DIY Gear Shuttle Build Write-Up Instructions w/ Photos

[HighVoltOverland]

I have seen a lot of cool DIY efforts that reminded me I never really shared some of my experience, which in the process can probably help folks save some money and optimize build dimensions

I have slowly been optimizing my gear tunnel build.

Key points of concern for me when making my DIY solution were:
-Minimally destructive (Rivian gave us 6mm bolts to mount into!, not destructive at all unless you damage a trim clip)
-Less than the Rivian teased shuttle in cost (materials only)
-Easy enough to share plans/ build steps with
-Parts are available for purchase readily
-Maximize usable space

*Have drawer slides oriented in the proper position, not flat or off camber, like the OEM ones that never were released.

V1.0

(Not many pictures, this is not a build i'd recommend, mostly just documenting process)
Edit: Removed the parts list, seriously don't do this one also, avoid the listed leg
RV Leg Table (Finicky, random uncareful person can accidentally damage)
Folding leg
*Not affiliate links

Estimated Cost: $420ish (nice)
Wood : $15
Drawer Slides: $160
Unistrut: $70
Angle Aluminum: $75
Fasteners and Hardware: $50
Leg: $50

Things I liked:
-It's a working drawer
-the frame is stable and doesn't need any additional supports between the factory mount points

Reasons I didn't like this:

-The way I oriented the drawer slides was weird and rested on angle brackets to clear the top side of the slide hardware. Too janky (but also, worked without fail for 4 months) not the worst first attempt
-Screws too long that came with the brackets, poked through cheap thin wood i had on hand
-RV leg bent when person didn't know how to unlock properly

Things I know I'm changing in finalized version
-router to soften all angles
-rivet or bolts instead of self tappers
-better finished wood OR polymer for the drawer platform

V2.0

Major Changes:
- Drawer Slide Height and Orientation
-removal of random confusing hardware
-drawer was dropped to between the slides, making it slimmer, but giving me less headroom loss due to the frame eating into usable space

Honestly, this is the most efficient use of height I've seen in any DIY build online, when using the drawer hardware in the rated orientation.

If all you want is a drawer, and want to maintain maximum use of the space, this would be the one I recommend to anyone with $500 and a free afternoon

Materials:
60 Inch Drawer Slides (I'd get a single locking side if I had to do it again)
Drawer Slide
1ct 9" x 60" wood panel (free for me, made from scrap)
Cheap wood
2ct 2"x64" angle aluminum (these are the side plates that the slides attach to)
2" Angle Aluminum
2ct 60" angle aluminum (I used these from v1, likely could use short singles screw angles to achieve the same end goal, connects side of slide to drawer surface)
Angle Aluminum
2ct 10" sections of lower profile Unistrut (slim one)
2ct 8" sections of lower profile Unistrut (slim one)
Superstrut - Low Profile
8ct 1/4 unistrut nuts
Nuts
4ct M6 Flange Bolts (attaches hardware to truck in existing frame points)
M6 Flange Nuts
8ct 1/4x20 x 1inch bolts (connect unistrut to itself and bolt the angle aluminum to the unistrut
Bolts
12ct Fender Washer (for both the 1/4 bolts and the m6)
Fender Washers
30ct Self Drilling screws (connecting the drawer to the angle aluminum)
Self Drilling screws

*Not affiliate links

Tools I Used:
Ratchet and Sockets
Impact Driver
Drill
Band Saw
Circular Saw

Estimated Cost: $460ish
Wood : $15
Drawer Slides: $160
Unistrut: $35 (Only need one section of the low profile stuff)
Angle Aluminum: $200 (130 for the 2 inch, 70ish for the 1 inch, as built, can likely replace the i inch for something much cheaper)
Fasteners and Hardware: $50

Instructions:

1. Grab a beverage

2. Prep all your tools
3. Spend an hour finding the tool you just had in your hand

2. Pop the center plastic trim off both sides of the gear tunnel
2b. A trim kit from HF or a butter knife work well

3. Eyeball or measure the ridge that is exposed with 2 m6 theaded mount points
3b. Cut section of unistrut to length of the ridge (ballpark 6"-8")
3c. Bolt strut to ridge with 2 M6 Bolts
3c.1 You may need to drill an extra hole in the strut for one of the mounting points to line up

4. Slide two nuts into the now-mounted struts

5. measure between the edges of the exposed trim
5b. Eyeball and cut another two pieces of unistrut (mine wire roughly 5.5 slots long)
5c. bolt the longer piece of unistrut to the lower one with 1/4 bolts ( or 3/8 or 1/2 if thats the nut you bought) Bonus points for properly using a washer
5d. add in two more unistrut nuts to the top of the channel

