Drawer system for car

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Hey all,

I’m getting ready to embark on a new project - some drawers for the back of my car. I’d love some advice from people who’ve built something similar.

The key constraints are:

• fridge and water tank - we already have a 12v fridge and water tank that everything else will build around
• tough - the plan is to go 4 wheel driving so it’s got to survive rough corrugated roads that will shake everything to death and any twisting from the body of the car that might happen. Obviously this will need to be balanced with cost and weight

My thinking so far:

What the back of the car looks like:

My current thinking is to start with a good platform. I’ve got rid of the carpet and my plan was to lay some insulation then add 18mm ply cut to the shape on the floor. The fridge is on a drawer slide and will also connect to that. The drawer box is where I’m uncertain, 18mm ply was my original thinking but also toying with the idea of a steel frame. Or there another option I should be thinking about?

I think some parts need to have give/play so in the case of twisting it can move instead of breaking. My current plan is to oversize holes in the ply when attaching it to the floor so it can move. Make the box as rigid as possible, but again oversize the holes where it attaches to the ply. The add threadlock and spring washers to try to remove any possible rattling. Does this sound sufficient? Or is this approach totally off?

[Jem (Jeremy Spencer)]

I currently have a drawer system in the back of my pickup truck.
It’s for sale - you don’t want to buy it, but here’s the listing so that you can see the photos.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/276300667247
If you want to have a look at it in person, to get some ideas, I’ll be at electronics night on Thursday.

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

I can be in Thursday night. I would definitely like to check them out.

[Jem (Jeremy Spencer)]

No trouble, I’ll be there

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Basic box has been built. It took a bit of finesse with a jigsaw and router to get the base fitting. The track saw and domino induction a few weeks ago made the box building an absolute dream!

The original plan had been to extend the box top over the water tank and to the side of the car. Then with the rear seat folded down it can become a bed. I’ve since changed my mind and I’ll lower the box my 20mm or so to make it inline with the top of the water tank instead.

Todo:

• Permanently attach it all together, currently it’s just a friction fit with dominos (hence the stretcher still at the bottom of the box). I’d still like the box to be removable for now, but I’d really like to not lose 19mm of useable drawer space
• Cut a piece to contour to the side of the car and I’ll attach that with a piano hinge so the space underneath is still accessible (and it will need support as well
• fasten the fridge to the base - the slide came with wood inserts, but I might use tee nuts from underneath instead
• Build a drawer. Original plan had been to get some extra heavy duty 100% extension slides, but I’m toying with the idea of just using thin sheets of HDPE to reduce friction and rest it on the tailgate.

[asander1 (Andy Sanderson)]

Looking good!

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Update
The box now has a lid connecting it with the edge of the car providing some useful pockets for storage. It’s also been (mostly) upholstered (cheap campervan camper carpet lining attached with adhesive spray). Much less visible are M6 bolts and t-nuts now holding everything together (I figured this makes it easier to assemble and disassemble more easily).

With some commentary:

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Up next will be building a drawer.

I would genuinely appreciate some feedback on my plans:

It will mostly be built out of 19mm ply (probably overkill but it’s what I have on hand now). All cut with the tracksaw and attached with dominos and glue.

The front (yellow in picture) will be made out of some nice melamine coated ply and oversized fit the gap a little more nicely (not modelled).

First question, is this the best way to construct a drawer?
Second, the melamine coated ply won’t glue well, @CNCtechs am I able to use the CNC to take a few mm off the back of the melamine coated ply?

I might pocket out some material on the sides, back, and bottom to reduce weight, but I’m still on the fence around this. I realise using lighter material in the first place is probably a better solution, but I’m still not sure how strong it needs to be right now. Anyone with a camper or 4x4 have thoughts?

[Federico]

As far as i know and researched you can cut the melamine out on the big cnc, but you have to use your own tools as the melamine tends to make them dull very quickly.

Thanks
Federico

[dannz (Dan Law)]

What do you want to be able to store in it? It may be that a couple of plastic storage crates that would fit in there could be a better option. They are lightweight, waterproof and washable and can also be carried.

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Makes sense. I’ll look at getting a surfacing bit

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

It’s for camping, mostly cooking gear and pantry is the plan. Plastic boxes would have been a good shout when I was designing this, I could have dimensioned it around the boxes. Now it might be hard to find boxes that will be a good use of space

[dannz (Dan Law)]

They come in all sorts of sizes, so you might find some that fit ok. If not tall enough, you could make use of the spare space in some other way - e.g. a pullout table. Plain mdf wouldn’t seem a good choice for cooking gear etc. 19mm mdf will also take up a chunk of space.

[Hugo_Sharman-Firth]

Is this the most over-engineered drawer of all time?

My tip for working with second hand material is to always check both sides for imperfections.

I’ll post some more photos once it’s glued, upholstered, and in the car. Probably that point in the project I’ll get started on the next one!