Truck bed drawer system

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Jorrie

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Durbanville, South Africa
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Some photos of the drawer system I built for my truck.

It fits the whole bed and each drawer accommodates two plastic ammo cases.

Its built out of 22mm marine ply, sealed and weatherproofed and covered with carpet. Each drawer can hold 60kg. On the left side I installed my secondary battery with a solenoid, battery monitor and a variety of plugs. Right hand side is currently empty, but is wired for a 3rd battery. Let me know what you think. Critic and suggestions is encouraged.

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Battery box on the left hand side

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The drawers are built in a box to prevent any dust from entering.
(My companion Jessica helping with the installation.)

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The finished product.

Let me know what you think.
 

Boort

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@Jorrie

Looks great! I like how you've added your patches to the drawer fronts. You say:

Its built out of 22mm marine ply, sealed and weatherproofed and covered with carpet.
Are the Drawers also 22mm Ply? They look much thinner to me in the pics. I'm asking because I was thinking of going with 9mm (3/8") Baltic Birch for my drawers and wanted to know how well they hold the weight. I'm assuming that the 60kilo max is the slide rating? That should be plenty for my usage so long as the screws hold in the wood.

Boort
 

Little Big Bear

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Really nice build. Obviously you got some skills there. My one question is how are you venting your battery? Don't want a hydrogen build up in that compartment. What do you estimate your total investment to be? Thinking of doing a similar thing but debating about going with off the shelf vs. home built. Not sure I could make it look as nice as yours however.
 

Jorrie

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Durbanville, South Africa
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The draws are thinner. Sides 9mm with support underneath. 9mm was a little thin for screws, so i used rivets and washers. The sliders are rated 100 kg. I loaded my dog in one and wife in the other. (that is where the 60 kg came from.)
 
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Jorrie

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,306
Durbanville, South Africa
Member #

9412

Really nice build. Obviously you got some skills there. My one question is how are you venting your battery? Don't want a hydrogen build up in that compartment. What do you estimate your total investment to be? Thinking of doing a similar thing but debating about going with off the shelf vs. home built. Not sure I could make it look as nice as yours however.

To tell the truth, I had no skills whatsoever when I started the build. It was a plan as I build. Not really worried about the battery as the drawer system only goes in the truc when I do trips. As the pricing goes: Wood, electronics, carpet, sliders and nuts and bolts, It roughly came to a total of $200. I Would have liked to build it out of aluminium, but the wood was cheaper. Here in South Africa the of the shelf ones start at about $500.
 
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Boort

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@Jorrie
The draws are thinner. Sides 9mm with support underneath. 9mm was a little thin for screws, so i used rivets and washers. The sliders are rated 100 kg. I loaded my dog in one and wife in the other. (that is where the 60 kg came from.)
Thanks for the info! Would you happen to have any pics of the rivets you used and how you added support to the drawer bottom?

Boort
 

Boort

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Jorrie
I used a piece of alumnium angle to bring the corners together and then riveted it together.
Thank you for the close up pictures and explanation of how you reinforced the drawers. They are helpful in designing my own!

Boort
 
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