6. measure the distance between the outside of both mounted unistruts
6b. eyeball and cut the 2 inch angle Iron\
6c. eyeball and drill a hole in each end of the aluminum angle
bolt the angle to the unistrut with remaining bolts and washers
6d. Marvel at your intelligence and think you should sell this commercially
6e. Take a picture of your master crafted hardware
6f. Realize it looks shitty and pretend you never thought about selling this to anyone

7. Mark the points for mounting the slide hardware to the angle
7b. Precisely eyeball to make sure the slides are even (measure if you want, OOooOo look at you college boy with your fancy degree and measurements)
7c. Fiddle a shit ton sliding the drawer back and forth to expose the mounting holes
7d. Realize precision is for aerospace and just use self tappers, telling yourself you'll DEFINITELY come back later and drill the holes out to use properly torked hardware (yeah okay guy)
7e. Realize you will have to pull the frame out to access all the holes and then be pissed thinking this is too involved, but then remember the whole thing can be pulled with just unbolting 4 bolts, so really that's not that bad.
7f. Think that it was pretty easy to remove the frame to access drilling/mounting the hardware and think you are a genius again
7g. See step 6e and 6f

8. mount the smaller angle aluminum to the inside of the drawer slide
8b The Drawer slide hardware is right at 60" you should be good to measure and cut, but eyeball if it makes you feel whole.
8c. Repeat most of the fiddly bits of step 7 to fasten the angles to the drawer slide

9. Measure the distance between the drawer slides and cut the drawer surface material to match
9b. mine was like 9"x60"
9c Using your Lizard brain fasten the surface to the angle however you see fit, bonus points if you try fastening upside down for a frustrating amount of time as you get metal wood and dust in your eyes, but then remember that you can unbolt it quickly and flip it over for the last two fasteners
9d. Realize you could probably use something cheaper than 120" of aluminum to attach a drawer slide to a horizontal surface
9e. Drink another beverage and realize you made something for like, a third of what Rivian offered and it even has the slides in the actual proper orientation.
9f. High Five your intellect
9g. Feel remorse for hi-fiving yourself
9h. Realize you don't drink, and think about contacting your VA Dr because your memory loss is getting worse

9.1 ???

10. Profit

11. Give it the 'ole "that's not going anywhere" Dad christening-slap as you close it up

Things I liked:
-Simplified the design further
-I got almost 2 inches more of headroom with this orientation
-changing the superstrut to the thin stuff let me maximize both width and height advantages, while the platform is slimmer, it isn't comically small like I've seen in some build (no shade, love the creativity, just gives me a chuckle)
-1/8" thick aluminum angle fastened to the slide hardware is rock solid, no need for awkward supports mid span.
-I lost one of my bolts and replaced it with an eye hook I had laying around and it is way more useful than it deserves to be

Reasons I didn't like this:

-I accidentally bought 1/16 thick angle, so there was a minor concern I had over rigidity mid gear tunnel, replacing s00n, so not too fussed though
-I intend on making kitchen modules, and want to incorporate channel to enable a stable/repeatable/ removable hardware interface


Things I know I'm changing in finalized version
-router to soften all angles
-rivet or bolts instead of self tappers
-better finished wood OR polymer for the drawer platform
-more robust folding leg for when there is kitchen stuff mounted
-channels in the drawer platform for mounting options

V3.0 (s00n)
Major Changes:
- Replacement of off the shelf Angle Aluminum with extruded aluminum
-Self Tappers/Drillers Finally replaced with non pokey fasteners
-Drawer surface replaced with marine grade plywood

Sponsored

 

[Oldsmobile_Mike]

Looks great!

 

[COdogman]

Thanks for the thorough write up!

 

[Dark-Fx]

Zirconia flap discs make quick work of sharp aluminum. Gone through several of them working on my bed storage, which is stupidly elaborate and has been sitting waiting for my truck to get back from service.

 

[rosspa2]

Great job and appreciate the write up had a similar set of where did put that and why is this upside down when I did mine.

I cheated heavily, use two 2x4 cut to length and nailed together as the under portion, with a strap out to the bolts. Then mounted the rails directly on top of those horizontally for max clearance and they really don't give much. I also put a slide on both sides so you can pull either half out. Super simple and dirt cheap.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

Zirconia flap discs make quick work of sharp aluminum. Gone through several of them working on my bed storage, which is stupidly elaborate and has been sitting waiting for my truck to get back from service.

