My LR3 lightweight storage platform build (UPDATED: actual dimensions on pg 4)

[ColoDisco]

I was not saying it as a alternative to your build. Merely my plans as a alternative to a simple build yet still lightweight. Your build would not support a drawer system as well as the 80/20. I like your build, just wanted to include another material as a alternative to anyone reading this thread.

 

[greynolds]

I was not saying it as a alternative to your build. Merely my plans as a alternative to a simple build yet still lightweight. Your build would not support a drawer system as well as the 80/20. I like your build, just wanted to include another material as a alternative to anyone reading this thread.

Please do post more details (such as the drawing) and pictures of the end result as they become available. I'm certainly interested in seeing what you come up with and I'm sure others will be too.

 

[perkj]

I was not saying it as a alternative to your build. Merely my plans as a alternative to a simple build yet still lightweight. Your build would not support a drawer system as well as the 80/20. I like your build, just wanted to include another material as a alternative to anyone reading this thread.

There is no reason why the frame I used could not have drawer slides bolted to it's aluminum tubing frame.

 

[krick3tt]

I did get the FR drawer system and in hindsight I do believe your solution is much more cost effective. Even including the more expensive full extension drawer slides you can save a lot of money making things yourself. I usually only make things that I cannot purchase directly.
Keep up the good work.

 

[MagicMtnDan]

Speaking of alternatives...

I've been over-thinking a sleep/storage platform/drawer system for years now. Paralysis by analysis. One concept I still entertain is using strut (Unistrut, Powerstrut, etc.) as there are many different varieties (profiles of strut) and components. They even have rollers for inside the strut that could support heavy-duty drawers, etc. Just food for thought.

 

[hour]

Thank you!

Built this today. Ordered everything from eztube.com but still need to buy, cut, carpet, and attach some 1/2" plywood as well as grab on to the factory tie downs. Easy as hell.

I used the metal fittings for everything but the two feet L angles closest to the front of the vehicle. I figured all the weight is going to be towards the back with the fridge. Plastic could have been used for a lot more.. this thing is strong. Cost for an extra 4 foot piece and all but two fittings in metal was right around $200 shipped to my door.

Ran second horizontal piece 12" from the rear of the vehicle, where fridge will sit

I measured to fit a little taller than these crappy bins but didn't account for the height of the fittings, I'd prefer it have been 2" lower but I can always trim the vertical pieces if I want. Just depends on how much clearance I have to the ceiling with the lid of the fridge as I do not plan on buying a slide.

The shipping weight was like 12lbs and I honestly think the metal junctions I used equaled the weight of all of aluminum in the project. Could have bought 7 four-foot pieces instead of 8 but I didn't plan my cuts out (or design) at all. Don't be like me. I always wanted a basic platform to stash stuff under and having it light enough to remove with one hand is amazing.

About as long possible, unintentionally, and very lucky (again the fittings add length). I usually have the seats folded down all of spring/summer/fall and my dogs ride cramped in the back seat area, so this should keep them much happier when headed to and from camp. I'll probably make an extension for the front area when the seats are folded down out of PVC for even more storage underneath and dedicated to ~140lbs of dogs

 

[Model94]

This is very nice, you just saved me a killodollar and a hundred and a half xtra pounds or so in a purchased drawer system. I am thinking of building one with a pair of front-to-back opposing L brackets underneath the platform into which a solar panel can be slid in and stored when not in use. The centerless design would be wide enough for a 100W panel.

Any other good ideas for panel storage?

 

[jagmandan]

After reading and contemplating the content of this thread for quite a while, I recently built a variation of this design for my D3. Very happy with how it turned out and I am grateful to perkj for the original design and to cmb6s for the ideas on how to build the front sleeping extension.

Some notes on my version: I used the plastic connectors; they seem plenty strong and I don't plan to overload the top with weight. I measured and adjusted many dimensions slightly along the way. The baltic birch plywood is great for this application. I used some furniture hardware "binding screws" to attach the plywood to the frame (Mcmaster 90835A108 and 90835A310). Had to trim them for length which was a pain, but the heads are low profile top and bottom. The upholstery is speaker carpet from Parts-express.

