4RunAmok Camp Kitchen Chuck Box

[4RunAmok]

Whatever you want to call it... Here is the beginning sketches for the one I'm about to build... Just beginning to learn Google Sketch, not too shabby for what it is! Coming from an AutoCAD background, it wasn't too hard to figure out.

We've spent a few weekends out at some of the local parks around here, field testing ideas and discovering problems... The first couple times were spent learning what we forgot to bring! Figuring out what items we wish we brought, and thinking very hard on how I intend to organize all this...

The plan is to use 1/2" Birch plywood throughout. Solid Birch faces for the three drawer fronts, 1/8 Masonite (or equiv) for the drawer bottoms.

Let me know what ya think!

 

[runner88]

Very nice... I'll have to look into Google Sketch - I've a few designs bouncing around in my head.

How do you plan on doing the top & face?

 

[4RunAmok]

The top idea so far, is two piece hinged over and down. sort of "L" shaped...

I want something that will completely fold back behind the box, as opposed to coming to the front and serve as a shelf

The other idea I have as a backup is a removable slide-up panel in the front (would require extending the left and right side slightly to fit the grooves) with a simple hinged top.. in case my double hinged idea doesn't work

 

[4RunAmok]

Drawers!

Here are the details on the drawers...

 

[TFRI]

The top idea so far, is two piece hinged over and down. sort of "L" shaped...

I want something that will completely fold back behind the box, as opposed to coming to the front and serve as a shelf

The other idea I have as a backup is a removable slide-up panel in the front (would require extending the left and right side slightly to fit the grooves) with a simple hinged top.. in case my double hinged idea doesn't work

check out SOSS Hinges http://www.soss.com/pdf/Soss_Catalog.pdf for your top, if you want to go with a 2 piece to be able to fold half of the top out of the way. They are a hidden style 180deg hinge, very clean application. I have used them a few times.

 

[4RunAmok]

check out SOSS Hinges http://www.soss.com/pdf/Soss_Catalog.pdf for your top, if you want to go with a 2 piece to be able to fold half of the top out of the way. They are a hidden style 180deg hinge, very clean application. I have used them a few times.

That is AWESOME!!! And EXACTLY what I was looking for! Thanks a lot!!!

 

[4RunAmok]

This one just might work!
http://www.hardwaresource.com/hinge...idden+Hinges/Soss+Light+Duty+Concealed+Hinges

 

[4RunAmok]

I'm still working on figuring out the hinges, I think I need 270° hinges, but here is the lid.

The idea is to have the front fold on top of the top lid, and both flip behind the box itself, magnets will hold the front to the top so that it doesn't flip down behind the box once it's behind and upside down..... if that makes any sense at all! lol!

I'm having a lot of fun with this! Today I priced some maple plywood, and priced getting the main cuts done, and MAYBE the dado's. I don't have access to a shop anymore, so I need someone else to make the cuts. Once that is done, I can piece everything together myself. But even if someone else does the cuts on the wood, it looks like everything will be under $100, including the wood. I intend to use 1/2" solid maple for the drawer fronts, and some cheap 1/8 ply-whatever for the drawer bottoms if I can't find 1/8 masonite scraps (I need such a small portion of this, it would be a shame to have to buy a whole sheet)...

Anyways, on to the pics!

 

[4RunAmok]

I spent some time today getting the majority of the wood and getting it cut...

The place I went to has a friggin CNC machine to cut wood! Diamond blades!! Amazing... I was in such AWE that I forgot to snap pics like a dummy!

I did remember to take this one when I got home.



Now I need to get the dado's cut, and assembly begins!

 

[EdwardBernal]

Holy cow! Man, just clicked onto this thread and said to myself "Hey thats almost exactly what I've sketched up myself - right down to the maple plywood! The only thing that is possibly different is that I plan to slide the whole assembly into a weatherguard-type type truck box that will be mounted to the side of my expo trailer. Good luck on your project and I'll be following your thread closely...

 

[Chili]

and some cheap 1/8 ply-whatever for the drawer bottoms if I can't find 1/8 masonite scraps (I need such a small portion of this, it would be a shame to have to buy a whole sheet)...

My local Home Depot sells masonite in more than just 4'x8' sheets. I think the smallest they sell is 2'x4' if I remember right.

 

[EdwardBernal]

Why use masonite? IMHO, its glorified cardboard - if something spills inside the drawer and soaks in a bit it will probably swell. Try finding a piece of luan (sp?) plywood - they should have it at HD. Its prolly just a little bit more $ than masonite. Thats the stuff that typically is used to skin the cheap hollowcore interior doors that HD sells also. Its a thin (1/4") plywood and you can paint it for some water resistance. OR perhaps you can get your hands on a small piece of plexi / lexan (again HD may sell these).

 

[Vince1]

Aren't you concerned about weight? Some of these products can be quite heavy. That's why I like good old birch plywood, which is relatively lightweight, is easy to work with and can be easily finished to withstand elements.

 

[4RunAmok]

As seen in the photo of the stack of wood (almost all of the wood that will be used in this project), it's not that much, and doesn't weight a lot. While birch and maple are very close, the maple offers more strength for only a small gain in weight.

After I cut the dado's the other day, I make-shift assembled it, picked it up easily, and handed it to my wife, and she held it up easily. So no, wight isn't that much of an issue. Especially since it will be used mostly out of the back of my 4runner, or on a coleman grill stand I picked up a couple years ago.

After the SoCal Mountain Rendezvous, where I learned even more about my needs, we REALLY wished I had put this thing together before we went, but I ran short on time last week. And I don't even have the drawer materials.. Which I'm kind of glad I did not buy yet, thanks to the suggestions in this thread! I REALLY like the idea of using lexan instead of the wood ideas, so I'll probably be going with that.

This is precisely why I post these threads here... Put our thoughts and ideas together as a group, and we come up with something better than originally planned, and less scenarios get overlooked.

 

[4RunAmok]

Holy cow! Man, just clicked onto this thread and said to myself "Hey thats almost exactly what I've sketched up myself - right down to the maple plywood! The only thing that is possibly different is that I plan to slide the whole assembly into a weatherguard-type type truck box that will be mounted to the side of my expo trailer. Good luck on your project and I'll be following your thread closely...

Make sure to post some pics!!