Yeah, My v3 replacement parts (extrusion) are scheduled for delivery friday, so I'm not going to bother making the aluminum bits safer since it's just me and the dog home before the weekend

But once I get everything dialed in I'll be routering everything wood and dremeling/ flapper disk grinding anything sharp and metal to make sure that my scratches are just from the gear tunnel doors, as God RJ intended.

 

[zuowen]

Great!

 

[R1TruKaLa]

I have seen a lot of cool DIY efforts that reminded me I never really shared some of my experience, which in the process can probably help folks save some money and optimize build dimensions

I have slowly been optimizing my gear tunnel build.

Key points of concern for me when making my DIY solution were:
-Minimally destructive (Rivian gave us 6mm bolts to mount into!, not destructive at all unless you damage a trim clip)
-Less than the Rivian teased shuttle in cost (materials only)
-Easy enough to share plans/ build steps with
-Parts are available for purchase readily
-Maximize usable space

*Have drawer slides oriented in the proper position, not flat or off camber, like the OEM ones that never were released.

V1.0

(Not many pictures, this is not a build i'd recommend, mostly just documenting process)
Edit: Removed the parts list, seriously don't do this one also, avoid the listed leg
RV Leg Table (Finicky, random uncareful person can accidentally damage)
Folding leg
*Not affiliate links

Estimated Cost: $420ish (nice)
Wood : $15
Drawer Slides: $160
Unistrut: $70
Angle Aluminum: $75
Fasteners and Hardware: $50
Leg: $50

Things I liked:
-It's a working drawer
-the frame is stable and doesn't need any additional supports between the factory mount points

Reasons I didn't like this:

-The way I oriented the drawer slides was weird and rested on angle brackets to clear the top side of the slide hardware. Too janky (but also, worked without fail for 4 months) not the worst first attempt
-Screws too long that came with the brackets, poked through cheap thin wood i had on hand
-RV leg bent when person didn't know how to unlock properly

Things I know I'm changing in finalized version
-router to soften all angles
-rivet or bolts instead of self tappers
-better finished wood OR polymer for the drawer platform

V2.0

Major Changes:
- Drawer Slide Height and Orientation
-removal of random confusing hardware
-drawer was dropped to between the slides, making it slimmer, but giving me less headroom loss due to the frame eating into usable space

Honestly, this is the most efficient use of height I've seen in any DIY build online, when using the drawer hardware in the rated orientation.

If all you want is a drawer, and want to maintain maximum use of the space, this would be the one I recommend to anyone with $500 and a free afternoon

Materials:
60 Inch Drawer Slides (I'd get a single locking side if I had to do it again)
Drawer Slide
1ct 9" x 60" wood panel (free for me, made from scrap)
Cheap wood
2ct 2"x64" angle aluminum (these are the side plates that the slides attach to)
2" Angle Aluminum
2ct 60" angle aluminum (I used these from v1, likely could use short singles screw angles to achieve the same end goal, connects side of slide to drawer surface)
Angle Aluminum
2ct 10" sections of lower profile Unistrut (slim one)
2ct 8" sections of lower profile Unistrut (slim one)
Superstrut - Low Profile
8ct 1/4 unistrut nuts
Nuts
4ct M6 Flange Bolts (attaches hardware to truck in existing frame points)
M6 Flange Nuts
8ct 1/4x20 x 1inch bolts (connect unistrut to itself and bolt the angle aluminum to the unistrut
Bolts
12ct Fender Washer (for both the 1/4 bolts and the m6)
Fender Washers
30ct Self Drilling screws (connecting the drawer to the angle aluminum)
Self Drilling screws

*Not affiliate links

Tools I Used:
Ratchet and Sockets
Impact Driver
Drill
Band Saw
Circular Saw

Estimated Cost: $460ish
Wood : $15
Drawer Slides: $160
Unistrut: $35 (Only need one section of the low profile stuff)
Angle Aluminum: $200 (130 for the 2 inch, 70ish for the 1 inch, as built, can likely replace the i inch for something much cheaper)
Fasteners and Hardware: $50

Instructions:

1. Grab a beverage

2. Prep all your tools
3. Spend an hour finding the tool you just had in your hand

2. Pop the center plastic trim off both sides of the gear tunnel
2b. A trim kit from HF or a butter knife work well

3. Eyeball or measure the ridge that is exposed with 2 m6 theaded mount points
3b. Cut section of unistrut to length of the ridge (ballpark 6"-8")
3c. Bolt strut to ridge with 2 M6 Bolts
3c.1 You may need to drill an extra hole in the strut for one of the mounting points to line up

