Kitchen Kit/Chuck Box

[Scoutman]

The shelf strips are attached with #6 flat head screws to the inside of the side walls and not to the extrusion.

As for a latch, I've looked at everything from Southco and 80/20 but haven't decided exactly what I want to use just yet.

Here's where I'm at using laser cut cardboard as prototype fill panels.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[frans]

My concern with my next chuck box is overall weight of the box. Is yours lightweight?

 

[mtntrekker]

The shelf strips are attached with #6 flat head screws to the inside of the side walls and not to the extrusion.

As for a latch, I've looked at everything from Southco and 80/20 but haven't decided exactly what I want to use just yet.

Here's where I'm at using laser cut cardboard as prototype fill panels.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

how long are the #6 screws?
Thanks again

 

[johnnyrover]

still like this design

 

[Scoutman]

how long are the #6 screws?
Thanks again

The panel I'm using is 1/4" thick and the pilaster shelf strips are ~3/16" but an 82* countersunk head doesn't fit in them as deep as it should so I ended up purchasing 1/2" philips flat head 18-8 stainless steel undercut head in a #6-32 thread. I'm going to tap the side walls to mount them. If you were using a wood product you could use a #6 x 1/2" flat head wood screw but it would have a point sticking through the outside of the panel that you would need to grind down.

My concern with my next chuck box is overall weight of the box. Is yours lightweight?

Assuming you were asking me....
I loaded all the contents I had with the few filler panels I have cut so far and the short answer is no it is not lightweight. That is partly because the filler panels are heavier than they need to be (but I will probably swap those for lighter panels in the future once I find something I like). Also a fully loaded 10 piece Magma cook set is ~13# so weight adds up quickly. My main goal wasn't to have the lightest camp box around, it was to have everything in one place at the convenience of my tailgate. Up till now I've had a cooking kit box, stove in in a separate truck box, and the wash pans in a different spot. This will also make it easier for kids/wife to find things.

The weight of a 10 series extrusion is ~.0424 pounds per inch. I have 222" of extrusion which puts the skeleton being ~9.4# without corner blocks and hardware. Then add panels, hinges, latch and contents and it adds up. This will end up being a 2 person load item and I'm fine with that.

If you want a light camp box, start with lightweight contents.

 

[slomatt]

For about 15 years I have stored my kitchen gear in a an Akro-Mils box with a folding lid. It has held up great, but I've always been annoyed at having to pull everything out to get to my stove which lived in the bottom of the box. Also, the lid doesn't seal very well and is definitely not water or dust proof. One major bonus of the Akro-Mils box is that it fits into the back of my 4Runner perfectly with zero wasted space on the sides.

This year I decided it was time to re-think my kitchen storage and I came up with the following requirements:

• Needs to be portable (aka lightweight). Drawer kitchens are great if you want fast deployment, but for multiple reasons I don't like cooking out of the back of the truck.
• Should be reasonably weather proof. It's not going on the roof, but I want to be able to leave it out in the rain or in dusty environments.
• Inexpensive and easy to replace. Zarges boxes are awesome, but they are overkill for my use and I want something that I don't need to worry about if it gets dinged.
• Easy access to all items. Not necessary "first order retrievable", but getting to specific items should be easy and not require unpacking everything.

After taking some measurements I decided to go with a Plano 1719 storage trunk which checked most of my requirements: lightweight, reasonably weatherproof (I added a bulb seal), and inexpensive. One downside is that my stove no longer fits, so I purchased a storage bag from Bass Pro Shops which is working well.

The gotcha with the Plano is that you still run into problems with easily accessing items since it's just a big empty space. I solved this by making a toolbox-style tray out of 3/8" baltic birch plywood. This way small items stay in the tray where they are easily accessed, and larger items are stored below. The tray can be quickly lifted up, turned 90 degrees, and set on the box while large items are retrieved. This way nothing gets set in the dirt, or balanced precariously on a rock. I've used this setup on several trips so far and really like the way it is working out.

The tray. I've since added a divider in the bottom section to separate the cutlery from the cooking utensils. The plywood is finished with Shellac and each compartment is lined with BPA free shelf liner.

The bottom section contains a set of Magma nesting pots, frying pan, and a washtub that holds my plates, bowls, cutting boards, cups, etc.

Here are the contents of the washtub.

Pots and pans

And the contents of the top tray.

More pictures can be found at the following site if anybody is interested. I also customized another Plano 1719 for my camping gear and may post pictures of that in the future.

Blank Photos :: Camp Kitchen

www.blankwhitepage.com

 

[waktaylor]

Where did this end up? Looks great

The shelf strips are attached with #6 flat head screws to the inside of the side walls and not to the extrusion.

