Tortooga Custom Works
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Ralph
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2018
- Threads
- 80
- Messages
- 1,704
- Reaction score
- 1,623
- Location
- Central NJ
- Vehicle(s)
- 2020 Jeep Gladator Launch Edition | 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited
- Thread starter
- #1
There's been A LOT going on in my life the last 3 months or so. I did stop posting, mostly because I've been grooming this idea...
Full Disclosure: I'm not just Ralph with a Gladiator anymore. I'm Ralph trying to startup a second business to sell some pretty cool stuff. Very soon in the next few days or weeks I will be switching my forum account over to a Sponsor account. (Mods let me know if I should do that sooner. At the moment I'm not actually selling anything.)
Here's a little background:
So I got my gladiator a few months ago - it is my first truck. Much like many others I started looking for ways to get my stuff into the truck: tools, toolboxes, bikes and other gear. I spent countless hours researching just about all the options out there for the gladiator and even for other trucks. I made pro and con lists, I made decisions, I went back on decisions, I bought stuff, I returned stuff, I did more research... bought more stuff, returned more stuff, got frustrated... then did more research... got frustrated again...
What I wanted was to find a way to store anything in my truck, easily, and safely. Whether it's tools, materials, bicycles, my camping gear, whatever.
What I kept finding is that:
1) There aren't very many products out there for all of what I'm trying to do.
2) The products that do exist are narrowly focused - a bed rack, a bike rack, a kayak rack, a ladder rack, a bed slide, a drawer system. I'd have to piece a lot of them together to get something that sort of works, AND
3) The products I could find all seemed expensive. Initial investments are in the $1200+ range for just about any one of the various systems I could find. It gets crazier if you start mixing and matching - plus there's the issue that some systems don't work well together so you will have to make modifications that could ruin the truck, or the thing you just spent $1200+ on. I'm not calling out any specific products - they just weren't for me.
So I started down this road of making something for myself. Could I build a modular storage system that could fit my varying needs? If I'm going to end up spending $3000, $4000 or even more on something, could I build it custom, and make it exactly what I needed/wanted it to be?
The more I asked myself that question and the more I tried different things, drew up ideas, talked to contractors, overlanders, watched videos, talked to other manufacturers and talked to some good friends - I kept coming back to the fact that there seems to be a gap in the market - not just for Jeep Gladiators... but all around... affordable, reliable, versatile storage systems. Could I somehow add value to that market?
Vans have upfitters, and trucks have upfitters too - but ALL those options are generally also very expensive, and they're usually very narrowly focused on work gear. It's hard to upfit a van for both work and camping, or work and cycling.
That's the cliff notes of where this started. So I retooled my garage, and the last few months I've been in there a lot, making, breaking, cutting, re-making.... I've been protoyping a system to solve this storage challenge, first of all for me, and second of all, for anyone else who thinks it would be useful.
The system will have a foundation - a "base" if you will. (I'm still working on names and naming conventions).
To take advantage of the overall system you will need to purchase that base. The base by itself will be extremely useful. Think of it as a souped of cargo rail, or rails. You can mount things to it and latch things to it.
The real win is that we will be developing a variety of "modules" that will mount/bolt/latch onto that foundation/base.
As an example - say you're a carpenter. You got our miter saw rig that lets you slide out your miter saw, cut and do your work. And you've also got a second slide out for tools and materials. Saturday morning comes, you can remove the work modules and transform into cycling mode, or camping mode. Maybe it's a slide on one side for your bike, and the other slide is a lockable drawer for your gear. Just one example. The point is, it can be what you want it to be - without breaking the bank.
You are correct, there are others doing things like this - BUT, we're focused on a couple of different goals:
1) Modular/Versatile. While initially we will only have the base and a few basic components, we'll be designing and building many other "modules." Some of those are our own ideas, others will surely come from customers. The benefit to this is you can purchase add-ons, take stuff off, put new stuff on, and change it as your needs/wants change. Moreover, it will be versatile enough to also work with other things that are already available - tonneau covers, expedition racks, etc. (things that go outside the box).