The front extension for sleeping works as cmb6s originally described. The rear platform structure is shortened to allow a 4t connector to be tucked under the plywood at the front of the rear section. The eztube that bridges the two sections is hammered onto the front platform and joins the 4t connectors temporarily when the front platform is installed. Some rivnuts and turnbuckles (to be sourced) are used to fix the front platform in place using the seat tie downs. To make it level, I temporarily fixed the top tubes to the rear section (see photos) and measured for the length of the support tubes.

I made the plywood as wide as possible for extra space when sleeping and so my dog can ride close to the window and not fall into the gap. On trip #1 we realized (upon going to bed) that the door handles couldn't be opened, so I added some notches to the latch can be pulled. The whole front extension can be angled up and removed from the vehicle by moving the front seats forward 2-3 inches.

Cheers,
-Dan

 

[Victory_Overland]

@jagmandan that's a nice setup and I'll be working on my platform in the coming weeks when I get back from this trip. First, I have to wire in the Traxide dual battery system before I start measuring out for the sleeping platform. My difference is I have all of my seats removed and a center mount NL fridge/freezer for ease of access while driving from the front.

Is your front platform mount fastened down or is it free-floating? Also, looks like your aluminum is black anodized; did it come like that as an option?

My platform is going to be a bit more permanent install but I will be able to take it out. I plan to run the back like yours with a drawer set-up that is bolted down to the old seat mounts and the front will be a tilt set-up that is removable. I plan to put one-second row seat under the platform for emergency three seat use but the other side is going to get a water tank and a few other goodies to keep the CG nice and low.

Again, nice set-up, I am surely following for more ideas!

 

[jagmandan]

@jagmandan that's a nice setup and I'll be working on my platform in the coming weeks when I get back from this trip. First, I have to wire in the Traxide dual battery system before I start measuring out for the sleeping platform. My difference is I have all of my seats removed and a center mount NL fridge/freezer for ease of access while driving from the front.

Is your front platform mount fastened down or is it free-floating? Also, looks like your aluminum is black anodized; did it come like that as an option?

My platform is going to be a bit more permanent install but I will be able to take it out. I plan to run the back like yours with a drawer set-up that is bolted down to the old seat mounts and the front will be a tilt set-up that is removable. I plan to put one-second row seat under the platform for emergency three seat use but the other side is going to get a water tank and a few other goodies to keep the CG nice and low.

Again, nice set-up, I am surely following for more ideas!

Thanks. The front section is fastened two ways. There are two ~8" sections of aluminum tube that bridge the two platforms. Not shown in the photo, but IMG_7842 shows the two connector endpoints. In IMG_7956 you can see the provisions for a small turnbuckle that will attach to the anchor point on the folded seat. This will pull the whole front section back against the (already fixed) rear section.

The black tube is an option from EZ-Tube. It costs a bit more than the clear coat but I wanted a clean look with the rest of the black trim.

 

[perkj]

After reading and contemplating the content of this thread for quite a while, I recently built a variation of this design for my D3. Very happy with how it turned out and I am grateful to perkj for the original design and to cmb6s for the ideas on how to build the front sleeping extension.

Some notes on my version: I used the plastic connectors; they seem plenty strong and I don't plan to overload the top with weight. I measured and adjusted many dimensions slightly along the way. The baltic birch plywood is great for this application. I used some furniture hardware "binding screws" to attach the plywood to the frame (Mcmaster 90835A108 and 90835A310). Had to trim them for length which was a pain, but the heads are low profile top and bottom. The upholstery is speaker carpet from Parts-express.

The front extension for sleeping works as cmb6s originally described. The rear platform structure is shortened to allow a 4t connector to be tucked under the plywood at the front of the rear section. The eztube that bridges the two sections is hammered onto the front platform and joins the 4t connectors temporarily when the front platform is installed. Some rivnuts and turnbuckles (to be sourced) are used to fix the front platform in place using the seat tie downs. To make it level, I temporarily fixed the top tubes to the rear section (see photos) and measured for the length of the support tubes.

I made the plywood as wide as possible for extra space when sleeping and so my dog can ride close to the window and not fall into the gap. On trip #1 we realized (upon going to bed) that the door handles couldn't be opened, so I added some notches to the latch can be pulled. The whole front extension can be angled up and removed from the vehicle by moving the front seats forward 2-3 inches.

