In my business, the most important tool beside nerves of steel and a long stick is a quality box on the truck. You see, I'm a herper; you know, one of those freaks that go out into the hills to catch snakes and lizards. The actual title is Herpetologist, but those of us in the industry just call ourselves herpers. I'm in the process of taking my business fulltime and I need to find a proper box to carry my ?cargo.?

Now, a truck toolbox may not seem like a traditional reptile receptacle, but they can literally save your life. You see, when you got one or two pit vipers stuck in a canvas sack, you gotta keep those things contained. Some folks use a cage, but that draws all kinds of undue attention to your rig?with a cage full of snakes and all. So I just pack those babies in my toolbox where they stay safe and sound ?till I get back to the lab.

Since my money's made by selling herps to zoos, labs and scientists, I want my rig to look good. The last thing the scientific community wants to deal with is some hillbilly in a jalopy out running snakes like moonshine. So, I started by purchasing a brand new Dodge 3500 diesel rig. This thing'll go anywhere and it looks killer. My old rig had a wooden, home-built eyesore that passed as a container, so I'm gonna install one of those diamond-plate beauties on the new rig. The question is what brand?

When I started looking for a new box, I quickly discovered that there are hundreds of brands. After scouring the net and talking to the maintenance crew at the zoo, I narrowed it down to 2 brands?Delta and Deflecta-Shield. Both companies make beautiful boxes in every configuration imaginable. I'm going for one that runs along the side of the bed, since they're a lot easier to access. After all, I don't want to blindly fish my arm around in a box full of rattlers.

Delta seems to be the most recognizable brand around. The box I'd choose is called the Delta Pro Aluminum Innerside Toolbox and it cost around 350 bucks for the aluminum finish. At 5 feet long it'll fit my Ram perfectly, not to mention a couple of 6-8 foot herps. When I'm not hauling precious cargo the box will hold my gear, including my 48 inch snake stick. It also has an easy push-button lock, so when I'm wrestling with a sack o? serpents I can get that baby open in a jiffy.

The Deflecta-Shield that caught my eye is the Deflecta-Shield Challenger Side Mount Truck Toolbox. This one also comes in a bright-aluminum diamond-plate finish. The 5 footer costs just under 400 bones and has a foam-injected lid. This'll come in real handy to keep the herps cool when the mercury's up. The latches work with steel paddles rather than the buttons Delta uses, which could get a little hairy with a python wrapped around my arm.

Both brands build beautiful boxes and it's hard to find much difference. In the end though, I decided to go with the Delta box. I'll save 50 smackers and it has a longer warranty. The Deflecta-Shields have a 1-year warranty, while the Delta's covered for 3 whole years. Those are really the only reasons I went with one over the other. Both boxes would certainly meet my snaky needs so it just came down to a matter of cash?for 50 bucks I gotta catch a lot herps.