cases, some great Pelican stuff floats through our shop that I wouldn't mind "acquiring" - the Base Station cases are awesome. That mast box looks great too.

I've been roaming around through all of our old traded and DPR'd gear recently and found three old Geo-Star pelican cases that will be right at home in the back of my 60 series shortly.....

 

[SWITAWI]

Hey, another fellow Trimble dealer here from Australia! I know what you mean about the cases, some great Pelican stuff floats through our shop that I wouldn't mind "acquiring" - the Base Station cases are awesome. That mast box looks great too.

I've been roaming around through all of our old traded and DPR'd gear recently and found three old Geo-Star pelican cases that will be right at home in the back of my 60 series shortly.....

Hail, fellow Trimble guy! Don't you love how you're always 'the Trimble guy' no matter what the name of your company is? Since the Machine Control side of our business spun off into another Sitech entity (I'm sure you're familiar) I don't get the big, cool cases around here anymore. Those were rather heavy anyway, but it would be nice to have just one.

Back to the OP's topic of the Action Packer... There is a lot of ideas for them over on ExPo including making them more weather-resistant and putting partitions inside them. Check this out this list of threads - Expedition Portal Forum

Also, here's a few other links...

Some of Corey's latest gear reviews. Scroll down to see the ECS Footlockers - https://forum.ih8mud.com/camping-outdoor-gear/235997-camping-gear-reviews-ton-3.html#post5791972

Bundu Boxes - Howling Moon and Bundu Boxes

Pelican vs Zarges cases (or rather how Corey ended up with ECS instead ) - Pelican verses Zarges

Watertight boxes thread - watertight boxes..........

Making compartments in an Action Packer - Cheap N Easy - Action Packet Compartmentalization

 

[Devilmans Hand]

i like using metal ammo cans cause they're cheap, abundant, rugged, easy to paint/modify, dust and water tight, and come in every shape and size.
the only downside is the weight.
Pelican cases are awesome, but equally as heavy and uber expensive.

I like the medical crates pictured above and the south aftican square 7.62 brown crates. They're the perfect size and stack very well.
lately though, i've just been using water tight bags for everything. You can get them cheap enough from walmart. thick contractor grade bags work well for keeping dust and water out too. Plus, who is going to steal what looks like trash in a bag from your vehicle? Pelican cases draw attention to yourself, especially the long skinny ones.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Funny how many Trimbel guys there are here, I spent a good part of a year working on a dual PLL module for a Trimbel application they were doing for Caterpillar tractors.

 

[NQCruiser]

Funny how many Trimbel guys there are here, I spent a good part of a year working on a dual PLL module for a Trimbel application they were doing for Caterpillar tractors.

I came over to Colorado in Jan this year for the AgReseller meeting in Loveland. Quite a few of the Trimble reps were into their offroading too - unfortunately mostly into Jeeps, but 1 outta 2 ain't too bad....

And yeah SWITAWI, I'm hearing you about the SITECH thing. We do both Ag & Construction and it seems they're trying to make it a "one dealer" thing in Construction, but prostitute out the Ag franchises to anyone who shows any interest. They seem to do as good a deal for someone who sells TopCon, Leica and Trimble (with no loyalty to any brand) as they do for the genuine Trimble dealers who have stuck with them for decades - and then we get stuck with the support phonecalls because they don't have qualified or trained personnel.... Yes CNH, Im looking at you....

 

[SWITAWI]

NQCruiser, I'll PM you so we don't completely hijack this thread...

 

[BBQ BOY]

Does anyone know f the Zarges dents easily or is it a thick metal?

 

[SWITAWI]

Posts #5, #16, and #35 on this thread - http://www.expeditionportal.com/forum/threads/40864-Pelican-verses-Zarges

 

[jonheld]

Here is the one from Homedepot I mentioned:
20-Gallon Multi-Purpose Storage Container-43118 at The Home Depot

These got pretty good reviews on ExpeditionPortal and my local HD has them in stock. I need an additional box for camping gear and misc. crap I drag with me. THis may work and seems like a good value. Here's a link to the discussion:
PowerPacker storage bins

 

[george_tlc]

I'd love to find a range of good plastic camping boxes. I'd think polyethylene would be a good choice for overall strength without being brittle and without too much thickness. The other thing is I want boxes with perpendicular sides. Decent lid that can carry some weight to allow positive stacking when needed.

