What is a chuck box?
The short answer: A compact portable box that contains the many widely varied devices needed to cook, serve and cleanup your kitchen when camping. It should provide camping table space as well.
The long answer: It depends on whether you are a vacationing couple camping out of your car or a scout troop out for a long weekend campout or something in between. ( Like buying a car, there are many possibilities ;-). Thus, what you should have depends on your specific needs.
- How long are you usually out?
- How many people do you need to feed?
- Are you primitive camping or improved camping (camp ground)?
- What vehicle/s do you use?
However, all chuck-boxes should:
- store your camp kitchen.
- be lite weight for easy handling and transport.
- setup quickly to allow for access to contents.
- have drawers, shelves, racks, hooks and holders for quick access.
- provide working counter space.
Here is a detailed side by side look at BlueSkyKitchen.com Chuck Box Designs.
Many years of camping under a variety of situations have lead us to the options that follow. The BSK plans book has plans for all of these products.
( Please note that kits and 'some assembly required' products are now available for some versions!!! )
The Grubby One Chuck Box
Here is the gold standard in modern wooden chuck boxes. It is lite weight for easy transport, sets up in a heart beat to a sturdy work station and offers wonderful easy access to utility features like cup hooks, racks and drawers. This is what your typical family might have for their weekend camping trips.
( Kit and SAR products available again! )
The Grubby Two Patrol Box
The Grubby TwoScouter's and big group camping coordinators like all the counter space and the two box storage capacity of the Grubby Two design. Contents are easily accessible from either side allowing for multiple cooks as well.
The Work-Top Box Camp Table
This one gives you generic storage for those large, odd size camping necessities like cast iron, pots and pans. It also gives you that counter height table top when setup.
The Basic Work-Top has no shelves while the Extended Box does. Your canoe and boater campers find this box to be particularly well suited for their needs.
( Basic Work-Top (SAR) available again. )
The Basic Mini-Grub Vacation Box
A smaller version of a Grubby One but holds almost as much kitchen gear. It can be setup on a table top or ordered with a stand for stand alone use. Like a Grubby One, it will also store a standard stove between the box and the optional stand.
It's small profile gives it the ability to store in the trunk of a car which makes it ideal for camping vacations.
( SAR versions available again . )
The Camp Kitchen Mates Camp Kitchen
Two box design that gives you all the storage and work surfaces of a Grubby one and a basic Work-Top box. This is well suited for primitive campers who spend more than a few days out at a time.
( Plans only - kit and SAR coming soon. )
