Choice of materials for drawer system?

[Sasquatch Overland]

With everything being so expensive these days, I have been looking at different options for building a drawer and storage system for the back of my overlanding SUV.
I am rolling in a big Toyota Sequoia, and from what I have found, there do not seem to be many companies making ready made storage systems for the later model Sequoias.
Because of that, I am leaning toward building something myself that fits my setup, my gear, and how I actually use the vehicle.

Right now, I am thinking about using a lightweight plywood type of material that is readily available locally.
I want something strong enough to handle camping gear, tools, recovery equipment, kitchen supplies, and the usual overlanding clutter,
but I also do not want to add a ridiculous amount of weight to the back of the SUV.
The plan is to design the system so it bolts down using the factory anchor points.
That way I can avoid drilling unnecessary holes, keep the install cleaner, and still be able to remove the whole system later if I need to return the vehicle closer to stock for resale.

I know there are a million ways to build something like this. Some people go with Baltic birch,
some use regular cabinet grade plywood, some use aluminum extrusion, some use HDPE, and some just build a simple platform and call it good.
I am mostly trying to find the best balance between strength, weight, cost, availability, and ease of working with the material.

For those of you who have built your own rear drawer or storage setup, what material did you use and would you use it again?

A few things I am curious about:

What thickness of plywood or panel material worked best for you?
Did you regret going too heavy or too light?
What did you use for drawer slides, latches, tie downs, or hardware?
Did you carpet, paint, seal, or bedline the finished system?
Any lessons learned after actually using it on trips?

I am not trying to overcomplicate it, but I would like to build something solid,
removable, and practical that will hold up to real trail use. Curious to hear what has worked for everyone else.

 

[grubworm]

ive built several...back of my Tundra, back of wife's jeep, inside converted cargo trailer, etc...
the pic shown is a 6' deck system I built for the Tundra using 3/4 birch plywood (Home Depot version, not a furniture grade plywood with more veneer layers) and I went with full 6 foot slides, which cost more than all the other components combined. the weight is insane, so I made the system into two separate pieces so I could take it out by myself.
when not camping, I use the deck system to carry tools and stuff like that, so I really need it to be robust...3/4 plywood is definite overkill, but it works for me. I also fiberglassed the top of the boxes because other than having a soft mattress on top of them...I also carry bags of concrete, bricks, metal, etc and the fiberglass top is the only thing durable enough. I tried 2 part epoxy and plastic sheet veneer, but they didn't hold up to the abuse.

for the sequoia, similar to the jeep design, I would go with 1/2 plywood and make it modular. maybe start with a frame that is custom made to fit exactly like you want with re-enforced areas to mount your tie downs. for assembly, I would use a good construction grade polyurethane adhesive like Gorilla construction adhesive found at Lowes, Home Depot and a cabinet mounting screw that is skinny with a big head. the skinny shank wont split the plywood and the wide head has really good holding power for something that will be bouncing around a lot. Pilot the top piece of plywood so that the screw doesn't split the plywood since you will be working so close to the edge. with plywood, you will be attaching to the end grain of the plywood, so that is why I like the polyurethane adhesive with the cabinet screws. for the frame, you could go with solid oak 1x3 or similar or just cut strips of plywood and use that to make your frame...both are good options and plywood one is a bit cheaper. then I would make "boxes" that fit in the frame. maybe do a slide out for the stove with a slide out under that for a table to work off of while cooking. go on Pinterest and look at some of the designs on there...lots of good ideas you can combine to fit your exact needs.

1/2 birch is fine. good price wise and is strong and durable and about as lightweight as you're going to get without getting into a foam laminate.
I like the frame with modular inserts so that you can remove parts and make changes without having to redo everything. you can also use aluminium diamond plate for the top...looks good and is very durable.

for me, the design was easy...go as big as possible and as strong as possible. I've had the deck system for 4-5 years and have done desert camping with it along with using it for a lot of construction work carrying tools and materials. I built it like a tank and spent the extra money on the big slides and haven't regretted a thing. it gets used daily and turned out to be an investment for me.

