Home Built Truck Bed Slide

[willf650]

I know the majority of posts here are garage related but here's one of me outfitting my work truck. I work in the building automation and commercial/industrial HVAC field. I was a field tech and then took a job as an engineer in my companies office and recently changed positions again to different department as a different type of engineer. Basically I went from having a 1 ton van with all my tools to no company vehicle and finally to a mini pickup with basic hand tools and test instruments. The mini pickup is ok but just as in the van you wind up with stuff just thrown in the floor as far as you can reach. Unfortunately being short my reach is basically the last 2' of the bed.

I decided to build a truck bed slide so I can utilize the whole bed.

I started out making the the "drawer" slide and used 1" bearing rollers I got from harbor freight. There are 6 of them mounted to the floor and they are rated at 155# a piece.


Since the bearing rollers move 360 degrees I installed 4 5/8" rollers in the side to keep the drawer body centered. I specifically used 5/8" plywood so I could insert the rollers in from the back and have them stick through the wood. This allowed me to make the drawer body as wide as possible.


I dry fitted the assembly to verify I didn't screw up. As you can see this truck has a one piece fiberglass body thing dropped in the bed. It's nice but it makes the floor of a mini truck even smaller.


I made the drawer body out of 3/4" particle board. I chose this material for 2 reasons.

1. It's cheaper than 3/4" plywood.
2. It's harder than 3/4" ply wood so the 1" rollers won't sink in.

All the joints are made with waterproof wood glue and screws every 6". In order to get more glue surface area since the drawer body will be the structural part of the slide I made a "fillet" piece out of a 2 x 6 cut at a 45.




To make the drawer body nonskid and water resistant I coated it with a can of bed liner with nonslip grit mixed in. Almost makes it feel like grip tape.


I mounted a handle and two 5/8" rollers onto top and two 1" rollers on the bottom at the front of the drawer.


I added a upper rail for the rollers I mounted to the top of the drawer body to roll on when you start extend the drawer and it starts to cantilever. There is also a slight angle cut to it so the drawer self centers while riding on the top rollers.


I added a latch to it to lock it all the way in, 50% and all the way out. Also added a stop so I can't be stupid and pull the thing all the way out and drop it on the ground.


Here's the finished product installed in the truck. Just to test it after mounting it I crawled out over the end with it extended and it easily held my weight which is, unfortunately, way to much. It extends about 3/4 the way out and allows me to reach and easily utilize the whole bed.


Since my main tool nowadays is a computer it actually felt good to make something tangible.

 

[Tink]

Very nice! Seems well thought out.

 

[Strouty]

It looks great, but I need to warn you (from experience) that you need to seal that wood (all of it) much better. Have you ever seen what happens when a book gets wet and then dries? That wood will expand significantly with very little water. If I remember correctly, we mixed resin and MDF sawdust, then painted every surface with the resin to keep it from warping and expanding. We did this after it got wet and it stopped the issue, but I couldn't believe how bad it was with just a little water. I like the idea if you keep it dry it will be awesome.

 

[archirelic]

Nice fabrication & great idea. I've toyed around with an idea similar for sometime now...but haven't brought it to fruition b/c of the decline of my work in the demo/remodeling business the last couple of years.

 

[great white tj]

Very nice.

 

[CNGsaves]

Great work to make that space in truck more accessible. You might skin the floor with that pebble-finish plastic stuff they put on walls in bathrooms (ie for any leaks so you'd have easy cleanup).

Also, you could enhance the design by going VERTICAL as well. That bottom could be for materials like wood, long materials, and the top coulld be for tools within yet another box that might be 12" tall that would keep expensive stuff out-of-sight from potential theft (ie flip-up lid). The ultimate top could have 2" lip on it to hold other loose materials that might even be stored in milk crates.

Curious what vehicle this is in?? Looks like Ford Transit Connect??

If you get real good with your wood design/function, you could convert to steel and patent the thing and go get some venture capital from Shark Tank TV show !!

 

[willf650]

http://www.vankiller.com/m-series-m-90-gallery.htm#

The truck is a Ford Ranger with a Miranda Capsule in it. It is enclosed so water shouldn't be an issue. I already coated the drawer with bed liner with anti skid mixed in it so it is in effect the waterproof bathroom coating. I did that more for the anti skid properties than the waterproofing.

There is no patenting this as there are already many companies out there making something to this effect. That's were I got the idea.

