Just picked up a Northern Hydro toolbox/chest, used. How do I secure the dang thang? I was thinking of drilling 2 holes through the box and bed and putting bolts through there? Is that the best way?

 

i just bought a tool box to and thats what i did was drilled and bolted two bolts on each side threw the bed rails i was looking at the different ways of doing it without drilling but i didnt want it to get stolen so i drilled :)

 

does it set up on the bed rails?? you could get some j hooks and install it that way

 

no it sits down in the bed, not over the rails.....So drill THROUGH the bed rails. and secure, okie dokie

 

its 6 am dont be cranky :) goodluck

 

Dustin, that what i would do, id just drill thought the bottom of the bed and bolt it in. maybe put a little silicone around the top of the bolts so that when water sits in your bed, it doesnt leak, just a suggestion.

 

I'd say thats probably your best bet to secure it and not have to worry about anyone taking it.

 

Nutsert/Threadsert on the floor, then run bolts. That way it won't be a two person job tightening the bolts and nuts, AND you won't have the gas tank in the way for tightening.

Basically nutserts and threadserts are rivets that are threaded. Drill your hole, set your nutsert in the hole, take the rivet gun thingy and crimp it, DONE! Set your box on the bed, run your bolts, finished. You can get 'em up to half inch......All you really need is 3/8, 4 of 'em.

 

When I had mine I just used 4 of these, one in each corner. I had a decent amount of weight in it and I take turns pretty hard and usually don't go to slow over speed bumps and never had an issue. Just make sure you don't use ones that are too long and drill into your gas tank. I use a drill to get them to drill the hole and go down, and then tighten them by hand.



Self drilling sheetmetal screws

 

Excatly what i did with my old one. 1 in each corner. never moved again. was much easier than lining up holes with bolts and crap


OP do you have any pics of your box? my old one was really small and i want one that can go across most of the bed.

 

Shanes way sounds the best!, just put the tool box in, drill the holes through both the box and the bed, that way they're lines up, then put those thingies in, and ur done. id go for that idea Dustin

 

more info...

Set the box where you want it, drill your holes through the bed and box, move box, throw in the nutsert into the bed floor, line up box, run bolts, done! Easily removable, no fear for chewed up hole from the self tappers that'll eventually strip and loosen up. And....it'll look finished when the box is out of it. Preferably, your nutserts would be on the raised part of the bed floor. But that's kinda common sense. lol.




Here's the 'cheap mans' tool......which works, but is a pain in the butt with bigger sized blindnuts/threadserts/nutserts. I've been using them on alot of things on my truck...absolutely love them!! Got 'em on my roof now, my toolbox, a-pillar grabs, step bars, maybe other places. I'm wanting to buy the tool reallllly bad. The inserts come in brass, aluminum, and steel....I think aluminum is the only kind you can use with the cheap tool.



I wish I knew about them when I put that windshield rack in my old 2006 duramax.....bolts were a PAIN!!


Here's my stepbars where I used the rivetgun tool thing...

 

^^ i love those things how i mounted me 2 door ext cab bars on my 4 door brackets!

 

No they won't.

 

Tell me why I went with nutserts after years of using self tappers?? CB antenna bracket was secured by 4 self tappers that always loosened up and eventually the holes were so bad, you couldn't tighten them. On went the nutserts this summer and no issues ever since.

 

Because you don't know what you're doing

 

Shano, man thanks a lot...And everyone else for input, truely.

Um I have a plastic bedliner, should i drill 4 holes that are gonna be bigger than the bolts, so i can get to them easly?

Um that big azz bolt cutter looks expensive, I'll check it out today when im at lowes. Gotta get some paint stripper to remove the spray bedliner i used on the toolbox, dont like it.

 

well I went to Lowes to day, they didnt have them, nothing close. Ended up getting some self tap screws.....

Dang it took forever to get that bed liner off the toolbox, i bought some paint thinner it worked pretty good, then a pressure washer worked even better. Then my GF had a can of goo gone, that works best. Now got to run it back to the pressure washer place and get it cleaned up for the finale!

 

Never drill a hole bigger than the fastener you are installing. Especially if you are securing something down. It needs to be the same outside diameter as the fastener, or one step down from that (depending on the fastener itself). If you are using self tapping screws, you don't have to drill a hole. All you should have to do is maybe take a nail set and make a small dent for where you want the screw to start at.

 

No i meant drilling a bigger hole in the plastic bed liner, not the bed, so the bolt would be flush with the bed and not the liner, squashing it down

 

Ditch that crappy *** bedliner, throw in a nice thick bedmat.

 

well, bought some self tap screws with rubber washers. It worked just fine, secured nice and tight. When i screwed in the screw on the driver side, i noticed a puddle that was running under my truck, dang I though I hit something, looks like it was just water under the bedliner that was seeping out and dripping off the screw tip......

Shane where did you get them rivets and rivet gun?
I might get a floormat later, or spray in, but for now it works

 

why would you use these???.... they are for sheet metal, hence the name. why not use something like a grade 8 bolt and nut (some washers too)?? you are putting a load in the back of your truck, why not secure it properly??

 

What is the bed made out of? Sheet metal. Grade 8 bolts are overkill. I had a lot of weight in my old box and never had an issue.