Veto Pro Pac Tool Bag Loadout - Tips/Suggestions?

[Fly Fishing Rick]

Recently got this SB-LD bag and love it. It's very well built, pretty well laid out, and holds a lot of stuff! I've been kinda playing around with how I have it set up and what I want to carry in it for the last couple days. The goal is to just have a small general use handy man/homeowner's bag that I can just grab and go with but still be able to complete most common jobs. The one empty side pocket will be filled by my non contact voltage detector when/if I find it haha. I also plan to get some kind of plier wrench as well. They're just kind of a pricey item and right now it's not that big of a deal to run out to my vehicle for a wrench if/when I need one, so they're kinda low on the list.
Any thoughts or suggestions? Examples of your loadouts? Would love to hear about it.



I like carrying my little Klein magnetic stud finder in a small pocket with the magnet facing outward to create a small "tool tray" to hold bits and hardware when I'm busy working on something.


This is the inside of the Wiha pouch I carry. Right now I'm just using it for a random assortment of bits, punches, and other small tools. It does seem like it's almost made for this tool bag tho. It fits perfectly and matches the colors almost perfectly. They even have similar "mottos" lol. "Wiha, Tools that work for you." and "Veto Pro Pac, Tool bags that work." haha.


This is everything that I am currently carrying in/on the bag with the exception of a few random driver bits in the front pocket. I do plan to swap out the standard 1/4" ratchet with something a bit more compact and bit-ready, like the Klein 65200. And the multimeter will also be replaced with a clamp meter as soon as I can justify the cost of purchasing a decent one.

 

[loganb]

Looks like a pretty solid kit...obviously you're the one using it so you're closest to what's needed/not. Couple things that stood out to me

-Stair gauge set in that lower corner? Looks like it...what are you using those for with that smaller speed square?
-Seems like a lot of pliers/cutters
-No hammer...not even a small one? What are you using the punches in the Wiha pouch with?

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

Looks like a pretty solid kit...obviously you're the one using it so you're closest to what's needed/not. Couple things that stood out to me

-Stair gauge set in that lower left corner? Looks like it...what are you using those for with that smaller speed square?
-Seems like a lot of pliers/cutters
-No hammer...not even a small one? What are you using the punches in the Wiha pouch with?

I keep 2 larger speed squares and a hammer and some other larger tools in a duffle in my car. The stair gauges are small and I didn't want to fish them out of that giant bag every time I use them. They're also brass and I'd kind of like to keep them nice and not all banged up lol. I could probably leave them at home since I rarely find occasion to use them anymore. Those and the gloves would be the first things to go if I suddenly needed more room for stuff. Those gauges used to be a part of daily life for me once upon a time, hard t just stop carrying them lol. I have considered adding a cat's paw to the bag, many have a small hammer style head on the back that would work fine for small stuff in a pinch and put some kind of hammer in the kit.

Edit to add: The stair gauges are on the right =P

 

[mikey03]

Check out Morgan’s maintenance in YouTube he does alot of load out vids and every Saturday does a guess the trade and shows fan loadouts, lots of veto bags

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

@mikey03 I came across a couple of his videos when I was deciding which bag to get. I'll have to check out some more of his stuff. Thanks!

 

[GeoBruin]

Electrical tape?

 

[KnurledNut]

Similar thread recently:
https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/the-general-use-tool-bag.552259/#post-11406508

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

@GeoBruin On the tape roll.

 

[KnurledNut]

I also plan to get some kind of plier wrench as well.

This will add a lot of capability to your kit. But it doesn’t replace an adjustable wrench. I keep both on the job, and find I grab the adjustable more often.

 

[GeoBruin]

@GeoBruin On the tape roll.

I thought I saw black duct tape, white Teflon (water), and yellow Teflon (gas) but it must be electrical tape in the yellow container?

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

I thought I saw black duct tape, white Teflon (water), and yellow Teflon (gas) but it must be electrical tape in the yellow container?

It's yellow electrical tape. It works as insulating tape and also lets me mark miscolored hot wires when I find them. I don't work with gas.

