To call the Flambeau® 8050 Brush Guard a tackle box would be like calling King Kong a monkey. This beefy, yet portable tackle locker is loaded with customizing features and storage options that allow you to tailor the unit to your specific fishing applications.

There are two side doors on the top. One covers a four-compartment area that houses smaller items you may need quickly. I use this area to hold a couple of spare line spools, my line clippers, a pocketknife and some terminal tackle items. The top door on the other side opens to reveal a larger and deeper storage area with movable dividers that's part of what I call the "top story" of this monument to tackle organization. There are hook-keeping notches on the tops of the dividers that are ideal for hanging my spoons and wrapping my pre-rigged snells around.

The upper interior compartment with hold as many as five 7" x 4-1/8" x 1-1/2" storage boxes, and my 8050 Brush Guard came with two of them. I added three more, giving me ample storage for everything from hooks of varying sizes to jigheads, snap swivels, small plastics, jigs and sinkers. Even with the dividers and five storage boxes there remained enough room for some extra spools of line and a few bags of Powerbait.

This upper section sits atop the lower two thirds of the unit where there are three large storage boxes – two 6004R Tuff 'Tainers for jigs, soft plastics and hard baits, plus one 7003R Tuff 'Tainer for bulkier lures and other large items. There is enough room in these three containers for all of my artificial lures, a fillet knife, a stringer and other odds and ends I like to have with me. Each of the larger Tuff 'Tainers came with blue dividers that allowed me to customize the size of each compartment. There were even a few leftovers should I decide to reconfigure the container interiors.

A feature that I really like is the tool-holder holes on the left and right outer edges of the top's exterior. This brilliant design lets me store my pliers, line cutter, mouth spreader and Fish Grip Fish Holder on the outside of the box. It's incredibly convenient to have access to these handy tools almost instantaneously whenever I need one.

I've owned several plastic tackle boxes and lure storage boxes in the past, and one problem I had with some of them was the tendency for metal stored inside them to rust over time. That won't be happening for many years with my Flambeau 8050 and the storage boxes it holds. They're outfitted with Flambeau's patented ZeRust® corrosion resistance. ZeRust polymer emits a harmless, odorless vapor that fills the inside of the tackle box to form a protective layer around lures and other tackle. Simply shake excess water and moisture off your lures before returning them to a ZeRust plastic box and enjoy at least five years of corrosion protection.

This is not a small, lightweight storage locker for fishing gear. It's a big unit and has substantial heft when it's filled up. It's made for boat and shore fishing, but you wouldn't want to pack it over a mountain pass to a remote lake. I emptied the contents of three other tackle boxes I owned to fill my new 8050 Brush Guard, which measures 21"W x 12.25"D x 14.50"H. But any disadvantage of size and weight is offset by its incredible amount of storage space and convenience features.

For more information about how you can upgrade your tackle storage with a Flambeau 8050 Brush Guard, click the Flambeau® 8050 Brush Guard link at the top of this article, check out the tackle storage section of your Cabela's catalog or ask to see one at your nearest Cabela's retail store.