ʞ [=0===0] k Projects: Slide Out Camp Kitchen / Slide Out Bin Tray

[BoxGods]

I'd suggest a simple plastic box that's the size of the tunnel cross section (allowing for the latch obstruction.) No need for slider or mechanism, just the box itself.

The idea would be two boxes (tubs), accessible from each side, one deeper, with a hatch to be accessible through the rear seat opening.

I have a makeshift arrangement with plywood sliding on plastic. Unless you have some really heavy gear (I have some pretty heavy recovery gear in one side) it sides out easily enough and the door supports the tray (the other end has a stick inside the tunnel that pushes against the roof of the tunnel to prevent the tray tipping.)



The obstacle is the latch mechanism that obscures a lot of the tunnel volume. I wonder why they didn't make that fully recessed. I doubt it's a crash test issue, but the tunnel door is strangely wildly over-engineered. Maybe they thought it would participate in side-impact or other crash testing … it can't be structural because the body is bolted directly to the frame. Maybe just over-engineered to support any amount of load with say two people standing on it then holding something heavy like an electric bicycle or a roof-top tent.

I agree big heavy/fancy/expensive ball bearing slides are way overkill, but just sliding something in and out that rubs on the interior surfaces of the tunnel is not good for the tub or the gear tunnel. I think slide rails are the perfect middle ground.

Sponsored

 

[abirozy]

I love where you are going here. A pull out kitchen isn’t really for me but storage in the gear tunnel is. What I would love to see is something similar what Rivian did for it’s service trucks. Basically split the slider so you have a tray similar to your design on the passenger side but half the length, then on the drivers side 2 or 3 drawers for tools/smaller items.

The other thing I would buy hands down would be what I discussed with one of you guys up at Mt Hood, water storage for part of the spare tire container.

Cool looking kitchen though.

i signed up for the utility tray. I have not seen a service truck as i am pretty close to a service center, but after reading your comment, here is what i am thinking.......

The option to have the utility tray as two 1/2's, each sliding out their respective sides. Possibly that could solve the issue of access room on either side and potentially have the option of what each side is. so possibly drawers on one side and utility tray on the other?

Alternatively, if the tray can slide out either side like the OP states, will there be stopping points so that the tray does not pull all the way out unless you pull it further, kind of like how a car door has a few natural spots it stops as it opens? (This isn't my area of expertise so I hope I explained it correctly)

 

[steelwheels]

I will start a thread on it over at the group site and we can all "mull it over". My feeling was pare it back to 25 or 30 at most and use the extra space to store 10 or 12 feet of hose. Or make them stackable 12 gallon so people can use one for 12 gallons and if they need extra for a specific trip they can toss the second one in.

Are you the guy who mentioned a spare tire bay tank to Jeff on the Mt Hood Rivian trip?

I love this idea of a smaller tank that is then "expandable" with an add on. I think it could be much more practical for a larger portion of people. 1 tank would leave room for additional storage on top and 2 for your longer trips, higher water needs. Also, I like the placement in the spare tire spot more than the trunk because it is closer to the kitchen and other thinks that may need to be sprayed off before putting back in the bed/gear tunnel.

 

[BoxGods]

i signed up for the utility tray. I have not seen a service truck as i am pretty close to a service center, but after reading your comment, here is what i am thinking.......

The option to have the utility tray as two 1/2's, each sliding out their respective sides. Possibly that could solve the issue of access room on either side and potentially have the option of what each side is. so possibly drawers on one side and utility tray on the other?

Alternatively, if the tray can slide out either side like the OP states, will there be stopping points so that the tray does not pull all the way out unless you pull it further, kind of like how a car door has a few natural spots it stops as it opens? (This isn't my area of expertise so I hope I explained it correctly)

You explained it fine =)

A little hard to explain as it's more of a tactile thing, but long drawers like these on slide rails don't have the same feel as a regular drawer in your kitchen. By that I mean that the chances of sliding one all the way out and dumping it on the ground are fairly slim.

Normal operation would be to split the tray into three sections and you slide it out one or two sections worth whichever side you are on.

You can of course subdivide it into more sections if you want to and if you ever do want to slide it all the way out--like two people carrying it to a job site as one example--you can, again from either side.

 

[BoxGods]

I love this idea of a smaller tank that is then "expandable" with an add on. I think it could be much more practical for a larger portion of people. 1 tank would leave room for additional storage on top and 2 for your longer trips, higher water needs. Also, I like the placement in the spare tire spot more than the trunk because it is closer to the kitchen and other thinks that may need to be sprayed off before putting back in the bed/gear tunnel.