This will add a lot of capability to your kit. But it doesn’t replace an adjustable wrench. I keep both on the job, and find I grab the adjustable more often.

I've noticed them in many bags but I've never had a single good experience with one, so I never use them. I always go and get a wrench. Maybe I need to grab a more recent, higher quality one. Like one from Bahco.

 

[Dave455]

It’s always difficult to suggest what to add, as it’s too easy to add too much. Sometimes, the art is knowing what to leave out!

Looks like a pretty good set up to me.

A couple of considerations -

I find some sort of small saw handy. Not that I’m doing any sort of carpentry, but I often find myself needing to cut trunking, or maybe trim.

These Milwaukee saws (top) are light and inexpensive, but work well as they use reciprocating saw blades. If you find yourself needing to cut wood, consider something like the Silky (below).


I find some scissors or snips useful. These Engineer are basically heavy scissors.


I also find it useful to have a selection of 1/4” bits, as so often you never know what sort of screw you will encounter. I assume your Klein driver incorporates some, but make sure you have all the popular options (i.e. including Torx etc).

Depending on what you find yourself doing, maybe include some hex keys or hex bits too.

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

It’s always difficult to suggest what to add, as it’s too easy to add too much. Sometimes, the art is knowing what to leave out!

Looks like a pretty good set up to me.

A couple of considerations -

I find some sort of small saw handy. Not that I’m doing any sort of carpentry, but I often find myself needing to cut trunking, or maybe trim.

These Milwaukee saws (top) are light and inexpensive, but work well as they use reciprocating saw blades. If you find yourself needing to cut wood, consider something like the Silky (below).


I find some scissors or snips useful. These Engineer are basically heavy scissors.


I also find it useful to have a selection of 1/4” bits, as so often you never know what sort of screw you will encounter. I assume your Klein driver incorporates some, but make sure you have all the popular options (i.e. including Torx etc).

Depending on what you find yourself doing, maybe include some hex keys or hex bits too.

Love the saw idea! My bit pouch should have anything I may encounter in it except really small and really big stuff. So far I've gotten away with just a utility knife and the scissors built into my hemostats. The minute that changes I'll likely get something similar to yours. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[kbeefy]

Everyones bag is gonna be different, and you obviously know best what you need to carry.

My experience is primarily mechanical, general handyman is obviously different.

I used to work on an airport ramp alot. It was impractical to wheel out your entire toolbox, so most of us would use a bag to supplement our main box/cart.

One of my co-workers had a bag so big he needed a shoulder strap to carry it. He had everything in there.
Another co-worker used a wagon with oversized tires to haul 2 portable toolboxes around. He must have had 2x everything.

I used a small GI tool bag. It had the bare minimum, just barely what I thought I would most likely use on any job or every day, not what I needed for any possible job. If a job needed more tools, it typically also required parts and frequent references to the maintenance manual and/or logbook, which would require a return trip to the hangar anyways.

 

[Dave455]

Love the saw idea! My bit pouch should have anything I may encounter in it except really small and really big stuff. So far I've gotten away with just a utility knife and the scissors built into my hemostats. The minute that changes I'll likely get something similar to yours. Thanks for the suggestions.

I forgot your bit pouch. That looks well thought out.

Although, as you have included such a capable drill, it might be worth adding a few more drill bits? Maybe a few of the “multi material” bits?

I use these Bosch ones, and I find them surprisingly effective. Good for “handyman” type tasks.

Milwaukee offer similar.

 

[Fly Fishing Rick]

I forgot your bit pouch. That looks well thought out.

Although, as you have included such a capable drill, it might be worth adding a few more drill bits? Maybe a few of the “multi material” bits?

I use these Bosch ones, and I find them surprisingly effective. Good for “handyman” type tasks.

Milwaukee offer similar.

As soon as I run into a situation where I need one. I haven't had to drill into anything other than wood and plastic so far. Will grab a 1/2 or 3/4" paddle bit one of these days too, replace that heavy 1/2" bit with it.