I'm going to do more to the capsule in the next few weeks. I intend on enclosing one of the gull wing side doors and mounting the mid chest I used to have in my van in it. I also intend on making a rack in the ceiling to slide a 6' ladder in. These will be made out of metal since I doubt wood would hold up and I have a bunch of 3/4 square tubing and flat stock already. I'm just going to make the stuff hit all the hinge mounting bolts for the gull wing doors.

 

[Strouty]

I would be more concerned with the bottom part than what you coated all ready. Here is an article that discusses some of the issues and strengths of MDF.

http://americanwoodworker.com/blogs/shop/archive/2009/02/18/mdf-and-particleboard.aspx

 

[jweller]

I'd go ahead and at least throw a couple coats of paint on it just to get a little bit of water resistance to it. One day you will have to open that up in the rain, and it will get wet. Otherwise, it looks like very nice execution!

 

[DoghouseForge]

Great idea with the rollers. Makes the construction a lot easier then with full side rollers and the associated tracks. .

Where did you find the rollers ?

Just FYI I have an "enclosed body on my truck and when it rains water still gets in. Especially off the side doors corners and around the bottom edge of the rear hatch. There are pics of the slide out I use in my digs thread link.

Very cool and I commend you for building it yourself

JP

 

[willf650]

Where did you find the rollers ?



JP

They came from Harbor Freight. The 1" where like a $1.70 and the 5/8" where around 80 cents.

 

[PAToyota]

Unfortunately, I'm going to say - from experience - that the particle board just isn't going to hold up to the stresses. Good idea, but plywood would have been a much better choice.

 

[John Hyatt]

Will, after a couple of years how is your truck drawer holding up ?

John www.deckmastersllc.com

 

[willf650]

I only used it for about a year. I changed positions again and the company sold that truck as it was the last one they owned. Some how they prefer to lease as it is a constant set cost as maintenance and repairs are included in the lease.

I worked fine for the year I used it and it went with the truck. The structure of the particle board held up fine. The only thing I would do differently would be to put some lengths of 1" x 1/8" steel where all the bearing rode. Basically 3 strips. The 1" bearings were making grooves in the wood. They would have done it no matter what wood you used. It was perfectly usable when the truck was sold but I could see issues within 3 years of use. Metal strips for the bearings to ride on would have avoided any future issues.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[John Hyatt]

Thanks Will.

I am going to use those harbor freight bearings for my truck bed drawer. As I am going about it I thought of the rollers digging into the sheet goods and plan to use Ipe strips under them.

Believe me that South American lumber will wear out the steel before it routs out. Great tip on those bearings I was going to use casters before I ran into your post.

Thanks again !

J.

 

[willf650]

I didn't mention it but I did paint all of that bed slide inside and out.

Since the truck had gull wing doors on the sides I put a sheet of 3/4" plywood across that was 2/3 the length of the bed. That way I had tool boxes mounted on one side and open on the other. You flipped open the bull wing door on one side and you had a wall of drawers for tools and you could stick in larger items on the upper level from the other side or rear. There was a cut down 2/4 glued and screwed to the front of it facing down and one on the back facing up to stop stuff from falling off. It was also coated with the bed liner.

Since the rear 1/3 of the bed didn't have the upper level you could stick taller stuff in the rear.

After rigging the truck like this it was more useable then any van I ever had. If I ever have a work vehicle again it will be a pickup. They are so much nicer to ride in. The van was always like riding in a washing machine someone threw a handful of bolts in.

I don't have any pictures of the final layout.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[theoldwizard1]

...I made the drawer body out of 3/4" particle board. I chose this material for 2 reasons.

1. It's cheaper than 3/4" plywood.
2. It's harder than 3/4" ply wood so the 1" rollers won't sink in.

Particle board will absorb moisture right out of the air and then swell and lose strength,

I would paint all side, preferably with an oil based primer first.

 

[Bdgjr215]

I built something similar to this a handful of years ago for a friend of mine who was(funny)
A house carpenter, but had terrible organizing skills.unfortunately no pics but it worked
Very nicely for him.I built a box so that when the drawer was tucked in, there was still a useable platform above.I put partitions in the drawer for organizing tools cords nails
Etc.as an afterthought,it ended up being a nice work surface when extended for him.
He would throw a sawhorse under it for stability and a piece of scrap ply on top.
It took me a while to convince him to do it but he loved it when it was done.
His truck was a 2500 chevy pickup with a cap and side box combo,so in and out on
Your knees was a mutha for him.

 

[1949 caddyman]

Good idea, thanks for posting.

