What Do You Keep In Your Car?

Jordan Scott Price

Jordan Scott Price

Veteran
This relates to any production job -

What do you always bring to set in your car?

I just picked up an '08 Xterra, and I'm configuring it to my needs right now for hauling camera and lighting equipment. Right now my shopping list looks like...

  • 300W 2 x AC Outlet DC Inverter (for cigarette lighters) to power small units
  • 2,500 Watt DC Inverter (direct connection to battery) to power small lights in lieu of a gennie
  • Ratchet straps
  • Black and Decker Portable Tire Inflator and Jumpstarter - which I already own and have used to jump more cars than I can remember on set this last year
  • First Aid Kit
  • I have a few heavy-duty furney pads and carabiners on order that I'm going to use to blanket the back of the Xterra to keep the plastic and windows from getting damage by equipment, especially if it shuffles in transit. I'll grommet the pads on a few ends, hook in the carabiners, and secure them to the convenient hooks in the ceiling.
  • I don't have a smartphone with GPS, so I will likely get a Garmin or something - I'll save paper by not having to print out Google Maps directions for every shoot, and I can lead a caravan, if needed
  • High-power LED flashlight in the glovebox
  • Some kind of roof rack system - like this

So what has been something you always bring and keep in your car? Something that has saved you or someone else on set a lot of headache? Something that helps in transporting/storing your equipment?
 
umbrellas x 4
slime....puncture repair in a can
2 x fire extinguisher
cold pack...rain coat, hat, gloves etc
hot pack....hat, sunscreen, fly repellent etc
first aid kit....level 3
water
jumper leads
12 volt solar battery charger panel
40 cb radio
safety vest
led torch
and a whole lot of common sense..........
 
ian dart said:
and a whole lot of common sense..........
Click to expand...

I found some cheap Chinese made "Common Sense" on eBay... Do you think that will work?!!! :2vrolijk_08:

Joking aside I also like to have:
towels, shop rags or at least paper towels and some cleaning supplies, like glass cleaner, at least.
A comfort kit, with condiments (in individual packs), salt and pepper, paper plates, plastic silverware, plastic cups, paper napkins, zip lock storage bags (Gallon size), plastic garbage bags, toilet paper, hand wipes/sanitizer, bar soap. Some basic OTC meds,like Tums, Motrin (or the like), and, depending on the season, sunblock, bug repellent, chapstick, (As noted above).
Blankets (For warmth)
a full change of clothes and
A pretty well stocked tool box with basic hand tools, in addition to the great suggestions above.
 
No one carries flares anymore.? They are cheap and important, especially if your car conks out on a blind curve or a highway where only occasional cars come screaming by.
 
oh yes...forgot the tool kit.

flares would be a good idea but to much risk in southern australia in starting a bush fire. the locals would lynch you from
a sour apple tree if you start one.

my favourite is the slime....when i get a puncture i have to empty the van just to get to the spare and jack out.

two minutes and the tyre is inflated and back on the road.

i like the idea of all the condiments....may have to stock up. i carry water and jerky but it can get monotonous.

cheers

oh ........the cheap chinese common sense is poor quality. better to get the name band. ha ha
 
ian dart said:
oh yes...forgot the tool kit.

flares would be a good idea but to much risk in southern australia in starting a bush fire. the locals would lynch you from
a sour apple tree if you start one.

my favourite is the slime....when i get a puncture i have to empty the van just to get to the spare and jack out.

two minutes and the tyre is inflated and back on the road.

i like the idea of all the condiments....may have to stock up. i carry water and jerky but it can get monotonous.

cheers

oh ........the cheap chinese common sense is poor quality. better to get the name band. ha ha
Click to expand...

+1
 
I never would have thought of bringing a "comfort kit," David. That's genius. I've been on some sets with rather poorly-supplied crafty.

I usually bring a small backpack with a toiletry kit, a change of everything (jeans, socks, shirt, shoes), a light work jacket, power bars, apples (bananas never survive), and a bottle of water. Sometimes I bring jerky, but good jerky is expensive and power bars are cheap ($1 each). Both take strong jaws, though :P

Flares definitely sound like a good idea. I haven't been in a situation where I've needed them yet, but I'd rather have them just in case.

The tire slime sounds like more than a must-have, though! I would have to completely unload the Xterra, too, to get to the jack.

I'm also thinking of converting the SUV into a mobile workstation, where my little DIT kit would sit in the front seat, powered by an inverter; these gel packs would hang from the rear passenger doors - one for diff/ND and one for color gels; some specialty or bulky tools would live in the toolbox on the roof rack (more necessary stuff in my duffel on set or on my belt); and I think I might attach some sheets to the sides of the rear hatch, weighing the ends down with bean bags, so I'd have an awning in the back, where we could have a video village, if needed - great for sunny outdoor shoots in Texas - and it would all fold up nicely.

I'm definitely loving the SUV. I've gone too long packing everything into an Avalon. If only the gas mileage were as good...
 
Flares are a fast and cheap way to let speeding cars behind your stalled vehicle know that your car is sitting in their lane about 5 seconds in front of them. Even if you use your flashers or leave your lights on, you'd be surprised how the illusion from behind is that the car up ahead is not, in fact, stopped dead in the road. I have used them several times. One of them costs a buck. I keep them under the front seat and have, a couple of times, tossed one out the window to folks I've sped by (and almost hit).
 
Finnegan said:
Where the hell are you people driving where you need flares?
Click to expand...

Where I live, I could count on two hands the number of shoots I've been on in the last 6 months where, had my car broken down, I would have needed them.

I've had shoots in the heart of Dallas in the same building they used to shoot the original TV show Dallas, and I've had shoots 2 hours from civilization.

Might be more crowded where you live. You could drive 6 hours in any direction from my house and still be in Texas...
 
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