Cheers,
-Dan

Looks great. Very cool to see folks are still taking advantage of my design!

 

[perkj]

After reading and contemplating the content of this thread for quite a while, I recently built a variation of this design for my D3. Very happy with how it turned out and I am grateful to perkj for the original design and to cmb6s for the ideas on how to build the front sleeping extension.

Some notes on my version: I used the plastic connectors; they seem plenty strong and I don't plan to overload the top with weight. I measured and adjusted many dimensions slightly along the way. The baltic birch plywood is great for this application. I used some furniture hardware "binding screws" to attach the plywood to the frame (Mcmaster 90835A108 and 90835A310). Had to trim them for length which was a pain, but the heads are low profile top and bottom. The upholstery is speaker carpet from Parts-express.

The front extension for sleeping works as cmb6s originally described. The rear platform structure is shortened to allow a 4t connector to be tucked under the plywood at the front of the rear section. The eztube that bridges the two sections is hammered onto the front platform and joins the 4t connectors temporarily when the front platform is installed. Some rivnuts and turnbuckles (to be sourced) are used to fix the front platform in place using the seat tie downs. To make it level, I temporarily fixed the top tubes to the rear section (see photos) and measured for the length of the support tubes.

I made the plywood as wide as possible for extra space when sleeping and so my dog can ride close to the window and not fall into the gap. On trip #1 we realized (upon going to bed) that the door handles couldn't be opened, so I added some notches to the latch can be pulled. The whole front extension can be angled up and removed from the vehicle by moving the front seats forward 2-3 inches.

Cheers,
-Dan

Looks great. Very cool to see folks are still taking advantage of my design!

 

[Ray_G]

So I'm another in the list of folks who watched perkj's initial postings and thought "I'd like to do something like that." I dwelled on it all for a long time but bit the bullet recently when I realized we wanted to have partial shelf setup with room on the other side for our primary cooking gear and such. In particular, I wanted to have the ability to strap down my tool setup, some recovery gear, and eventually mount a powertank and rotopax while also having the ability to quickly slide our camp chairs and tables in/out without having the restrain them. At least that was my logic.

So in my typical way, I turned to graph paper and did a sketch to scale.

Using the measurements and a sketch of the aluminum frame, I ordered the parts from EZtube. I went with the plastic connectors and just cut the lengths of tube myself. To mount the shelf I decided to use cross pieces under the frame that would bolt into the L-track I have fitted via double lug threaded studs. Continuing with that theme, I grabbed some more L-track for the shelf itself which I decided to use black starboard for because I wanted something durable that wasn't painted metal, wood, nor carpeted. Initial confirmation that the graph paper mockup of key bits was correct.

Then making sure the top would work out in some form/fashion.

Installed L-track on the top to allow for lashing down items with flexibility.

Frame elements put together before painting to confirm fit.

Testing out that our two camping tables and two camp chairs will fit into the space allotted.

Then validated that our pelican case holding the volcano along with our two wolfpacks (K1 & K2) would all fit into the right side of the cargo area too.

Paint has now cured, its all bolted together and in the truck for some test runs to check for rattles and functionality. Next step will be improving on the lashing system, installing a powertank and rotopax at the far aft end, etc.


All told, as others have noted, a solid find by Perkj with a lot of inherent flexibility for the end user to make what they need in a lightweight but durable form. I'm very happy with the overall product and look forward to shaking the truck down with it this fall/next spring.
r-
Ray

 

[Victory_Overland]

I have a full sheet of 1/2" black starboard on the side of the house for my project as well. I'm taking detailed notes of your design to tailor to mine......which means I'm pirating your ideas...hahahaha I have a 1/2" sheet and planning on picking up a 3/4" sheet as well since after knowing the 1/2" is good for some uses, but not for many others where more load is required.

Keep them coming!

 

[Ray_G]

I love the starboard but it is heavy! That's why I went with 1/2". My shelf is 36x18, which I covered with 3 sections (12x18). The middle of the shelf has a cross brace in it for support-I figured that was the best compromise to keep weight down, keep it structurally sound, etc. As you said, the 3/4 may be needed depending on load intentions.
r-
Ray