Tack Trunks

[Miss_Motivation]

Lots of great suggestions here. I live in the LA area and there are almost always Phoenix-style trunks for sale on Craigslist or FB Marketplace. Right now there are a half-dozen or more on Marketplace, ranging in price from $150 for a chonked-up but sound and fine-with-a-cover wooden one to a looks-new Phoenix for $550.

It would cost a fortune to have one crated and shipped, but just a reminder that they can be found out and about if you keep an eye on the ads and are patient. I have four I don’t use but just haven’t bothered to list them yet. And yes, I did the cover-to-match thing for different barns and they always looked just fine.

I wish the beautiful ones weren’t quite so heavy. It was a wonderful day when I got my first tack trunk, kind of like getting your first custom boots!

[RatWrangler]

I have to laugh as a riding friend and I were just talking about this. If you go to a hunter show you see all the $$$ fancy monogram trunks all down the aisles. Go to a dressage show and it’s Husky and DeWalt trunks as far as you can see, $59.99 at Home Depot!.

[Peggy]

Wonder if you could use UShip or get one of the haulers to take it with a load of horses.

[Miss_Motivation]

Good ideas- thank you Peggy!

It seems like it’s become much harder to get things shipped… and big empty boxes are pricey- but where there’s a will (or a #HorseGirl) there’s a way!

I used to have good luck shipping ridiculous items via Greyhound, too… the price was great if you weren’t in a hurry. I wonder if they still offer freight service?

[blondewithchrome]

I have a second hand Phoenix West trunk Not in my barns colors! I got a new front panel with my monogram for $180 and then got the same Clothes Horse cover everyone else has in my barns colors. Absolutely worth buying second hand especially if the price is right - I paid $150 for my trunk. I say get the trunk you like and is in budget and get the cover in the barn colors!

[Smiles]

Facebook market place you maybe able to snag a nice wood or Warner’s/west tack trunk for cheap. I’ve seen them as cheap as $50. Then get the cover.

[greysfordays]

Not just the dressage riders! I’ve heard that’s all Beezie and many other big name riders use. If you look at some of the Stephex grooms instagram, they were only packing Stanleys. They have a few tack lockers, but the vast majority are Stanleys. I can’t think of a more posh barn, I had a beautiful latte in their lounge when I went to try horses. If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me! They are so practical.

[TheDBYC]

And eventers. And commercial carriage companies. And a lot of hunter/jumpers now, too. Packing up child & pony to leave state finals, I saw several parents staring longingly as I effortlessly wheeled our Stanley out to the trailer & lifted it on all by my 118 lbs self. Meanwhile, they needed 2-3 people to heave their wooden trucks.

“I be rollin’ and the haters be hatin!”

[Tha_Ridge]

Someone on Facebook highly recommended this person as a source of covers for the Stanley/Husky boxes: https://www.etsy.com/listing/762222971/tack-trunk-cover-for-stanley-husky-other. They look quite nice and you can’t beat the price!

[Spudsmyguy]

@touchstone

For those of you considering the Stanley/custom cover combo (I realize this may not be the OP), one design suggestion: My cover has a slot for the retractable handle, so I can wheel the trunk around without taking the cover off. Mine is covered with a velcro flap, but a zipper might work too.

Did you have to request that when you ordered it? About how much was the cover?

[touchstone]

@Spudsmyguy

Did you have to request that when you ordered it? About how much was the cover?

For the vendor I used, it was included as part of their standard Stanley pattern. I bought it a few years ago, but was around $150 then.

[four2farm]

My barn does not even allow the wood trunks, it is the rolling Stanley or DeWalt with wheels and handles. Too many expensive wood trucks were damaged, too heavy to load and they make aisle cleaning difficult. Those $59.99 toolboxes solve all of those problems. I have a Stanley that I added a padded seat on, has a custom monogram cover and came already personalized…convenient that my last name is Stanley.

[theinstigator]

Just an FYI for everyone - I shipped a large wood Phoenix West tack trunk from Washington State to Upstate NY on Greyhound for $120 in 2018.

[Spudsmyguy]

@RatWrangler

I have to laugh as a riding friend and I were just talking about this. If you go to a hunter show you see all the $$$ fancy monogram trunks all down the aisles. Go to a dressage show and it’s Husky and DeWalt trunks as far as you can see, $59.99 at Home Depot!.

I’ve got two of them. Just was looking on Ebay and some company called Zoro has the exact trunk - 43" x 22" x 20" made by Horseman’s Pride for $419.00, I guess the fact that it’s made by Horseman’s Pride and comes in several decorator colors makes it worth the extra $359.00. The branded Stanley trunks on ebay are over $100.00. There’s a sucker born every minute.

[Renn_aissance]

@Spudsmyguy

The branded Stanley trunks on ebay are over $100.00. There’s a sucker born every minute.

Yes. This is how the seller is offering them with “free” shipping- the shipping is bundled into the price.

I love my bandage lid too much to switch to a Stanley roller, but if they start making one with that feature, I may just have to sell my big Phoenix West wooden trunk.

[four2farm]

@Renn_aissance

love my bandage lid too much to switch to a Stanley roller, but if they start making one with that feature, I may just have to sell my big Phoenix West wooden trunk.

That’s my next upgrade to my Stanley, net on one side and bandage and boot holders on the other. Everytime I pull out the handle and drag it somewhere, I fall more in love. It just rolls up the horse trailer ramp. The handle is also a very handy towel rack, lol

I still have my big wood trunk in my tack room. It is filled with mothballs and memories ( like the monogrammed saddle pad I got for my 10th birthday) I put it on casters but even then it only rolls well on flat floors. It is nice to no longer worry about rain, flooding or the occasional horse nibble. The Stanley just does it better, not nearly as handsome but so much more durable.

[clanter]

@theinstigator

Just an FYI for everyone - I shipped a large wood Phoenix West tack trunk from Washington State to Upstate NY on Greyhound for $120 in 2018.

Fastenal will do store to store shipping nationwide, they well ship on their trucks point to point

[Sing_Mia_Song]

The handle also makes a saddle rack while tacking up!

I have a big PW and one of the medium Dover trunks with the plexiglass in my basement, but it’s the Husky trunk that travels!

[ZuzusPetals]

The used trunk I’m considering has the seller’s name, etc. on the panels. Can those panels be flipped? That is: Can you pry off the metal framing, slip out the plexi or vinyl or whatever it is, turn it it to the other side, slip it back in place and reattach the metal strips?

[vxf111]

No but you can buy replacement vinyl panels and/put a car wrap over them.