I think reach wise the frunk and spare tire bay are about the same distance wise with the frunk being the slightly easier of the two to use overall. No need to climb into the bed of the truck, open the hatch etc.

As for water capacity. It will of course depend on what type of camping you do, where you live, and trip length of course, but in my personal experience the most amazing places to camp are dry. BLM has something like 150 million acres of land with a LOT of it being available for dry camping in some seriously spectacular places.

So water capacity becomes a lot more important. There are lots of ways to pack compact meals but you can only cut back so far on water. Being able to bathe is always nice too, especially if you're camping with a friend =)

So for daily use washing mud off gear or the dog I think the frunk tank is the better choice for most--not all but most--and for serious camping the spare tank gives you a big capacity boost.

 

[rivian_panda]

There will also be a simple slide out bin tray available separately. If you already have the rail installed in your truck for the camp kitchen this can be used on the same rail.

All aluminum construction and can be accessed from either side of the vehicle.

The price target is $350 - $450 depending on if you need the slide rail or not. This may increase / decrease depending on what options the group wants to add to the project. My personal preference is to keep it as a simple utility tray with 2 to 4 movable dividers so you can use it for grocery bags and 5 gallon buckets.

I know one of the first questions will be about the dimensions so here you go =)

please take my damn money now!!!!!!!!!!!! sign me up!!!!!

 

[chrismc]

I like the kitchen design a lot, it is more flexible than the Rivian camp kitchen design. I’m not quite ready to commit though, I have a suspicion that the Rivian kitchen and gear shuttle were paused due to potential Gear Tunnel changes to accommodate the refactored tonneau cover and I want to see where that lands before going all-in on anything for the tunnel.

While I love the aluminum overall, the one suggestion I’d make for the kitchen is to use Richlite material for the countertop as the original demo Rivian kitchen did. It is a wonderful, sustainable material that is weatherproof, has a nice feel to it, and can be used as a cutting board (I have a few Richlite cutting boards of various ages that get abused and hold up great).

 

[abirozy]

You explained it fine =)

A little hard to explain as it's more of a tactile thing, but long drawers like these on slide rails don't have the same feel as a regular drawer in your kitchen. By that I mean that the chances of sliding one all the way out and dumping it on the ground are fairly slim.

Normal operation would be to split the tray into three sections and you slide it out one or two sections worth whichever side you are on.

You can of course subdivide it into more sections if you want to and if you ever do want to slide it all the way out--like two people carrying it to a job site as one example--you can, again from either side.

Thanks for that. Sounds like it is hard to accidentally slide all the way out. I think I was more concerned about it sliding too far out and hitting the car parked next to me.

so to confirm, it sounds like that would likely not happen easily?

 

[obfuscurity]

@BoxGods both of your ProBoards links are failing to load for me, getting an "ERROR CODE: 570" page.

 

[ohseedee]

I’ve not really been interested in the Rivian camp kitchen as I wouldn’t use it enough to justify taking up the valubable space inside the gear tunnel. The price being the other huge factor. Was thinking of a diy bed kitchen. However, this design seems to have a lot more utility. Correct me if I’m wrong, but the actual “kitchen” part of this really takes up very little space. For the most part it seems to be a cook top + lots of storage. If so, I could see using this 24/7 and have organized storage + the occasional “kitchen.”

If I don’t sign up the kitchen, I’m pretty sure I’m in for the storage shuttle (not both).

 

[Riviot]

For apples to apples, the Rivian gear shuttle is $1500, right? So this shuttle option, while not powered, is significantly more affordable?

 

[Riviot]

@BoxGods both of your ProBoards links are failing to load for me, getting an "ERROR CODE: 570" page.

@BoxGods ditto for me on the error

 

[madgrey]

Have you seen the 12 gallon frunk tank with wash down sprayer? Perfect for cleaning up gear/kids/dogs before they get in the truck.

No, I had not seen this yet. Pretty cool! I love the burgeoning Rivian aftermarket.

 

[obfuscurity]

@BoxGods ditto for me on the error

Seems to be working for me now.

 

[obfuscurity]

@BoxGods one other issue, I tried to click on an image to view it and got the following error:

Guests do not have access to download attachments. Please log in and try again.

Sponsored