SUV Rear Storage System Feedback Request. Ideas

rayra

Expedition Leader
It looks good so far. The 'hidden' area might cause some excitement at a security checkpoint. I myself am not going anywhere near LAX during any heightened security period, don't want the hassle.
What's going in the left side gap, MWCs/MFCs? Box is big, might get heavy, but you are on slides which will negate that. Unless the drawer is full and you are parked nose down.
And you might want to re-think the front to back depth, if having some front-end storage would be useful from the seats side.

What plans for the top surface? Recently I was in Lowes and spotted some interlocking rubber / plastic mat material called PergoMax, ~$2.50/sq' Several textures and colors. Sort of like that interlocking foam for kids play areas. Or like those antifatigue mats. Come to think of it, I should have used those high-density foam pads as an underlayment for my platform, to have at least a little cushion to it. Instead of upholstery carpet directly on plywood. Not comfortable to crawl around on at all.
 

Kosmo

Adventurer
Rubber top and coating. Hinge ideas?

Hi:

Box is almost finished first fitting. Have primed most of it now. Will still take it apart, and glue once I am sure I have the final layout. Border guards are welcome to look if they find it. Not planning on hiding anything illegal, just stuff that is a little safer if we get hit in a smash and grab.

For the top I saw BBQ mat at Costco. Pretty good size, $29.

IMG_4716.jpgIMG_4715.jpgIMG_4714.jpg

Also I am thinking to use Deckover as a color coating.

Something like this: https://www.homedepot.ca/en/home/p.behr-premium-deckover-deep-base-343-l.1000784015.html

I left enough space to fit my compressor between seats and drawer.

For space on left I may use it for extra storage, air tank, not sure yet. Still haven't decided if I am going to put any of plastic interior panels back in.

QUESTION: Any feedback for the top? It is 17" front to back, and folds up without hitting the roof. I am thinking to put in a Piano hinge or something else. Any ideas? It will be access for hidden compartments, and additional access for main drawer in case of emergency that disallows opening rear slide-outs.

To date this build is probably costing me $400 in materials.
 

Kosmo

Adventurer
Bought a gallon of Sherwin Williams Industrial Alkyd Enamel Oil base. Basically same as Sico Corrostop, but stronger. Will finalize gluing and then paint. Oil base takes 30 days to fully cure.
 

rayra

Expedition Leader
piano hinge will work fine, but with a plywood deck I would suggest if be flat / face mounted on the top surface(s), instead of tucked into the saw cut between the pieces. All those little screws into the plywood will just wind up splitting it if there's a lot of weight in that hinge area. especially if it is something with a hard bottom sitting directly on the barrel of the hinge.
 

Kosmo

Adventurer
Rear Strage Drawer Progress Filler and Paint test

or use a 21/2" piano hinge and add a piece of wood for screwing. I've often seen things on top of surface mounted piano hinges and wondered how they weren't abraded apart. https://www.grainger.com/product/GRAINGER-APPROVED-180-Continuous-Hinge-With-1CAK5

Good point too. I was thinking of putting cross members anyway since I only have a single drawer. I have a few ideas to support the middle, but don't want to overcomplicate.

Took drawer and housing assembly apart and re-screwed and glued it today. No real need to clamp other than to put the bow back in the drawer bottom until I screwed it into position.

IMG_4817.jpg

Finished priming any remaining wood with Zinsser Bin 51. Expensive stuff, but I had some laying around, and amazingly it is still good after almost 4 years.
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IMG_4815.jpg

I started sanding, spot putty and filling today. My 90% full tub of body fill was too hard to work with, so I bought some wood putty. I hope it will dry hard enough.

IMG_4814.jpg

Put a bit of paint on in places to see how the color looks, how it sets up and cures. Takes 24 hours to dry before putting second coat, and 30 days to fully cure. I know it is not bedliner or line x, but I didn't want the rough texture. It is a real alkyd enamel, oil base, so should be very durable. Also opted for a lighter color to make it easier to see, find things, and attract less heat. Will see how it hardens up. If it is rubbing off on totes, I can always add a clear coat of varnish or something.
IMG_4823.jpg

You can see the slightly more shiny patch above the whiter paler strip at the bottom.
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Here you can see first pass of some basic wood putty. Will see how it feels tomorrow. Shrunk more than acceptable, I probably should have just used drywall filler which I have laying around, or bought body filler
IMG_4820.jpg

I still need to figure out how to mount battery, and electrical. My spider sense is telling me I need to build it in a way that all the electrical can stay in even if I need/want to slide the drawer out. Not sure how difficult that will be, or if that even makes sense. Thoughts?
 

rayra

Expedition Leader
Well, that's basically what I chose to do, you've seen the details. It made sense to me (and still does). And it was a lot of work, done in small steps over time. But I'd done much of the designing and planning long before the work actually began. I'd planned for that flexibility from the beginning.

auxbatt062%20current_zpsxu1s588o.jpg



In fact I'd started making design notes (some gleaned from the stuck topic here) long before I even bought the Suburban. And started firming things up quickly once I had the Sub in hand to start taking actual measurements.

storagebuild01_zps6rlncpmh.jpg
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Actual work on it didn't start for another 8mos. And that was 8mos ago. Frankly I \m not even done with it yet. Need to build the extension to bridge the 2nd row seats and make it a bed platform. And the later solar power expansion. But most of those ideas were explored and laid out on paper long ago, in a deliberate effort to not build things nad have to tear them out or revise them later.
 