As for a latch, I've looked at everything from Southco and 80/20 but haven't decided exactly what I want to use just yet.

Here's where I'm at using laser cut cardboard as prototype fill panels.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

 

[krick3tt]

I see the great boxes that folks have made and I think that they are wonderful ideas. I began with milk cartons slid under the back platform in my Mog, then to those same cartons in my Pinzgauer. Now that I have anLR all that stuff has transferred to Cub boxes and see through plastic bins that fit in my drawers in the Front Runner shelf system.
I am still envious of the ability some have to create their kitchens and be able to haul them around in their vehicles. Some do look a bit heavy for this old back to lift.
I will probably maintain my kit in the boxes that fit into the drawers as it allows me to always be packed and ready to go. Now if there were some places open to go. Perhaps this sumer.

 

[Scoutman]

Where did this end up? Looks great

Good question. I finished up the box (for the time being) towards the end of the summer and it works really well. It's definitely heavy and is best moved with 2 people. There's not much I would change about it other than the weight. I think the best I could do is replace the wall panels with something lighter but I have yet to find a suitable substitute. Everything is easy to get to and put away, the height is equal to 2 wolf packs tall, and it carries everything we want and use on our trips.

I don't have any good finished kitchen box picts but here are a few I found on my phone...

These shots are of attaching the shelf rails and shelf clips. I cut the 1/4" acrylic out on a CNC laser cutter we have at work (note the corner notches for the rails). The rails were clamped in place, marked, drilled, countersunk, and tapped for #6-32 screws. Fully loaded the shelf clips stay in place and everything fits nice and snug.




Here's a shot with the door removed. Every time we've used it I've taken the door off the lift off hinges to make it easier to get to things. I store the door slid down between the truck bed and the kitchen box.
Contents....
-partner stove 22"
-richlite custom cutting board (for partner stove stand)
-2 hot pads
-magma cook set
-3 steam pans for washing dishes, roll of paper towels lives inside
-flex space which typically has a jetboil, isobutane fuel, 1# propane cylinder, coffee pot, snow peak sandwich maker, etc.
-plates, bowls, cups, wine tumblers, beer cups, collapsible bowl
-roll of HD foil, BROG bag of zip baggies
-cutting boards, knife set, BROG kitchen bag (full of eating utensils, cooking utensils, coozies, wine opener, can opener, and other misc. kitchen items)
-small plastic tray that acts as a junk drawer. It typically has headlamps, lighter, batteries, the handle for our pans, deck of cards, bluetooth speaker, etc.




Here's the box in the truck in relation to other gear. It doesn't have the spring loaded handles on the sides in this picture but it gives you an idea what it looks like. The door catch is just a modified flat plate that works pretty well and is super simple and low profile.


And one in use.

 

[4000lbsOfGoat]

Well there really is some fine craftsmanship on display in this thread! That being said, I've got an honest question about any of these "chuck box" type setups. In many of these pics I see what looks like a lot of fairly loose items inside these boxes. Don't things rattle around like crazy in that type of setup?

 

[Scoutman]

Well there really is some fine craftsmanship on display in this thread! That being said, I've got an honest question about any of these "chuck box" type setups. In many of these pics I see what looks like a lot of fairly loose items inside these boxes. Don't things rattle around like crazy in that type of setup?

For us, not really. Things fit fairly tight and in a lot of cases we have pot dividers, pot holders, dish towels, etc between critical items. At the end of the day it's in the bed of my truck so unless it's really loud I probably wouldn't hear it anyway. If it were in the back of an SUV it may be a bigger concern.

 

[BigBrokenZJ]

Been using a yoke outdoors camp kitchen for two trips now.

it has some really nice features, and some small headaches. However, it weighs a LOT less than our old wooden homemade chuckbox. We can fit everything we need to cook in it, and with the lid coming off plus a collapsible dish pan we have a divided sink.

 

[basicfish]

I have the beaver tree version, it’s not as expo cool as a Baltic Birch one. But it gets the job done.

 

[Hummelator]

Was camping Thursday- Saturday and finally got fed up with the rubbermaid bins approach.


Removed the extendable handle, wheels and side handles to cut down on weight.
I try to keep a very minimalist set up- usually any food we cook is already prepared so we just have to put it on the stove or BBQ.
The only thing that didn't fit from my dishes was the frying pan so I'll be picking up a backpacking frying pan with a folding handle. Going out on may long so I'll have a chance to try it out soon.

 

[jerdog53]

Well there you go!