Depending on the layout of your truck bed, a regular crossover truck tool box may not be the best fit- literally. Normal crossover tool boxes have flat bottoms, similar to the sort of tool box you find in a garage. Some truck beds are set so they have an odd-shaped bottom and angled sides behind the cab. If you want to use a crossover tool box for this kind of truck, you should get an angled crossover tool box.
Angled crossover truck tool boxes are the same as normal crossover tool boxes except for the shape of their bottom. Instead of straight corners at the bottom, these boxes have angled ones. Their sides extend inward at an angle and they fit snugly into angled beds. A variety of pickup truck models have this sort of design.
These angles mean that these crossover tool boxes have less room in them than normal crossover truck tool boxes. The difference is often very small, but it does mean that you won’t be able to store long items in the bottom of these boxes. If you’ve like to store a shovel or sledgehammer in one of these angled crossover truck tool boxes, you may run into trouble. The drawers and dividers will also need to have a different shape. Make sure you think your organizational system through so there’s no wasted space if you choose to use one of these angled tool chests. Think about storing longer items near the top of the box in order to make sure they fit well.
The only real difference between angled crossover tool boxes and regular crossover tool boxes is their structure. Most angled tool boxes are made of metal with a raised diamond pattern. You can typically get them in either silver or black. There are a number of options for opening and locking mechanisms, including trapdoor-style double doors and lockable latches. Be sure to secure your angled truck tool box when you’re not using it with a padlock in order to deter thieves. Angled crossover tool chests are mounted to your truck in the same way as normal ones using a drill and the included mounting kit.
Make sure you get the right measurements before you purchase or begin mounting your angled crossover tool box in the truck bed. Getting the correct angle for the truck bed’s sides is very important and easy to mess up, so be sure to triple check it. You should not have to custom order an angled crossover tool box since most manufacturers are well aware of the specifications of the trucks on the market.
Any kind of crossover truck tool box will reduce the lengths of your bed a bit. While you can place items on the top of them, they’ll have to sit at an angle. This isn’t always an option. Some things might be too heavy to do this. Be mindful of the sort of things you expect to be transporting before you buy a crossover truck tool box.