2) Simple. It will be simple to install, use, customize and maintain. Basic hand tools are all you will need. You will be able to customize it yourself, even without buying parts from us, if you so desire.
3) Affordable. Our target for the base is <$600. That makes it a much easier entry. You can use that base on it's own for a lot of things. We are also hyper-focused on the modules being affordable. Adding a slide, or drawers should not break the bank. There will probably be levels of modules: basic, pro, premium - something like that. So there may be some premium modules that are just more expensive because they have expensive components.
4) Reliable. You will be able to put this system through the ringer and it come back unscathed. And, if, by some crazy reason it did come back scathed, the simplicity and versatility would allow it to be repairable fairly quickly.
So... the base exists - it's in my truck bed as we speak.
It's in alpha. I'm beating up on it, and probably will for another few weeks. I've been dialing in the components, cost and fit. Right now it fits perfectly in a Rubicon with bed liner that had Cargo Rails. Over the next few weeks I'll need to confirm fit on other trim levels and bed configs.
I've also already starting working on the initial 2-3 modules I'm expecting to launch with. The first few will be pretty generic/multi-use. But eventually we'll get to some very specific use cases like camping kitchens, bike holders, and things of that sort. Some even more complex, like what @Bobs85Reny is cooking up.
There will be a beta phase, I'll probably give a few bases away and/or sell them at the absolute lowest price I can to get some more feedback and make adjustments prior to launch. If that sounds interesting to you, please let me know. That will probably be our build process for most of the modules: alpha, beta, launch. And, honestly, the gladiator is only the beginning.
I'm excited about this - I am holding back a bit as I hone in the sales pitch. No, no pictures for now. I want to hear some opinions on the concept and not the aesthetic. There will be much more marketing in the next few weeks/months. Good quality pictures, mockups, and video. Lots of content to criticize - but for now, tell me your thoughts on this idea. I probably wrote a little more than necessary, but perhaps it helps give some context.
What do you think? Does this sound interesting? What kinds of questions come to mind? What are some of the storage/use challenges you have with your Gladiator? or maybe your other truck? or work van? or station wagon!?
What would you like to see? or not see? What do other companies do that you like? or that you hate?
What would you want to see to convince you that this would actually work and you should buy it?
Full Disclosure: I'm not just Ralph with a Gladiator anymore. I'm Ralph trying to startup a second business to sell some pretty cool stuff. Very soon in the next few days or weeks I will be switching my forum account over to a Sponsor account. (Mods let me know if I should do that sooner. At the moment I'm not actually selling anything.)
Here's a little background:
So I got my gladiator a few months ago - it is my first truck. Much like many others I started looking for ways to get my stuff into the truck: tools, toolboxes, bikes and other gear. I spent countless hours researching just about all the options out there for the gladiator and even for other trucks. I made pro and con lists, I made decisions, I went back on decisions, I bought stuff, I returned stuff, I did more research... bought more stuff, returned more stuff, got frustrated... then did more research... got frustrated again...
What I wanted was to find a way to store anything in my truck, easily, and safely. Whether it's tools, materials, bicycles, my camping gear, whatever.
What I kept finding is that:
1) There aren't very many products out there for all of what I'm trying to do.
2) The products that do exist are narrowly focused - a bed rack, a bike rack, a kayak rack, a ladder rack, a bed slide, a drawer system. I'd have to piece a lot of them together to get something that sort of works, AND
3) The products I could find all seemed expensive. Initial investments are in the $1200+ range for just about any one of the various systems I could find. It gets crazier if you start mixing and matching - plus there's the issue that some systems don't work well together so you will have to make modifications that could ruin the truck, or the thing you just spent $1200+ on. I'm not calling out any specific products - they just weren't for me.
So I started down this road of making something for myself. Could I build a modular storage system that could fit my varying needs? If I'm going to end up spending $3000, $4000 or even more on something, could I build it custom, and make it exactly what I needed/wanted it to be?
The more I asked myself that question and the more I tried different things, drew up ideas, talked to contractors, overlanders, watched videos, talked to other manufacturers and talked to some good friends - I kept coming back to the fact that there seems to be a gap in the market - not just for Jeep Gladiators... but all around... affordable, reliable, versatile storage systems. Could I somehow add value to that market?