I did a build out for my cargo trailer and it has a good bit of modular design and maybe a few good ideas that you can use. here is the link to the build thread I posted on here...modular build out

 

[Sasquatch Overland]

ive built several...back of my Tundra, back of wife's jeep, inside converted cargo trailer, etc...
the pic shown is a 6' deck system I built for the Tundra using 3/4 birch plywood (Home Depot version, not a furniture grade plywood with more veneer layers) and I went with full 6 foot slides, which cost more than all the other components combined. the weight is insane, so I made the system into two separate pieces so I could take it out by myself.
when not camping, I use the deck system to carry tools and stuff like that, so I really need it to be robust...3/4 plywood is definite overkill, but it works for me. I also fiberglassed the top of the boxes because other than having a soft mattress on top of them...I also carry bags of concrete, bricks, metal, etc and the fiberglass top is the only thing durable enough. I tried 2 part epoxy and plastic sheet veneer, but they didn't hold up to the abuse.

for the sequoia, similar to the jeep design, I would go with 1/2 plywood and make it modular. maybe start with a frame that is custom made to fit exactly like you want with re-enforced areas to mount your tie downs. for assembly, I would use a good construction grade polyurethane adhesive like Gorilla construction adhesive found at Lowes, Home Depot and a cabinet mounting screw that is skinny with a big head. the skinny shank wont split the plywood and the wide head has really good holding power for something that will be bouncing around a lot. Pilot the top piece of plywood so that the screw doesn't split the plywood since you will be working so close to the edge. with plywood, you will be attaching to the end grain of the plywood, so that is why I like the polyurethane adhesive with the cabinet screws. for the frame, you could go with solid oak 1x3 or similar or just cut strips of plywood and use that to make your frame...both are good options and plywood one is a bit cheaper. then I would make "boxes" that fit in the frame. maybe do a slide out for the stove with a slide out under that for a table to work off of while cooking. go on Pinterest and look at some of the designs on there...lots of good ideas you can combine to fit your exact needs.

1/2 birch is fine. good price wise and is strong and durable and about as lightweight as you're going to get without getting into a foam laminate.
I like the frame with modular inserts so that you can remove parts and make changes without having to redo everything. you can also use aluminium diamond plate for the top...looks good and is very durable.

for me, the design was easy...go as big as possible and as strong as possible. I've had the deck system for 4-5 years and have done desert camping with it along with using it for a lot of construction work carrying tools and materials. I built it like a tank and spent the extra money on the big slides and haven't regretted a thing. it gets used daily and turned out to be an investment for me.

I did a build out for my cargo trailer and it has a good bit of modular design and maybe a few good ideas that you can use. here is the link to the build thread I posted on here...modular build out


View attachment 299827

This is amazing, lots of good details. Thank you for posting. Wish I was in Louisiana and had a neighbor like you! Plus I miss the catfish down that way. I was thinking about 1/2 birch so I'm glad you mentioned it. I probably have close to the same amount of room inside as your Tundra but I will start behind the back seats anyway with my build. They need to be able to hold a fridge slide, which shouldn't be a problem because I will just mount that to the base of the whole storage system. Still sketching things out and is likely to evolve.

 

[Overland Omnivore]

With everything being so expensive these days, I have been looking at different options for building a drawer and storage system for the back of my overlanding SUV.
I am rolling in a big Toyota Sequoia, and from what I have found, there do not seem to be many companies making ready made storage systems for the later model Sequoias.
Because of that, I am leaning toward building something myself that fits my setup, my gear, and how I actually use the vehicle.

Right now, I am thinking about using a lightweight plywood type of material that is readily available locally.
I want something strong enough to handle camping gear, tools, recovery equipment, kitchen supplies, and the usual overlanding clutter,
but I also do not want to add a ridiculous amount of weight to the back of the SUV.
The plan is to design the system so it bolts down using the factory anchor points.
That way I can avoid drilling unnecessary holes, keep the install cleaner, and still be able to remove the whole system later if I need to return the vehicle closer to stock for resale.

I know there are a million ways to build something like this. Some people go with Baltic birch,
some use regular cabinet grade plywood, some use aluminum extrusion, some use HDPE, and some just build a simple platform and call it good.
I am mostly trying to find the best balance between strength, weight, cost, availability, and ease of working with the material.

For those of you who have built your own rear drawer or storage setup, what material did you use and would you use it again?

A few things I am curious about:

What thickness of plywood or panel material worked best for you?
Did you regret going too heavy or too light?
What did you use for drawer slides, latches, tie downs, or hardware?
Did you carpet, paint, seal, or bedline the finished system?
Any lessons learned after actually using it on trips?

I am not trying to overcomplicate it, but I would like to build something solid,
removable, and practical that will hold up to real trail use. Curious to hear what has worked for everyone else.

I built a lot of prototypes and have never really found a system that I wasn’t constantly adapting and changing…I have two rigs…FJ Cruiser and a Tundra 2.0. My FJ has had 5 different configuration as of today…I use it for solo trips…keeping it quick and light and use to as a sleeping platform…if you are going to sleep in it then you want to level out the platform and keep it wide if you want to sleep two…if you sleep one you can use the other side for a fridge and other stuff…if you are sleeping two you will need to fin alternative places for your gear…maybe rooftop boxes. There are so many questions you need to ask yourself before you even worry about the materials you are using. I personally like to keep things modular so that they can be removed quickly…