Kosmo

Adventurer
Optima Yellow Top Aux Battery Mounted

Finally decided on a location and a mounting IMG_4932.jpgmethod.

Today mounted it properly with silicone around bolts to protect from wheel spray. Ran an 8 gauge cable from the engine compartment back to the aux battery where it will connect to the Ctek charger. Cut a hole in the plastic inner fender to see if this would be part of the final solution.IMG_5010.jpg

Tried out the new Temco crimper. Works fantastic.
 
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Kosmo

Adventurer
Rear Storage area Electrical panel

Progress on wiring up the control panel with fuses block, relays and main switch panel. Still need to figure out best way to run main power to the control panel, and how to mount the panel. Currently using 4 Ga alligator clips in testing phase to see how system is working.
1st coat Test Fir control panel.jpg
Mounted an LED light on circuit 1, which will be used for the air compressor. Have been considering a hinge to keep it more or less in position in case of needing to inspect, fix wires or change a relay, but thinking it may make it more difficult to access when on the road, or with a lot of gear in the back.
1st coat test fit lamp.jpg

Debated whether to put the fuse panel facing out to be able to see all the time, (which is how it is pictured here), or to put it on the backside so there is less chance of it being knocked, and leave more space on the board, and a cleaner look. In the end I opted for ease of access and inspection. Drilling the holes did not leave a nice finish, and I may use grommets, or cut out a channel on either side.


In this photo you can see something that will definitely have to be addressed. I decided to use the rear window cutouts to house storage or electrical system components because this area is going to be blocked most of the time anyway. One thing I need to do is block the rear window totally. The last thing I want to do is return to my vehicle and find it surrounded by police and swat teams because a passerby reported suspicious looking wires. N.B. The yellow and blue wires you can see here are as of yet not assigned or terminated, and just folded up to allow test fitting of the panel.
Electrical Panel Backing.jpg


Still need a bit of equipment to set up air compressor as exactly as I want. Plan is to have it mounted as onboard air all the time, but also be able to take it out and connect alligator clips with a connector of some sort. To be able to use air away from vehicle, help others etc. Obviously the same connector would plug it back into the vehicle main power system. At this point there is no detailed plan for a tank, or air plumbing, but it has been considered.

Fully extended drawer: The first coat of paint when on very well. It has been raining a lot, so I have been hesitant to paint in high humidity. Using a real oil paint will pay off and once the 30 day cure period is over it should be a nice hard coating.
Rear Drawer 1st coat fitting.jpg
 

Kosmo

Adventurer
Electrical wiring progress

what are your plans for closing up or covering all the electrical stuff?

I actually made a change from the photos above. Originally my idea was to have the fuse panel easily accessible and viewable, but that would mean running longer heavier cable to get my inverter to the other side of the vehicle, and leaving more high amperage cable at risk, especially with the drawer system being slide in slide out. Now the inverter s mounted where the Bluesea fuse panel was, and the Bluesea panel is on the back.
IMG_5050.jpg


The shaped board hides most of the relays and wiring. With the cargo cover closed, which goes over the storage drawers there is not much to see.

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Photos here show most recent version.
I will probably make a plywood cover for the battery Ctek setup, but as it is it is mostly insulated, or will be.

IMG_5044.jpg

Thoughts and comments?Ctek Mounted.jpg
 
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Kosmo

Adventurer
Rear Storage Electrical Test run.

So rear storage area is coming along. Not 100% yet, but getting closer. Took it on a solo trip last weekend to NY state park, and it was an awesome time. Did 15 miles of mtn biking over two days and some good relax time.
Here you can see drawer pulled out with trailer hooked up. It stops the drawer just short of full lockout extension, but that is probably ok for the most part.
IMG_5245.jpg
The drawers have 50% lockout as well, although I am not sure slide locks activate unless drawer is first pulled all the way out. You can see the black BBQ mat I have set on top. Still not 100% sure how to attach, but since i have cut it, I am going to likely keep it. $30 from Costco.

Red box holds electronics, OBD reader, Electric meters, Air gauge, assorted high value easy to grab stuff that could be easily nicked while setting up at a camp area, or during a stop etc. It is not a serious robbery deterrent, but is at least a Level 1 security.

On the right you have the spot for the portable fridge, and behind that is the inverter wired up to an 80 Amp relay activated by the switch panel. The on board air is wired in and all functioned well during the test run. Also no vehicle fire which is a big plus. :)

Last additions to this version of the drawer were to some cutouts on both sides Bit of a p.i.t.a to do, but figured I would do it before bolting the slides on good and proper with lock nuts.
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Top door mounted with piano hinge. Still not sure where I am going to cut the length of the door. Most of the drawer now has two solid coats of Industrial paint on it, which is curing harder every day.

IMG_5166.jpg

Since I did the trip by myself and was towing a 24' travel trailer efficient packing was not really an issue. I left all the tools in the drawer I had been using to mount the drawer and wire up another aux fuse panel in the front of the Jeep just to have some stuff in the drawer, and to have bunch of tools just in case.
 

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