Thanks for all the positivity everyone, glad people like the setup. I don't want to derail this thread and make it all about me, but I'll say a few more things, because I would have loved to have had this info when I was trying to figure it all out.
When I was starting the business on my own, my old boss mentioned a setup like this a friend of his had. All I had to go by was "he made a plywood box with this "tarp system" for unloading chips, and tool boxes on the sides'. Searched a bunch of tree forums for images/discussions, but didn't find anything like what I wanted to build. From there I just figured it out on my own, building it onto the back of the truck as I was in my first ever months of being self employed, working and driving around with it in various stages which was kind of amusing.
And because I think it is important to mention for material longevity: all sides/ends/faces/whatever, of every piece of wood (that wasn't pressure treated) was primed and given two good coats of paint before being put together, so there is no unsealed wood for water to get in and start it rotting. Then there is the calking in all the seams, so no chips/dust/etc can go between the chip box and tool boxes, and no air or water can enter the tool boxes, other than a very small gap around the doors. That provides a tiny bit of air exchange, but keeps everything totally dry and out of the elements.
I'm not a skilled builder by any means, but I can cut plywood and 2x", so that's what I did. The chip box is pressure treated plywood on the bottom (since that will never really air out), 3/4" the rest of the way around, pressure treated 4x4s on all 6 uprights and framed basically like a wall. The inside of the tunnel is totally smooth, which is critical for chips sliding out easily. The tool boxes are essentially separate units built onto the sides of the chip box with some 2x4, some 2x2 and 5/8" plywood, and sits on the bedsides with a bit of rubber between. It's just wood, fasteners and paint, all from Home Depot.
Here are some 'in progress' pictures if anyone wants to see more of how it is put together:
When I was starting the business on my own, my old boss mentioned a setup like this a friend of his had. All I had to go by was "he made a plywood box with this "tarp system" for unloading chips, and tool boxes on the sides'. Searched a bunch of tree forums for images/discussions, but didn't find anything like what I wanted to build. From there I just figured it out on my own, building it onto the back of the truck as I was in my first ever months of being self employed, working and driving around with it in various stages which was kind of amusing.
And because I think it is important to mention for material longevity: all sides/ends/faces/whatever, of every piece of wood (that wasn't pressure treated) was primed and given two good coats of paint before being put together, so there is no unsealed wood for water to get in and start it rotting. Then there is the calking in all the seams, so no chips/dust/etc can go between the chip box and tool boxes, and no air or water can enter the tool boxes, other than a very small gap around the doors. That provides a tiny bit of air exchange, but keeps everything totally dry and out of the elements.
I'm not a skilled builder by any means, but I can cut plywood and 2x", so that's what I did. The chip box is pressure treated plywood on the bottom (since that will never really air out), 3/4" the rest of the way around, pressure treated 4x4s on all 6 uprights and framed basically like a wall. The inside of the tunnel is totally smooth, which is critical for chips sliding out easily. The tool boxes are essentially separate units built onto the sides of the chip box with some 2x4, some 2x2 and 5/8" plywood, and sits on the bedsides with a bit of rubber between. It's just wood, fasteners and paint, all from Home Depot.
Here are some 'in progress' pictures if anyone wants to see more of how it is put together:
Nope, wasn't me, I'm far too young for thatThere was a guy on the forums like 15 years ago named “ Tree Machine” that had almost that same setup but older truck. Are you him @27RMT0N ?
Doesn’t matter really, just curious.
Very cool setup
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