Haymaker

From B&M I went to the folks at DeeZee. Ron Shivers, DeeZee’s president, said, “There was a time when hunting trucks were hidden behind the house or sequestered in the garage. These trucks bore the scars of lots of offroad miles—the price of getting to out-of-the-way hunting sites.They did the job, but you didn’t exactly want to be seen driving around town in ‘em. Nowadays hunters need a ‘hunting truck’ to do double duty: The truck is often the family’s main vehicle as well. To do that, you need to protect the truck from the scrapes, gouges, and dents that offroad trails inflict.That’s why DeeZee developed running boards, grille guards, and the like.
“And truth be told, most hunters—me included—are gear freaks of the first order. Our storage boxes are designed to hold a lot of gear, so you can fmd it when you need it.”
Shivers tackled the storage problem with a big box.”A haphazard pile of gear is no way to go,” he said. “Let’s go with our Platinum Series Fifth WheelTool Box.”
Originally developed for outdoorsmen who use a fifth-wheel trailer, the tool box adapted easily to our needs. Constructed from heavy-duty Brite-Tread aluminum, the box bolts down to the bed. It features stainless steel paddle latches and heavy-duty gas cylinders. Since the top was designed to clear fifth-wheel hitches and trailers, you’ll have no trouble opening it in the tight space under a truck cap. The box holds up to 25 cubic feet of gear. I stuffed the box with two complete sets of bulky, cold-weather insulated hunting clothes, boots, sleeping bags, a pair of oversize gear bags, and miscellaneous camping equipment (gas lantern, stove, cooking utensils, etc.). It took a long time to fill.
To protect the vehicle from typical offroad hazards such as rocks, stumps, and brush, we installed the DeeZee UltraBlack grille bar and brush guards as well as Brite-Tread running boards. “Black is the hot choice among offroaders for grille and brush guards,” Shivers said. “But chrome remains a favorite with a lot of hunters as well. It’s really a matter of personal preference.The Brite-Tread diamond-plate aluminum running boards are an old favorite, They help you step up into the cab and protect the door and rocker panels from low obstacles. If you do a lot of really heavy-duty offroading, where the body of the vehicle comes into contact with mud or low brush, you might want to go with step bars instead because they’ll give you a bit more clearance.”
Shivers also addressed a prime concern for deer hunters: How to safely carry firearms. “Carrying firearms in a truck is always cause for worry. Getting jostled while in a soft case is the least of it. Most of us really worry that a much-needed stop for coffee late at night will give some creep the opportunity to rip off your rifles,” he said.
DeeZee’s Aluma-Sport Safari Gun Case is a heavy-duty extruded aluminum locking gun case that safely stores four rifles. A thick layer of foam padding protects rifles from jolts and bumps; no matter how bad the trail, you should still be zeroed in come opening day. For extra security, we bolted the case to the bed.The only way a thief will get the rifles is to steal the whole truck.