as usual Jeff, superb product!! Id like one for a Scrambler please, full bed length... Or, if the slides don't come long enough for a full Scrambler bed, one for my fridge that would attach to my current homebuilt drawer system would be super, especially if it was a slide out and drop down unit
The ultimate cargo slide/tray?
- Thread starter jscherb
- Start date
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Terry,
Thanks! The 300-lb capacity slides I used come in up to 5' length, but if that's not long enough there are even higher capacity slides that are longer.
My modular design and plan calls for various length side rails for the drawer, so drawers/trays could be assembled to any length that slides are available and side rails were made available. The mounting bracket design works in standard beds like the Scrambler or a Tacoma - the front two brackets for the JK are a "generic" design, so 4 of them could mount any slide in most anything. Only the two rear mounting brackets in the JK are specific to the JK.
Last week I delivered my prototype to a company that plans to manufacture and market it. Their first priority is to get the JK slide and shelf system through their production engineering process so it could be ready for manufacture. In the meantime I plan to collect the various size/vehicle requests so once the JK parts are in production it'll be very simple to make up side rails to new lengths for new vehicles. My goal is for the company to offer a good range of sizes in a DIY fashion - you'd order the length and width you need and get a package of off-the-shelf parts to assemble to that size. At this point I don't know how far beyond the basic JK slide/shelf system the company will want to go but if they see demand I think they'll produce different DIY sizes.
So I'll add 5' to the list. The Scrambler tray width would be 30-32 (The JK prototype is 32). How wide would a Tacoma slide need to be? (allow a few inches on either side for the mounting brackets, so if the tailgate is 40", say, the slide width would be maybe 36".
Any other widths/lengths I should add to the list?
jgaz
Adventurer
Were you ever able to test fit it in your LJ before you delivered it to prospective manufacture? You had said the width is correct, I was wondering about the mounting points.
I am unable to see any of you pics in this thread except for the last couple of pages. Have they been removed or is the problem on my end.
Great concept work and congrats on the fast movement to possible production.
I am unable to see any of you pics in this thread except for the last couple of pages. Have they been removed or is the problem on my end.
Great concept work and congrats on the fast movement to possible production.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thanks!
No pictured have been removed; I can see all the pictures (mine and those posted by others), so it must be a problem local to you.
Yes I did do a test fit in the LJ but I didn't take any photos because I was pressed for time that day. The distance between the inner fenders of the LJ is slightly too narrow for the floor mounting brackets I made up for the JK, so either slightly different brackets are required for the LJ/TJ, or the width of the tray needs to be 30" vs. the 32" that I made the JK prototype. 32" fits fine in the tailgate opening as we saw before when I tried the slide assembly in my Jeep-tub trailer (below), but the trailer doesn't have the large inner fenders that the Jeep does so the brackets aren't a problem there. Not sure if the best approach to fit the LJ/TJ will be different brackets or a 30" tray.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thanks for the kind words.
I'll have to measure the TJ for the correct length, haven't done that yet. Can you measure from the inside of the tailgate (closed) to the back of the front seats for me to give me a preliminary dimension to add to the list?
jscherb
Expedition Leader
You'll notice they are two different colors - the dark ones are 14-gauge steel (hot rolled steel, that's why the color), and the lighter ones are 16-gauge steel. I used two different thicknesses because I only had enough on hand of each gauge to make two sides of each, although all 4 sides are identical in dimensions and hole placement/count.
Jeff
The load floor of my 2001 TJ is 35" deep and 34" wide at the tailgate. This is measured from the lip at the rear foot well to the inside lip of the rear load floor with the tailgate closed. Looking forward to getting ahold of this when your ready. Thanks again for the great work.
The load floor of my 2001 TJ is 35" deep and 34" wide at the tailgate. This is measured from the lip at the rear foot well to the inside lip of the rear load floor with the tailgate closed. Looking forward to getting ahold of this when your ready. Thanks again for the great work.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thanks! I'll add those dimensions to my growing list
.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
I met with the company on October 1 and demonstrated the prototype (did the gorilla test live for them
). They liked the design and prototype, so I removed it from my Jeep (it uninstalls in minutes) and left it with them to serve as their engineering reference - the next step being for them to do their production engineering so the parts can go into manufacturing.I'll be meeting with the company next week at the SEMA show in Las Vegas so I'll ask for an update on the progress of the production engineering. I'll post an update after I get the scoop from them.
And I'm still compiling my list of dimensions for other vehicles so I can propose a series of alternate sizes to them after they get their first prototypes done.
jscherb
Expedition Leader
Thank you.
The company was showing photos of the slide/cargo system to prospective distributors and retailers at SEMA last week, and the response to it that I heard at times I was hanging around their booth was very good.
I probably won't post much in this thread until the company has their preproduction versions ready, I'd expect that'll probably be after the first of the year. The slide/cargo system is in their engineering queue but since they're rapidly growing their Jeep product line, there's a lot in their engineering queue right now. For example, another thing they were showing concept photos of at SEMA are mounts for ammo cans that go in the back of the JK over the rear inner fenders.
They were also showing prototypes of their upcoming tailgate storage box/trail table for the JK and TJ, so lots in the queue for them...
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