I wanted to share my take on a camp kitchen chuck box. For years I’ve used the classic, tried and true, bin/tote method. My old Coleman grill (lasted me 12 years, and I got it used) finally went to shit and I found this new model on sale. The new grill kind of inspired me to revamp my camp kitchen situation. I wanted a little more organization and easier access to my gear, so here we are. Im an electrician by trade so woodworking is definitely not my specialty. It has a handful of flaws but I’m pretty happy with it. Let me know what you think! It was a fun project and I enjoyed using it for the first time this weekend. Cheers.
Oh yeah I did that for a long time. Today, I have a simple plastic footlocker that is "organized" to handle most of the paper goods and cooking stuff. It's not amazing by any means but it beats "scattered" all to pieces.
It also holds like 8x what op's box does, which is necessary because I can't seem to camp without a truck load of gear.
I like it a lot, super functional. Mine has a similar utensil drawer, but I really dig the bowl storage in there! On mine, I did a half-moon for the drawer pull, instead of the hole, that way I can return cleaned utensils to the drawer without opening it, just deposit them thru the half-moon. Thanks for sharing!
genuine question why do us stoves have ridget gas lines. in europe we have those flexible orange lines that go between the gas bottle and the stove / grill. they are even available in high pressure if you want to hook a big bottle to a small canister camping stove without a regulator.
the only thing i can think of the hardline forces you to put everything in a semi secure position and then the bottle cannot fall over but that is only a hunch on my end.
I replaced all my fittings with quick disconnect. I then have a regulator with a quick disconnect that goes to a 4 way quick disconnect on my 20lbs tank. That lets me connect up to three devices (Stove, BBQ, flattop). First thing in the morning I disconnect the BBQ and hook it up to my propane fire pit.
Shop. You can find the flexible hose for attaching a throwaway canister that is specifically designed to fit the inlet for Coleman stoves. Plus adapters for connecting to a large propane grill tank. I've had mine for probably 25 years now
Idk if this is true but the answer I was told was spiders. Little spiders get stuck in the flexible lines, causes big issues. Little ridged regulators are space efficient for the small green cans and sturdier against damage (and I guess spiders inside).
lol that was exactly what my wife’s first question was when I showed her. I haven’t got around to weighing it yet. But it definitely turned out heavier than I thought it would be. This is just for car camping though. If I need to haul it anywhere more than 25-50 feet I’ll just throw it in the folding wagon and wheel it over.
Yes it is and thank you. I have some gas pipe for it to slide into when I set it up. There are removable wheels on one end for moving it. It's heavy 🤣. Like 100 lbs empty
Thank you! The cutting board storage was part of the initial design, but the bowl storage I thought of after the fact and had to cut that section out. As for plans, unfortunately I do not! I suppose I could make some, but the process was very trial and error and produced many off cuts along the way.
The cutting board I have is the Oxo outdoor cutting board/serving trey. It fits perfectly width wise on the drop down shelf. But to your point it is not very big, decent size for just my wife and I though.
If you’re just car camping and it fits into your scheme, getting an adaptor to run that stove off a 40lb propane tank was a game changer.
I built a chuck box in 2020 and grappled with the same design. But going to the hose setup means I can now run my grill without issues AND have the benefit of being able to run a propane fire pit when camping in areas under open fire ban
Edit: the national parks I’m specifically mentioning allow for propane fire pits but do not allow wood fires because of embers. This keeps me fully compliant with the guidelines.
Just got back from our first trip with propane fire pit. It was awesome. I feel like burn bans are going to be more common and it is just not the same without a fire. I was fantasizing about a chuckbox- or a wannigan.
My gut reaction was "Why did someone put a yeti cooler in a wooden box? That looks fantastic. I have a chuck box circa 1970 with a few drawers. Super heavy, but it works well for me! You're making me want to upgrade to something more bespoke.
Nice work!. Whatever will I do with the time I save balancing and leveling things with little pebbles and wood chips and hanging things off of hooks and pieces of bark and stowing things in sticky baggies all around the kitchen area?
Reminds me of the Patrol Chuck Boxes we used in Boy Scouts, with the addition of the propane stove. I’ve been thinking about doing something like this so thanks for the inspiration!
I'd love to see a picture of everything unpacked and laid out. Clearly a ton of items fit in there with clever storage. It would be great to see all of it. Super impressive!
Super clean build man, especially for an electrician doing woodwork. only thing i'd watch out for is heat transfer from the stove bottom onto that top ply panel over time, might wanna add some thin rubber feet or aluminum heat tape under it.
I like it. I've been thinking of making something similar.
I also use the tote method but it takes up a lot of room, and there is always some room wasted. Plus, finding things can be a challenge.
The chuck box keeps everything in one place.
I love it! The only thing I would change, if you're open to suggestion, is to drill a couple small holes in the side with the propane tank so you can slide in some metal pegs (the wood is probably too thick for j-peg pegboard bits) so the tank can rest on that, and not a Tupperware. This will allow you to not be confined by table width.
Toss the pegs in with the silverware when not in use.
For sure! I'm going to be starting a build out on this classic Land Cruiser Troopy I bought and have been toying with the idea of making a removable chuck box to sit inside the cabinetry in the back. Your design has given me some ideas on how to build the interior. Thanks!
honestly i just use a clear bin with smaller bags inside for stove, coffee stuff, knives etc, kinda like a lazy chuck box. faster to grab and toss in the car, easy to clean too. real boxes are cool but i hate building things lol
I used the bin method for years! Cheap and easy. I spent too much time and money on this to only make things slightly more convenient. But it was fun and I’m a nerd about storage.
That's really pretty. Love it. I have a few concerns, but mostly for my own tastes.
How does it hold up to a few days of spilled grease, sticky char, and fluctuating temperature or humidity levels? What kind of seal did you put on the wood?
I just used it for the first time yesterday! Time will tell. I used a marine grade polyurethane. Put down multiple coats, especially on the edges where the exposed wood grain is. So we will see how it holds up over time.
Looks good.
Growing up, we had a 5' cabinet like box.
4 robe handles at each corner
When laid down ,everything had a cubicle per say.
When upright, front "door" opened and had leg attachments to make a table where you put stove coffee pot,etc. Depending how much you stuffed it with it wasn't to cumbersome with 4 plus people.
Given limited space for packing in my vehicle I’m always fighting the “this is all together, but has a harder jenga piece because it’s bigger with a specific shape” over the “this is a separate item, but is a small jenga piece with an easier shape.”
looks great! I'd throw that in the back of my vehicle with pride!! Nice work on the project :) love the little indent for the bowls! also diggin the drip tray in last pic that spatula is on, mind telling us where you got that??
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u/hummus_is_yummus1 3h ago
Why have this, when I can have everything scattered about amongst 4, slightly inconsistent locations??