Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle

yapaul · Aug 13, 2023

I've been using the gear tunnel to transport golf bags. Works well but my old back does not like to bend and reach into the space to wrestle the bags in and out. Also, depending on the parking spot we get at the course, I would have to work from either side of the truck. To solve these problems, this is a shuttle that is bi-directional. The clip shows the shuttle in action.

yapaul · Aug 14, 2023

The weight load for the rails are rated pretty high so they can be installed horizontally to save interior space but it is still a tight fit. The rails are held in place with a plate system.

Rivian R1T R1S Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle shuttle2

yapaul · Aug 14, 2023

Here are pics of the whole shuttle. I did not have enough wood at the time of building so I made 3 sections. The full shelf would be 60" x 13". The rails are rated for 700lb each but I am using them horizontally to maximize interior space. There is a wood block that will rest on the gear door for support if the rails deflect when fully extended (just in case). But our 2 golf bags total to about 50lb so there is no deflection. Anyways, this is another idea for projects folks can do to make a great truck even better (especially for us older guys with bad backs). The budget was to be around what the Rivian shuttle was (I believe it was about $1000 around 2 years ago when we first configured the truck). The rails were a bit expensive because they are bi-directional. But it came in under $500 (but your miles may vary depending on how much you want to tackle yourself or outsource).

Rivian R1T R1S Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle shuttle1

Rivian R1T R1S Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle shuttle5

Rivian R1T R1S Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle shuttle3

yapaul · Aug 14, 2023

Hm, I have 2 videos of 1) loading the golf bags from one side of the truck and 2) unloading from the other. But I think there is a limit on how big a video file can be because the site rejects them. I will try to take shorter videos.

1T2022 · Aug 14, 2023

looks great. simple and works

ksujeff99 · Aug 14, 2023

That looks great! Nice fit and finish. Can you provide a link to the rails you used?

csharp · Aug 14, 2023

This looks great! Link to the slides you used and more pics of how you mounted them?

Apatel323 · Aug 14, 2023

Great idea for golf bags! It’s challenging try to get two golf bags in the gear tunnel. The straps on the bag get tangled up, but this would solve the issue if you can place the bags and slide them in. I am following and it would be great to see the videos of you putting the golf bags in. Thank you.

Gandy14 · Aug 16, 2023

yapaul said:
I've been using the gear tunnel to transport golf bags. Works well but my old back does not like to bend and reach into the space to wrestle the bags in and out. Also, depending on the parking spot we get at the course, I would have to work from either side of the truck. To solve these problems, this is a shuttle that is bi-directional. The clip shows the shuttle in action.

that looks great but how did you get it to slide out each ends? They look like side mount ball bearing drawer slides but I don't see how it would let you do that.

Donald Stanfield · Aug 16, 2023

Nice job. Looks like some quality work and a creative solution.

yapaul · Aug 16, 2023

Gandy14 said:
that looks great but how did you get it to slide out each ends? They look like side mount ball bearing drawer slides but I don't see how it would let you do that.

these are bi-directional slides. we use them in some of our test vehicles at work. i see requests for information in this thread and plan on doing more videos and writeups this weekend (annoying how work can get in the way of playing with our trucks)

yapaul · Aug 16, 2023

Apatel323 said:
Great idea for golf bags! It’s challenging try to get two golf bags in the gear tunnel. The straps on the bag get tangled up, but this would solve the issue if you can place the bags and slide them in. I am following and it would be great to see the videos of you putting the golf bags in. Thank you.

Yep. i will reshoot videos this weekend. i think there is a 30mb file size limit for videos so i will have to redo with that in mind.

yapaul · Aug 20, 2023

We went to a driving range today (Palo Alto Muni for those familiar with the Bay Area) and took some videos of putting golf bags in (passenger side) and getting them out (driver side) using the shuttle. Jing split the action into smaller videos because I was worried about the file upload size limit. Both of our bags are pretty standard stand bags but mine is a bit larger than hers. I don't think 2 cart bags will fit into the gear tunnel. A strap was used to keep all the towels/legs together. There is even some room on the end for our shoes. I will work on getting info on the rails, the mounting system, and how I kept the shuttle from banging around while driving.

Apatel323 · Aug 20, 2023

Thank you for sharing! Great idea!

Cmur100 · Sep 1, 2023

yapaul said:
I've been using the gear tunnel to transport golf bags. Works well but my old back does not like to bend and reach into the space to wrestle the bags in and out. Also, depending on the parking spot we get at the course, I would have to work from either side of the truck. To solve these problems, this is a shuttle that is bi-directional. The clip shows the shuttle in action.

Love the bi-directional slide idea. What length slides did you use?

Yet another DIY gear tunnel shuttle

yapaul

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