I've yet to find such a product. In oz I've just ended up making boxes with 1/2" nominal marine ply. Mate (cabinet make) made some nice marine ply boxes with hinges/lids/latches etc - I feel guilty using them in the bush since they are so 'nice'.

My search for my ultimate plastic box still continues

cheers,
george.

 

[jonheld]

I went to my local HD today and picked up the 20 gal PowerPacker for $30. It is WAY stronger than the Rubbermaid products and has a great lid. It says not to stand on the lid, but I jumped on one in HD. It didn't budge. I was able to put all the contents of both my Action Packers into this single unit and it will strap down more securly in the back.
There is a 3/4" high lip that runs all around the inner seal and the lid fits into this nicely. Not "waterproof" but I wouldn't have a second thought about leaving it out in the rain.
Might have to pick up another one for camping gear.

 

[kybishop]

My wife picked up a couple of these recently but I have not used them enough to know how good they are. One of the latches has already popped off because of bad rivets but time will tell on the others.

Sterilite - 1842: Footlocker

They do have wheels for moving them around. Mine are the color in the picture. Mostly see blue but come in orange too I have read. We got them for $20 each.

 

[Bogo]

Haven't had that Sterilite box, but my usual finding with them is they last about half as long as RubberMaid boxes.

 

[spressomon]

I have quite a few Action Packers but after being on a Utah trip with TrickyT a few years ago and seeing these in his 80 I converted over. They are the perfect dimensions for my 2nd row so I can get three across. Keeps everything dust free...until I open the lid in a dust storm that is

They're plenty tough for my use but probably not indestructible. And not sure how they'd hold up to exterior/rooftop type use. The "seal" is a soft foam ring type seal...certainly not in the league of Pelican/Hardigg but lighter in weight and less expensive. And they're, with their relatively (especially compared to the AP boxes) straight walls and lids, easy and quick to wash out as needed. They also stack.

Looks like SWITAWI found a black version of the same...


The Container Store > Watertight Trunk

 

[spressomon]

Haven't had that Sterilite box, but my usual finding with them is they last about half as long as RubberMaid boxes.

Same experience here. But due to cost I suppose Rubbermaid boxes are getting harder to find.

 

[Devilmans Hand]

i used to use old plastic coolers too. perpendicular sides, tough construction, and they keep stuff cold when you want. most of them have build in handles and some even have wheels. I have not had a negative issue with them. Put some ratchet straps around the lid and they're pretty water and dust tight.

 

[rusty_tlc]

i used to use old plastic coolers too. perpendicular sides, tough construction, and they keep stuff cold when you want. most of them have build in handles and some even have wheels. I have not had a negative issue with them. Put some ratchet straps around the lid and they're pretty water and dust tight.

It seems like you would be sacrificing a lot of space to insulation for stuff that may not need to be kept cold.

 

[Devilmans Hand]

It seems like you would be sacrificing a lot of space to insulation for stuff that may not need to be kept cold.

that is what i thought too. I'd only really used them in the back of the truck before when the extra volume wasn't a concern. Having been raised in a fishing/hunting family means that we always had a lot of extra coolers. I thought it a feasible and available option. Plus it is somewhat incognito for gear.

*add on*

I love my pelican cases, but they're heavy and expensive. the latches can be a pain to open and close too. I've popped a nail up once or twice opening mine. I've been thinking about drilling a hole in each latch for a rope loop.
Whenever i see them in a vehicle i always think to myself that they must have something valuable in there.

 

[SWITAWI]

...I love my pelican cases, but they're heavy and expensive. the latches can be a pain to open and close too. I've popped a nail up once or twice opening mine. I've been thinking about drilling a hole in each latch for a rope loop.
Whenever i see them in a vehicle i always think to myself that they must have something valuable in there.

x10 on everything you said there. The newer style latches work better, but the one woman that works in our office still doesn't possess enough hand strength to open some of the brand-new cases. And I can't even begin to describe the paranoia of our sales staff when they're carrying Trimble demo gear around because we've had so many vehicle break-ins over the years when they're on the road. Opportunistic thieves always go after the bright yellow pelican case.

All that being said, even when a case is completely sun-faded and the glued-in foam inserts are coming loose I've never had one of these Pelican cases fail and allow equipment to be damaged. Still, I'd rather they had a better interlocking/stacking shape like ECS.