 

[dwysywd]

great write up. I am interested in something similar, but that I can park a snowmobile on top of occasionally. So, I am going to have to give this more thought. Maybe treated plywood with rubber coating? Not sure, but great article. I have a tonneau that seals really well and plan on keeping my bed covered mostly 99% of the time. But like I said, sled or quad, but want to be able to use it if I need w/o removing the storage.

I subscribed and look forward to using this as a reference.

Here is another article I found while researching this: http://www.sunnyskyz.com/blog/494/W...t-And-Going-To-Make-Truck-Owners-Very-Jealous

 

[Camp girl]

This is awesome. I just bought a tear drop camper and need mucho storage space in my truck. I just can't see spending 2K for a steel box with roller bearings. I'm going to use OSB and plywood to preclude the water damage issue. I love all the other replies as they helped me to choose this design. Thanks for your creativity, something I don't have much of!!!

 

[IMPP31]

I am hoping to learn and fabricate this myself for my Avalanche. Would the roller bearings work for the slide on the bed itself, without the base assembly? Would it harm my bed? My intent is to be able to remove the slide for any other purpose I might have.

 

[WoodsTruck]

If you were using it strictly on the bed surface, I would think a wide roller caster would work better to distribute the weight better than a "ball point" roller.

 

[IMPP31]

Hey Willf650 - the only things I don't understand is how you mounted/set in the bed? Did you bolt it down, or what? Seems to me if not secured some way, the entire assembly would flip with weight.

 

[dwysywd]

Hey Willf650 - the only things I don't understand is how you mounted/set in the bed? Did you bolt it down, or what? Seems to me if not secured some way, the entire assembly would flip with weight.

What he said.


Sent from my bag phone

 

[freerobert]

Great thanks! I woke this morning wondering how to build one for my new Ram 1500.
Since I'm older I did not want to have to be crawling into the back, so..., I'll build yours.
Robert

 

[72Camaro]

Why didn’t you use heavy duty drawer slides instead of those rollers? I’m planning something very similar but it will be an aluminum pan for making use under the tonneau cover easier.

 

[katywoodworker]

I know the majority of posts here are garage related but here's one of me outfitting my work truck. I work in the building automation and commercial/industrial HVAC field. I was a field tech and then took a job as an engineer in my companies office and recently changed positions again to different department as a different type of engineer. Basically I went from having a 1 ton van with all my tools to no company vehicle and finally to a mini pickup with basic hand tools and test instruments. The mini pickup is ok but just as in the van you wind up with stuff just thrown in the floor as far as you can reach. Unfortunately being short my reach is basically the last 2' of the bed.

I decided to build a truck bed slide so I can utilize the whole bed.

I started out making the the "drawer" slide and used 1" bearing rollers I got from harbor freight. There are 6 of them mounted to the floor and they are rated at 155# a piece.

Since the bearing rollers move 360 degrees I installed 4 5/8" rollers in the side to keep the drawer body centered. I specifically used 5/8" plywood so I could insert the rollers in from the back and have them stick through the wood. This allowed me to make the drawer body as wide as possible.

I dry fitted the assembly to verify I didn't screw up. As you can see this truck has a one piece fiberglass body thing dropped in the bed. It's nice but it makes the floor of a mini truck even smaller.

I made the drawer body out of 3/4" particle board. I chose this material for 2 reasons.

1. It's cheaper than 3/4" plywood.
2. It's harder than 3/4" ply wood so the 1" rollers won't sink in.

All the joints are made with waterproof wood glue and screws every 6". In order to get more glue surface area since the drawer body will be the structural part of the slide I made a "fillet" piece out of a 2 x 6 cut at a 45.

To make the drawer body nonskid and water resistant I coated it with a can of bed liner with nonslip grit mixed in. Almost makes it feel like grip tape.

I mounted a handle and two 5/8" rollers onto top and two 1" rollers on the bottom at the front of the drawer.

I added a upper rail for the rollers I mounted to the top of the drawer body to roll on when you start extend the drawer and it starts to cantilever. There is also a slight angle cut to it so the drawer self centers while riding on the top rollers.

I added a latch to it to lock it all the way in, 50% and all the way out. Also added a stop so I can't be stupid and pull the thing all the way out and drop it on the ground.

Here's the finished product installed in the truck. Just to test it after mounting it I crawled out over the end with it extended and it easily held my weight which is, unfortunately, way to much. It extends about 3/4 the way out and allows me to reach and easily utilize the whole bed.


Since my main tool nowadays is a computer it actually felt good to make something tangible.

Are these images available? I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks

 

[willf650]

Are these images available? I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks

Gallery Link

Here you go.