no pic.

Link no worky!

That's a nice looking install vehicle...

I like your lettering job, it's definitely not subtle, but it's still looks classy.

What's with the big strip mall store in the back?? are you guys also using a mondo showroom??

I like keeping my ladders inside the truck to keep them clean. Is there some kind of "bag" that can cover a ladder that is stored on the roof? If so, does it flap around in the wind, or is it a hassle to put in and out of the bag.

We do a lot more work inside than out, and I hate bringing in a dirty ladder. I suppose we could hose them off every week or so to keep them clean.

How do you guys do it ? Or is it not a problem for you?

Thanks. Our showroom is actually small (1500 sf) but efficiently laid out. We are in one of the nicest strip malls in our state, and it is in a very exclusive neighborhood on the extreme south end of the Portland metro area. I chose the location because it provided beautiful scenery, we share a wall with Starbucks (Which is landlocked by us!), and the zip code has the highest per-capita income in the state.

The ladders don't tend to get very dirty. They are so high up that there is little chance of any mud getting up there. The only ones we keep outside are the 10' A-frames and above. If those go into a home, we wipe them down, and then wrap the feet with rags for protection. The 8' goes inside avove the shelving units, and the 6' + 4' stand upright at the back of the left side shelves.

It doesnt seem like there is enough space in that thing for all of my tools, but I have routers, table saws, other carpentry tools as well. We make all of our own speaker grills on site and we even manufacture speaker/tv mounts on site. I need space, our bubble van is crammed now, I want to get a 24' trailer for our avalanche, but my boss says if we get one he wants it for his race car instead of my tools. ARGH!

We have a 7 x 16 trailer which im currently still arranging. Bought some steel wire shelving and use plastic bins in various colors for storage. This allows me to continually arrange everything nice and neat. I cant stand a disorganized van or trailer. I also run 4 sets of drawer bins for smaller parts, and only buy the adjustables, once again allowing flexibility. Having a trailer is a little more of a pain having to hitch up even for quick runs, but at least it gives my 02 crewcab longbox f250 a workout once in awhile. We needed the bigger truck to haul ourselves and 3 almost teenagers around, the quad cab wasnt cutting it anymore. Figgured if we were going big, why not just go biggest?
The trailer allows us to stand up, saving the knees. Also contains everything I need along the sides, saving plenty of room down the middle for large boxes and such. I searched until I found a rear cargo door model, seems all the trailer dealers think everyone wants ramps to haul their toys......
Had an older Dodge van until the trailer, just couldnt seem to keep everything I wanted in there....

n_staller, what trailer did you end up with?

eastonaltree - looks great. Thanks for the info.

Its a brand called "Carry On" trailers. It was somewhat inexpensive, but built pretty decent. I especially liked that it was lined with 3/4 plywood, making it easy for me to attach racks and such.

For lighting I used a 4 tube underbody LED lighting set- white. We also do 12volt so these were pretty inexpensive. I mounted an Optima Yellow top in the trailer thats charged by my truck. We forgot the lights on for 2 days once and the battery was still going strong, im sure the low current consumption of the LEDS helped.

Its a twin axle trailer, got the elec brakes and all the goodies. I really like it over the van. I will say that soon I will have a back up camera system on my truck though, hate taking chances on denting my truck.

One other plus about the trailer... you can drop it at a lengthy job and leave it.

Thanks for the info. I am leaning towards the trailer option as well.

We've considered getting a trailer as well. In our area, there are quite a few places where a trailer would just be too inconvenient to drag along and actually park.

Mine's a 2004 Sprinter "station wagon", the kids like to jump on the seats.
I went for the Hemi option with a spoiler to keep the rear end planted at high speeds.
It also helps in the twisties when road racing.





But seriously, if you get one of these get the dual mirrors, the singles have giant blind spots.

The skid control is awesome in the snow. Spin up the rear tires at 20 mph, crank the steering over to get it moving sideways. At the moment you would normally countersteer the brakes come on on one side and it straightens itself out.

In cold weather climate opt for the diesel heater with timer. It gives you INSTANT heat and the timer can turn it on at 6:30 AM as you are getting out of bed.

The governer is 80 mph, the speedo is 3 miles fast.

The OEM tires suck, I got stuck in a dry gravel driveway.

The remote key fob usually works great within 2 feet of the vehicle.

Once a week the radio won't turn off, the dealer says "they all do that".

Overall I really like it.

Hey just wanted to ask if you installed the Edstrom racks or a dealer

I installed them, but it was a total PITA. It's definitely a custom sort of thing. You need to get your own hardware too, ast they assume that a professional rack installer will be putting them in and have their own bolts/nuts/etc. I think we drilled about 40 holes through the bottom of the van. It was not fun doing all of the measurements to make sure we didn't hit gas lines, brake lines, electrical wires, gas tank.........