New Product

I've been looking at a suitable system for ages but can't justify the expense of a $2000- job. (& yes I have seen the DIY threads in this forum but I'm not that handy)Here's my wish list & at a third the price I would be VERY interested.
-Avoid rattles
-Component so you can have say half in for a day trip or if you need the space for other things & on longer trips can put the whole unit in.
- Make the drawers long enough to store stuff such as tryrepliers
- tie down points on the opposite side to the fridge slide
- Able to stay in place at all vehicle angles (see my latest effort)
- Strong enough to take tools etc (not that I know how to use them)
- Maybe the ability to section the drawers at variable sizes?? (eg slide in dividers)
- Able to be taken out of the car by one person & re-installed again without major effort.
& finally for my quirky little Challenger, the ability to get at the spare tyre release bolt that has been rediculously set in the rear of the vehicle under all the camping gear etc (what Were Mitsubishi thinking).

I'm busy this weekend but I can pick it up on Tuesday thanks Eric!!!!Here's Mud in your Tyre

I was going to make a storage system for my GU as I cannot buy one that meets my specific requirements. But, if you can make one to suit my needs at the right price (1/3 of most others!!!) then you have your first potential customer.

I have a cargo barrier and at the back of it a 250H x 250W full width water tank. Hence the depth of a draw would be limited to around 750-800mm. But i want a fridge slide at exisiting floor level on the passenger side to suit a 40L Engels (Just fits with water tank behind it). The drivers side would have a 3/4 wide draw (approx width of larger back door). There would be a "lid" that sits on the recess for the fridge when it is not installed to retain a flat "floor". There are a few more requirements, like room for the ARB compressor in the well on the LHS, switches for rear work light, power outlets, bracket in draw for HF self tune antenae etc... but thats probably enough detail on this post.

Anyway, i know exactly what I want so would be keen to talk further. I have looked at the Black Widow & other types and while I liked their basic design, they could not accomadate my water tank, plus the price was exorbitant for what did not suit 100%.

Cheers

Mark Nissan 2003 GU 3.0TD
Windsor Rapid Offroad

Eric
I had no choice when I bought mine as they were at a bargain price and on an "as is" basis but if I had to buy some now I would have both drawers on the same side and the fridge on the other.
I have a suspension lift & body lift and getting into the fridge almost requires a stepladder. Fortunately the "trouble & strife" is six foot and gets the honour of fridge management.
It is also extremely difficult to unload a 60 litre engel as current drawers are a fraction too high so I'd be wary of that also.

Is this develoment a commercial prospect or purely a one off ?Live the life you love -
Love the life you live !!!

Hi Eric,

Of most value to me would be the ability to quickly remove the drawers after a trip. The minister for all things gets emotional when the pram and shopping won't fit in the back, or that she can't take extra kids to school because I have failed in my duties to reconfigure the vehicle in a timely fashion.

Regards,

Dave

If I hadn't made my own i would have certainly been very interested at a system that was light and a third of the price of other brands, still would be interested actualy.
What I would like in a bought drawer system would be some type of divider system... I like to keep tubes seperate from other gear etc, and mostly I would like a quick release system...well not too quick..but something with anchor points with cotter pins you pull out to release, and remove the whole unit, i'd like to have the option of being able to carry large things in the back if needed. We also have 3 dogs that hate the drawer system in the Patrol.
Also a shallow false floor to hide the valuables, was thinking more along the lines of a door that you can open when the drawer is open and it hinges downward so you dont need to unpack the drawer at all, just a small spot, size of a laptop.

Glenn - good luck, and can i have a free one to test?

So Eric do you intend to make this drawer setup from the material Mr Al was talking about a while back?

sounds good either way
who is the WE?
cheersdont ask me how i found him.
oops sprung!!

I want to thank everyone for there in put , so many awsom ideas , I will run throught them in the next week and see what I come up with Venus Bay

Eric

Before you bolt off to the workshop. We have a unit in the back of the Fender which fits in the well between the wheel arches and is more or less a permanent fitting. Can be removed but it's quite a job as the whole unit is bolted down. But what herself wanted (and of course got) was a table on separate slides directly under the top and above the draw. So if we pull up on the road we can slide this out which is very handy for knocking up some tucker etc. It does reduce the depth of the draw but after using it that is a small price to pay.

CheersFidei defensor

Rosco

Eric
Having no fold-down tail gate (such as the Cruisers have) I included a fold-down work surface in my custom built job that is great for preparing meals on the road or just stopping for a cuppa somewhere along the track.
As others have said, having the fridge slide at floor level is great. In our case we can access the fridge without sliding it out over the "bench" section.
One other idea I had was to (how to explain it ....ah) divide the drawer section into front and back sections with a double height compartment at the front/rear???(closest to the front of the car) and two "half" height drawers at the rear (closest to the tailgate) mounted one above the other on the same slide-out base as the large drawer but on separate drawer runners.
Pull the whole thing out to access the cornflakes box and the sauce bottles (taller stuff) but only pull a half-height drawer out to get to the cutlery, plates and matches etc.
Having the smaller drawers makes it much easier for us to get at the tea-bags and teaspoons etc. (getting old you see).
Cheers
oskarThe real oskar

Eric,
I like Rosco's idea of somewhere to store the collapsable table . We all have one and it is such an awkward thing to pack anywhere where you can get at it in a hurry .
I built shelves for my 80 Series out of wood and it worked a treat . Why don't you make an economy model without the draws . I reckon there would be plenty of buyers out there for this more economical option . Maybe no good if the person needed the long draws , but shelves work fine for the "behind the back seats" length .
Maybe you could have removable dividers in one wide draw .
I would like a fridge slide on the drivers side and two shelves on the other side .
Maybe even a 6" lip on the top of the shelves to stop stuff sliding onto my eutectic(spelt?) fridge which needs space around it .
I would buy that for my 100TD - RIGHT NOW .
WillieWishun I was fishun

G'day Eric,

I've been trying to develop my own draws (planing stage), Thought rather than make the usual false floor with draws underneath, i would make a box sorf of thing that fits in between the wheel arches. This would make it easy to remove. Just use tie down points. I need to use my wagon cargo space at stages so i want it to be be easly removed. Thought bout making it in 2 parts, fridge on one side at floor level, Maybe a small draw above that and behind that a Water tank. On the other side would be the draws. 2 on top of each of other. I'm a carpenter so it would be a work/play type of thing. The draw on the bottom (Non fridge slide), would be tall enough to stand nailguns, cordless drills etc up. A smaller draw above that. The fridge slide would double as a slide for the drop saw. As the others mentioned tie down points up top of the deck. Having it in 2 parts means that either side can be in with out the other. Fridge in but not the draws etc.

I'm in the ballarat area if your serious bout the guinea pig. Very interested. ( i've got an 80 series)

Let me know how yours works out, what material you used and what features it has.

I have an 80 Series with one of those Red Desert drawer systems in it, but on top of that I have built a timber (ply) frame, and instead of worrying about building drawers, I built it to take plastic slide in containers that you can buy from most Supermarkets and hardware stores. I put a small lip at the front to stop them from greeting me at the back door when I opened it .. and it is light ... durable ... and easy to reconfigure. There may be an idea you can adapt to your system.
Good luck
JackNo trees were harmed in the making or sending of this message.
However a great number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.

I will hopefully have the first prototype up and running for little desert , I also will need people who are going on trips around June to test out the product . Ill send a post out when I need test vehicles . I dont want to say to much about the development ( for obvious reasons ) but ill add this . Its back to the drawing board to add a few of the good ideas I got from here .

Thanks guys , ill keep you all posted on the development .Venus Bay