SkyRat

Well...
I have been contemplating this for about a year. We do a ton of camping out of the 4Runner on wheeling and sight seeing trips. We used to use an inflatable mattress to bring the sleeping level above the wheel wells so that we could be comfortable with 2 across. After looking at Lee's design (the best I had seen) and some others (including some way expensive imports), I finally got around to building my own.

One thing I wanted that I had not seen in any other design was the ability to use this with the truck in the Seat 5 configuration, then adapt to a Sleeping Platform with the second row of seats folded down.

Originally I wanted to scribe the Platform Top to fit tightly inside the rear of the truck. But, after making a template I found that if I did it this way, I would have to remove the top (or fold it somehow) to remove the unit (since the rear hatch width is way less than the width across the inside of the cargo area). Since I also wanted to be able to remove and reinstall easily, and since I wanted to have the ability to access the storage door at the rear of the passenger side compartment, a tight fitting top idea was tossed.

I also wanted the Platform to be as low as possible while still allowing coverage across the tops of the wheel wells. The rear of the driver's side wheel well is much higher than the passenger side (due to the fuel filler). So, I scribed the top around the fuel filler portion to keep from pushing the whole platform approximately 2" higher. I left the carpet to overhang the scribed cut out to form a tight seal around that area, also since I am no upholsterer, that was easier.

Originally I also wanted full length drawers instead of drawers and a cubby. The problem here was economics. While I could find 36" Full Ext. Slides, they were about 3-4 times more expensive than 28" - 30" Slides. If I was going to have a cubby, I did not want one that was only 6" wide, so I went with 28" to produce a cubby large enough to actually use. I also lined the bottom of the drawers and cubby with rubber matting to quiet the whole affair and keep stuff from sliding around.

The other real issue design wise was how to make an extension for the sleeping platform. Well, originally I was going to make a hinged piece that would simply fold down. But, because of the cubby and the hinge there already, I felt that the 2" strip of the top would not support these two hinged pieces with all the force they can muster. Also, keeping the extra piece in the back (attached by hinges) all the time would make the rear cargo area tougher to use. I decided to make it removable. I cut a 45 degree bevel on the front of the main top, and a corresponding 45 degree bevel on the rear of the extension. Then I used draw catches (sort of like you see on the lid of a tool box) to pull the bevel of the extension tightly to the main top piece. The extension is held under the main top by the bevel, and a hinged leg drops down to support the front end of the extension.

Finally I routed recesses in the tops for the cargo tie downs and covered the whole lid with some outdoor carpet adhesive then rubber backed indoor outdoor carpet.

General Info:
2- 28" Full Ext. 110# Capacity Removable Drawers
w/ Galvanized Paddle Latch Handles & Multi Height, Adjustable Dividers
1- 40" Wide Flush Cubby w/ Webbing Handle & Piano Hinge
6- Galvanized Recessed Tie Downs
4- Turnbuckles attaching Cargo Storage via Eye-Bolts and Tee Nuts
1- Add on Extension for Sleeping Conversion
1- Power Inverter
Indoor / Outdoor Carpet

Overall I am very, very pleased and will take it out for a test camping trip next week. I will let you know how it goes.

Okay, here are the pics...
The basic carcass with drawers


With the rear seats up



Sleeping Platform Mode



All the storage open



Drawers



Way Cool Paddle Latch



A look into the cubby



Inverter mounting detail



Oh, Yeah...here is the front of the unit so you can see the turnbuckle and ext. mount.



:bounce2:
EDIT: Re-hosted the pics...

jacksonpt

Looks good. I did something very similar. Initially I wanted some place to store my gear, but it's turn into a place to put more crap.

If you remove the bottom half (the part you sit on) of the rear seats, you get another 4 inches or so of length for your bed. Depending on your height, it may make all the difference in the world - I know it did for me.

SkyRat

Whenever camping with only two people, I always remove the bottom cushion for sleeping. I also take the front seats and move them forward to gain almost a foot of open space there. But, I wanted to fit the extension with the seat bottoms in so I can still sleep back there even if I am taking an extra passenger.

transalper

Very well done! I love all the details. The tie-downs are very nice.

What slides did you use?

User 051420

That is very, very, very cool! Well done! Have any idea how much it weighs?

mt_goat

Yes very nice!

JoKEpLaYeR

Very nice!

Do you have the dimensions anywhere so we can see them? Do you have pictures of how the part that fits over the rear seats attaches with these toolbox type latches? I love the design and the quality of the work!

Tacoma Dude

That's awesome work George!
The paddle latches are definitely awesome, the adjustable compartments is awesome too.
The definitely looks like a professional job

grams72

me like

COYOTA $x$

This is indeed reference material. Great job and thanks for sharing !

payyourtoll

nice work, thanks for posting the specifics

RTdawgs

I would this one is by far the best cargo storage unit ive ever seen. it looks durable, efficient and the bed platform design sounds great.

good work.

