DIY Pioneer Tool Mounts

So I had this idea for awhile now and have been keeping my eye out for an old car bike rack at local thrift stores and craigslist. The other day i picked up them gem for $5 at a thrift store down the road.



I started with taking off the pieces that i wanted to use.





this is my rancho tire carrier. this is what i will be mounting these on but you would mount them to any tire carrier with enough real estate on it. or mount them on whatever.



cut down the strap things in half so you have a level surface to work with. make sure you dont grind to much off to where the rubber is very thin and fragile. i used my bench grinder and dremel but a hack saw would work as well.



next measure and drill where you want the rubber pieces to go



i know what you might be thinking i made sure it would hit my tire and wheel. make sure you have enough clearance if you do not take your spare off.



next step to 1/4 inch drill bit (thats what i used 1/4-20 2.5 inch bolts, you're tire carrier might be a different thickness so use the appropriate size bolts). my drill bit would have hit my tire but i used my mattock pick head to block the bit



now take the drill bit size you are using and drill a hole in the center of the rubber strap in the small valley.





now go get your hardware. I used 1/4-20 by 2.5 inch bolts with nuts and 1 inch diameter washers.



insert the bolt through the rubber strap



then mount it to the carrier





now throw your tool on there. I put my shovel there, but it will hold my axe just fine as well



I also mounted a couple more and threw my mattock handle on there.

Love it!! I will be doing this! Thanks for the great idea!


My ride- 2001 power wheel, 11" plastic tires, upgraded battery, boat sides, custom bumpers, tow hooks, new paint.

Holy Photobucket Batman!

David1tontj said:

Love it!! I will be doing this! Thanks for the great idea!


My ride- 2001 power wheel, 11" plastic tires, upgraded battery, boat sides, custom bumpers, tow hooks, new paint.

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Thanks I've been wanting to do something for my shovel for awhile now. Looks a lot better than a bunch of bungee cords

Nicely done!
a cheap alternative to buying quick fist mounts that are $10 each

Thanks man

Pretty inventive ! I would have mounted the ones holding the shovel 180 Degrees from where you mounted them . That way the wrap around strap would have to fall up to become undone , not down . Do you know what I mean ? Just flip them over . I also wonder if they will be strong enough when you really go wheeling hard .You don't want that shovel banging the crap out of the Jeep if they break or come undone , not to mention loosing it .

dahreno said:

Pretty inventive ! I would have mounted the ones holding the shovel 180 Degrees from where you mounted them . That way the wrap around strap would have to fall up to become undone , not down . Do you know what I mean ? Just flip them over . I also wonder if they will be strong enough when you really go wheeling hard .You don't want that shovel banging the crap out of the Jeep if they break or come undone , not to mention loosing it .

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Yea they have enough of a lip where the strap actually hooks to, so time will tell if they hold up on the trail, but for the price I paid (and considering I got the tools for free) I'm willing to see if they will hold. I have given them a good amount of hard pulls and they hold strong. As long as you strap the tight I see zero chance of losing a tool. Also I mounted them this way for ergonomics. It just seemed like it would be easier to pull down to release them and pull them up to hook them so I can see the nub they fix to, instead of crouching down to see if I was lined up. Fortunately I have armor all over my tj so that shovel couldn't do much if any damage.

Good, it seems like you thought it out and I am only going by the pics. I can see. I was just trying to be helpful . I hope they work out for you. Good luck !

Appreciate it man. Its not perfect, but I couldn't find anything locally to suit my needs. Figured it was worth a shot. If I end up having issues ill definitely post them on this thread.

I have an old bike rack in storage and a new one for the Jeep.... and I know the straps are pretty secure, they are meant to strap down 20-50lbs bikes and keep them from bouncing down the road.
Thats a great idea though... might have to put some use to the old rack yet.
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Jeep_Dawg08 said:

I have an old bike rack in storage and a new one for the Jeep.... and I know the straps are pretty secure, they are meant to strap down 20-50lbs bikes and keep them from bouncing down the road.
Thats a great idea though... might have to put some use to the old rack yet.
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Yea they are definitely up to the task. I can close my 80~90lb tire carrier just pushing on the shovel handle and it doesn't budge. The only thing I am concerned about is radiation damage from the sun. Time will tell if the rubber decides to crack. Luckily in the lovely state of Washington, sunlight isn't something I will have to worry about very often haha.

Update: still holding strong. I've rolled around some of the local trails and orv parks up here with different tool configurations including a 10lb sledge and a couple different axes and they have held up fine.