Vans have upfitters, and trucks have upfitters too - but ALL those options are generally also very expensive, and they're usually very narrowly focused on work gear. It's hard to upfit a van for both work and camping, or work and cycling.
That's the cliff notes of where this started. So I retooled my garage, and the last few months I've been in there a lot, making, breaking, cutting, re-making.... I've been protoyping a system to solve this storage challenge, first of all for me, and second of all, for anyone else who thinks it would be useful.
The system will have a foundation - a "base" if you will. (I'm still working on names and naming conventions).
To take advantage of the overall system you will need to purchase that base. The base by itself will be extremely useful. Think of it as a souped of cargo rail, or rails. You can mount things to it and latch things to it.
The real win is that we will be developing a variety of "modules" that will mount/bolt/latch onto that foundation/base.
As an example - say you're a carpenter. You got our miter saw rig that lets you slide out your miter saw, cut and do your work. And you've also got a second slide out for tools and materials. Saturday morning comes, you can remove the work modules and transform into cycling mode, or camping mode. Maybe it's a slide on one side for your bike, and the other slide is a lockable drawer for your gear. Just one example. The point is, it can be what you want it to be - without breaking the bank.
You are correct, there are others doing things like this - BUT, we're focused on a couple of different goals:
1) Modular/Versatile. While initially we will only have the base and a few basic components, we'll be designing and building many other "modules." Some of those are our own ideas, others will surely come from customers. The benefit to this is you can purchase add-ons, take stuff off, put new stuff on, and change it as your needs/wants change. Moreover, it will be versatile enough to also work with other things that are already available - tonneau covers, expedition racks, etc. (things that go outside the box).
2) Simple. It will be simple to install, use, customize and maintain. Basic hand tools are all you will need. You will be able to customize it yourself, even without buying parts from us, if you so desire.
3) Affordable. Our target for the base is <$600. That makes it a much easier entry. You can use that base on it's own for a lot of things. We are also hyper-focused on the modules being affordable. Adding a slide, or drawers should not break the bank. There will probably be levels of modules: basic, pro, premium - something like that. So there may be some premium modules that are just more expensive because they have expensive components.
4) Reliable. You will be able to put this system through the ringer and it come back unscathed. And, if, by some crazy reason it did come back scathed, the simplicity and versatility would allow it to be repairable fairly quickly.
So... the base exists - it's in my truck bed as we speak.
It's in alpha. I'm beating up on it, and probably will for another few weeks. I've been dialing in the components, cost and fit. Right now it fits perfectly in a Rubicon with bed liner that had Cargo Rails. Over the next few weeks I'll need to confirm fit on other trim levels and bed configs.I've also already starting working on the initial 2-3 modules I'm expecting to launch with. The first few will be pretty generic/multi-use. But eventually we'll get to some very specific use cases like camping kitchens, bike holders, and things of that sort. Some even more complex, like what @Bobs85Reny is cooking up.
There will be a beta phase, I'll probably give a few bases away and/or sell them at the absolute lowest price I can to get some more feedback and make adjustments prior to launch. If that sounds interesting to you, please let me know. That will probably be our build process for most of the modules: alpha, beta, launch. And, honestly, the gladiator is only the beginning.
I'm excited about this - I am holding back a bit as I hone in the sales pitch. No, no pictures for now. I want to hear some opinions on the concept and not the aesthetic. There will be much more marketing in the next few weeks/months. Good quality pictures, mockups, and video. Lots of content to criticize - but for now, tell me your thoughts on this idea. I probably wrote a little more than necessary, but perhaps it helps give some context.
What do you think? Does this sound interesting? What kinds of questions come to mind? What are some of the storage/use challenges you have with your Gladiator? or maybe your other truck? or work van? or station wagon!?
What would you like to see? or not see? What do other companies do that you like? or that you hate?
What would you want to see to convince you that this would actually work and you should buy it?
Sponsored
. As I mentioned before, the base already exists, I'm refining it's versatility with some additional prototypes. Here is a super duper alpha/prelim version of the slide on top of the base. And of course, 
