A crossover truck tool box is a tool box that spans the width of your truck bed and sits behind the cab. They’re usually bolted to the rails of your truck. They’re a great way to store tools and equipment on your truck. If you’re looking for a bit of extra secure storage for your truck, one of those crossover tool chests are some of the first you’ll find and for good reason.
Typically, crossover truck tool boxes are made of metal and plastic. They’re designed to be pretty durable. A quality truck tool box should be able to sit outside come rain, snow, ice, and relentless sunshine without becoming unusable. Usually, these boxes have a bit of texturing so that you can grip the lids or even stand on them without issue in any kind of weather.
There’s a variety of latching mechanisms available for crossover truck tool boxes, from simple flip latches to handle latches. Most of these tool boxes open like a chest from the front. Some crossover truck tool boxes can also have two doors that open on either side. Regardless of the latching or opening mechanism, it’s a good idea to secure the truck tool box with a lock. A truck tool box is a pretty obvious way to store your tools so you want to make sure that thieves won’t take any.
Crossover tool boxes are available for any size of truck bed. You can also pay extra for custom sizes and other modifications. The colors don’t have a very large range. Bright silver aluminum is the most common, with black a close second. You probably won’t be able to find one that matches the color of your truck, but any color will look practical and tough. The silver color tends to be highly reflective and may not be a good choice for extremely sunny locations.
Some of these tool boxes are very simple and are just boxes for storage, but others contain drawers or sections to help you organize what you store in them. If you want to store a lot of small tools, some kind of organizer is going to make your life much easier. If you opt for a simple box style crossover tool chest, you might want to invest in dividers to keep your tools from sliding all over the place as you drive, especially if you expect to be on rough roads or off-roading.
If you choose to use a crossover style truck tool box, you will usually have to climb into your truck be to reach all of your tools unless you have a very long reach. If anything small falls to the bottom of the tool box, you’ll have to climb up to get it out no matter how long your reach is. It’s a convenient way to store tools but doesn’t supply the easiest access.
Installing a crossover truck tool box will leave holes in your truck bed railings. It’s usually done using a drill and the mounting kit that will be included with any crossover tool box. Make sure you have your measurements correct and that you’ve selected the right size tool box before you start drilling.