The Ultimate Shit-Box Shuffle: Making Room for Victory!

Hey everyone, Alex here!

You’ve probably heard me rambling on the podcast about my ‘baby shop’ upgrade. Look, it’s not quite the Taj Mahal that Josh is currently manifesting, but for my driveway and the DPV rigs, it’s going to be a total game-changer. No more wrenching in the mud for this guy!

The plan? A 40-foot shipping container with 9-foot walls, parked right next to the shop with a lean-to connecting them. That’s going to give me about 12 to 14 feet of covered storage. No more working on the Bug in the rain! But before the “Victory” of a dry workspace, I had to face the “Pain”—and by pain, I mean The Ultimate Shit-Box Shuffle.

The Great Relocation

To get the ground ready, I had to move… well, everything. We’re talking:

• The Bug: Needs to hit the driveway.
• Bob: Loaded him onto the trailer (Big Booty Judy handled the towing duties, of course).
• Grandpa Jack’s Truck: Just a little scoot out of the way.
• The Freechero: Loaded down for a scrap run.
• The Spare Parts: Two Crown Vic motors and a front clip that I’d basically just kicked off a trailer months ago.

The funniest part? Most of these run ish. It took a lot of battery charging and a little bit of faith, but we cleared the deck.

When in Doubt, Tow it with a Ranchero

The highlight of the “Grind” phase was definitely the Freechero. I had a load of timbers in my main truck and needed to move the dump trailer. Now, should a ’77 Ranchero be pulling a loaded dump trailer out of a hole? Probably not. But it’s got a Class 3 hitch, and like I always say: If it wasn’t meant to tow, why’d they put a hitch on it? She squatted a bit, but she pulled like a champ!

Precision Engineering (DPV Style)

Once my buddy Josh (the other Josh, the one with the fancy lasers) helped me level the pad with some heavy equipment and 10 yards of gravel, it was “Container Day.”

When the 40-footer arrived, it wasn’t exactly where I wanted it. It was a few feet off from being square with the shop. So, naturally, I grabbed my trusty (and very rusty) Handyman jack. After a few failed attempts involving a scrap pipe and a lot of friction, I remembered a trick: UHMW plastic sheets. We jacked that 40,000-lb beast up, slid the plastic underneath, and used the jack to “click” it into place.

It took some sweat and a few aggressive tool-drops, but we got it exactly 14 feet from the building. Perfect.

The Cost of the Dream

I want to show you guys that you don’t need a million bucks to upgrade your workspace. Here’s the damage so far:

• Timers: Free!
• Dirt Work: $500
• Gravel: $170
• 40ft Evergreen Container (delivered): $4,250
• Total: Under $5,000!

For under five grand, I’ve gained a massive amount of storage and a future workspace that isn’t at the mercy of the weather. Next up, Josh and I are going to tackle the lean-to and get some power run out there.

If you’re sitting on the sidelines because your “shop” is just a patch of grass, get out there and start shuffling your own shit-boxes. The victory is worth the grind!

Wheel it, Wreck it, Wrench it, Repeat!

— Alex