Overland Drawer Build- DIY Camping Drawers- Pic Heavy Thread

I have to agree with @ChainsawCharlie

The slides are engineered to handle X lbs in a certain orientation. Maybe there are specific slides for your desired application, but the ones you have used so far would only be suited for the way they are used.

 

Thanks for the feedback. I failed to explain this concept well, so I went back to my trusty yellow binder paper blue prints. The sliders are vertical but resting right on the truck bed connected only by the base between the sliders and a rear board to anchor it and keep the sliders vertical. The rough plans might help visualize my idea. Usually sliders are screwed to a cabinet wall, these would be free standing. They are HEAVY and strong, think it would work?


Photo of the sliders, I think they could potentially hold the weight directly


Imagine the bed slide under the cooler in this orientation

 

Ok now I’m looking at another option for a slide. Thinking about using T-Track slides meant for table saw slide jigs with a rectangle T nut. So the T-Track would attach to the bed of the truck directly in between the grooves. The plywood slide would have 2 T Nuts that attach from the bottom and hooked into the T-Tracks. At the far end of the slide the T Nuts would anchor the slide as it extends out of the truck. With a little grease I think the T nuts would slide well in the track. I would put a thin plastic sheet on the bottom of the bed slide so that it slides easily against the composite bed, and that would take the load of the bed slide. The T Nuts would keep the bed slide from leaning out of the truck. A lot of words to describe a simple thing!

Mini T-Track slides

T Slot nuts

Dimensions

 

Damn. OP got some mad design and construction skills.

Looks nice! Very well laid out and executed.

 

Lee valley sells veritas t slot track and its cheaper i believe. Fyi.

 

Love seeing the competition GREAT work man!

 

very trick!

 

Very nice!

 

MTB question, is your son's bike a Trance jr 26? If so is it legit? How was it on Whistler? I'm thinking about one for my son and there is very little info out there. Also sweet Trance 2 and drawer system.

 

I got him the Stance which is basically a Trance junior. Components aren’t quite as nice but I figured he’d out grow it long before he wore it out. It did great at Whistler. I would catch up on the downhill straights purely based on that I have more mass, but I was surprised how well it did. He loves it. It’s 26er

 

Always position your "C" channel slider such that the long side of the profile (the back of the "C") is in line with the line of force. So, in a drawer system, the static force is from gravity pulling downward vertically, so you want the "C" channel set up vertically. You also need to use something to ensure that the back of the "C" stays parallel with the line of force - this is why the channel is secured to a plumb frame (the body of the drawer). If the back of the C is allowed to rotate away from vertical, then a force concentration will appear on the corner of the channel's profile. This will become a sheer or draw point - the point of mechanical failure. So, the frame that the channel is secured to must not twist easily.

Finally, note that bolting something into the end-grain of a 2x4 or the side of a piece of plywood is one of the least secure mounting methods. That's why you never see butt joints in a load bearing scenario. In your case, the screw going into the edge of the plywood is just going in between the various layers, and these layers will pull apart quite easily, so it really won't be able to hold much weight. You could increase the load capacity by putting thin strips of wood on the top and bottom, then bolting through the whole stack effectively clamping the edge together.

 

Really nice build! I enjoyed checking it out.

 

Thanks for the info!!

 

Really nice, starting to look at building some for mine.

 

Do it, it totally changed camping for me. Heading to Lake Tahoe CA tomorrow with it!

 

nice build!

 

Hats off to you my friend, this is awesome!

 

Thanks!

 

Great writeup! I have been brainstorming some ideas for a low-profile bed slide system for under my tonneau as well

 

Awsome, i am getting my diamondback cover soon and your project will be a great help to come up some thing like that. thanks a lot for sharing.