TStango

Very impressive. How does the forward floor panel mount on the folded seat backs? Is it just placed there? It seems to really fit nicely together with the rearward panel and everything is level.

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

914runner

Lookin good!

Bob_98SR5

george,

awesome work! wouldn't expect anything less from your mind and hands

bob

Ranski

DITTO!

Very NICE set-up!

I started looking into doing this as well until I found out the price for the slides. I'd be curious as to what weight rating you went with. The ones I was looking at were gonna run in the $130/pair +/-.

Ken

Very nice reference material indeed!

I would like to see the support for the front piece as well; also thinking about an extension for the extension for use with or w/o the rear seat cushions...

2001Millrunner

What the hell is that Camry doing in your avatar? nice flex how much lift did you get on that thing?.

JoKEpLaYeR

I took it to Hollister and had some fun with it last week! But, a 3" body lift and some 33" tires sure do help the poor FWD Camry..... I swear a vehicle has nothing to do with how well someone can wheel, it's all about driver skill.

Darren

VERY nice, George. A few days later than I expected, but you made it! This is one of the nicest, if not the nicest, storage setups that I've seen. Very clean. If I ever feel that I want to go with something like this, I will be blantantly copying everything you have here! Looks like this will come in handy and glad you like it. Nice job.

shazaam

so let me just go ahead and say what everyone here is thinking. Do you have the drawings, dimensions, etc for this? So that I can steal your design more easily

sschaefer3

Is that Baltic plywood?

I love that stuff.

Bluedog

Great work. I want one.

dragr1

iTrader: (3)

Looks good, similar to the one I built. I want to add the "bed" attachment to mine next.

Birdman

Very nice indeed! I had ruled this out but now you have me thinking........

SkyRat

Thanks all!

Transalper: I used KV 8500's 28" Long. They are great. You mount a channel on the drawer and it locks into the case mounted slides. They easily remove by pressing a plastic lock. Here is the link to the MFG website for the product. KV 8500

Gapguy: The whole thing weighs less than 100 pounds. I take the drawers out to mount it in there easily by myself.

Jokeplayer: I do have some sketches, Perhaps I will take a pic of them or scan them. I will also post some additional pics.

TStango: I will post some pics showing the support for the extension. It is just a piece of plywood that is attached with a piano hinge. The piece is beveled so the piece folds down beyond 90 degrees so that there is no chance of it folding while there is weight on it.

Ranski: The slides (as mentioned above) are KV8500's. They are 150# class, but I think the 28" version is good for 110# at 3/4 extension. As mentioned these were much cheaper than the extra heavy duty telescoping versions that were in the range you mentioned. Mine cost me $23 per set from Siggia Hardware (a wholesale cabinet hardware place in the SFV).

Darren: Sorry, it took longer than I thought too. When I hinted in the other thread that I was just about finished, I had ordered the paddle latches. One week later I called them and though they were in stock they had not shipped yet. Once they came I took one day to finish the project.


sdastg1: I will try and post pics of my sketches. I have some cutting list stuff too if I can find it. My garage is destroyed because of simutaneous projects around here.

Steve: There is some Baltic Birch plywood here, I had some 9 ply (nominal 1/2") that I used for the drawer bottoms and backs. Just about everything else is 23/32" (nominal 3/4") ACX ply from Home Depot @ $36 per sheet.

Hopefully I can get the other info and pics up tomorrow...
Thanks for the encouragement.

Mad Chemist

Looks great! Just for reference, here's the thread to the one I built a couple years ago:
https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f2/my-cargo-box-finished-almost-pics-9985/
To keep the overal price down, I shied away from using sliders, and just used wood on wood- the drawers won't slide out by themselves and wack you in the gut if you're parked uphill. Definitely the best mod I did, and the one I get the most comments on. It'd almost be worth starting a "cargo box" thread with all the different designs so people could see what a few of us have down.

Congrats!

SkyRat

None of the measurements in the designs below are final. They are all estimations on paper and do not account for actual material (vs. nominal material) thickness. Take this for what it was, brainstorming.

Here is the preliminary sketch of the space and the idea.



Here are some actual measurements.
]


Better concept, though the support for the extension changed and this had a design effect on the area between the drawers.



Some more measurements.
]



Also, some details on the extension.


The draw catch




The extension leg


If it looks like I will be using this without more than one passenger I may make another extension that is longer to be used exclusively without the rear seat bottoms.

EDIT: I now use the long extension exclusively. Taking out the rear seat bottoms. The sleeping area is now much longer and a comfortable 6'3" or so, with even more room if I decide to move the front seats forward while sleeping.

lunatic14r

I made something very close to that mine has only 1 draw and a bigger dead storage in the back. For my bed a took a piece of 3/4 plywood overlap the dead storage by 6in and under the wood i put a 1in wide strip of wood with 2 hooks to keep it from moving. up front i bought some threaded pipe from home depot and these plates that get screwed to the wood all i do is set it up screw the pipe in to the plates which seat on the floor right behind the pass and driver seat throw some foam pad down and go night night