4. Slide two nuts into the now-mounted struts

5. measure between the edges of the exposed trim
5b. Eyeball and cut another two pieces of unistrut (mine wire roughly 5.5 slots long)
5c. bolt the longer piece of unistrut to the lower one with 1/4 bolts ( or 3/8 or 1/2 if thats the nut you bought) Bonus points for properly using a washer
5d. add in two more unistrut nuts to the top of the channel

6. measure the distance between the outside of both mounted unistruts
6b. eyeball and cut the 2 inch angle Iron\
6c. eyeball and drill a hole in each end of the aluminum angle
bolt the angle to the unistrut with remaining bolts and washers
6d. Marvel at your intelligence and think you should sell this commercially
6e. Take a picture of your master crafted hardware
6f. Realize it looks shitty and pretend you never thought about selling this to anyone

7. Mark the points for mounting the slide hardware to the angle
7b. Precisely eyeball to make sure the slides are even (measure if you want, OOooOo look at you college boy with your fancy degree and measurements)
7c. Fiddle a shit ton sliding the drawer back and forth to expose the mounting holes
7d. Realize precision is for aerospace and just use self tappers, telling yourself you'll DEFINITELY come back later and drill the holes out to use properly torked hardware (yeah okay guy)
7e. Realize you will have to pull the frame out to access all the holes and then be pissed thinking this is too involved, but then remember the whole thing can be pulled with just unbolting 4 bolts, so really that's not that bad.
7f. Think that it was pretty easy to remove the frame to access drilling/mounting the hardware and think you are a genius again
7g. See step 6e and 6f

8. mount the smaller angle aluminum to the inside of the drawer slide
8b The Drawer slide hardware is right at 60" you should be good to measure and cut, but eyeball if it makes you feel whole.
8c. Repeat most of the fiddly bits of step 7 to fasten the angles to the drawer slide

9. Measure the distance between the drawer slides and cut the drawer surface material to match
9b. mine was like 9"x60"
9c Using your Lizard brain fasten the surface to the angle however you see fit, bonus points if you try fastening upside down for a frustrating amount of time as you get metal wood and dust in your eyes, but then remember that you can unbolt it quickly and flip it over for the last two fasteners
9d. Realize you could probably use something cheaper than 120" of aluminum to attach a drawer slide to a horizontal surface
9e. Drink another beverage and realize you made something for like, a third of what Rivian offered and it even has the slides in the actual proper orientation.
9f. High Five your intellect
9g. Feel remorse for hi-fiving yourself
9h. Realize you don't drink, and think about contacting your VA Dr because your memory loss is getting worse

9.1 ???

10. Profit

11. Give it the 'ole "that's not going anywhere" Dad christening-slap as you close it up

Things I liked:
-Simplified the design further
-I got almost 2 inches more of headroom with this orientation
-changing the superstrut to the thin stuff let me maximize both width and height advantages, while the platform is slimmer, it isn't comically small like I've seen in some build (no shade, love the creativity, just gives me a chuckle)
-1/8" thick aluminum angle fastened to the slide hardware is rock solid, no need for awkward supports mid span.
-I lost one of my bolts and replaced it with an eye hook I had laying around and it is way more useful than it deserves to be

Reasons I didn't like this:

-I accidentally bought 1/16 thick angle, so there was a minor concern I had over rigidity mid gear tunnel, replacing s00n, so not too fussed though
-I intend on making kitchen modules, and want to incorporate channel to enable a stable/repeatable/ removable hardware interface


Things I know I'm changing in finalized version
-router to soften all angles
-rivet or bolts instead of self tappers
-better finished wood OR polymer for the drawer platform
-more robust folding leg for when there is kitchen stuff mounted
-channels in the drawer platform for mounting options

V3.0 (s00n)
Major Changes:
- Replacement of off the shelf Angle Aluminum with extruded aluminum
-Self Tappers/Drillers Finally replaced with non pokey fasteners
-Drawer surface replaced with marine grade plywood

Awesome

 

[AYAYRON]

why not slides that go under instead of on the side, they would free up another inch and then they’re hidden

pic for example

 

[Blueassassin]

why not slides that go under instead of on the side, they would free up another inch and then they’re hidden

pic for example

That slide looks like it would be very week if it was out as far as the gear slide needs to be.

 

[HighVoltOverland]

why not slides that go under instead of on the side, they would free up another inch and then they’re hidden

pic for example

In case I’m misunderstanding the question
Two possible reasons
1. I have not found and under mount full extension 60 inch drawer slides
2. I saw some build with the hardware in a laid down configuration (evlander is one), I wanted to build the shuttle that has the hardware in the manufacturer intended orientation

 

[AYAYRON]

In case I’m misunderstanding the question
Two possible reasons
1. I have not found and under mount full extension 60 inch drawer slides
2. I saw some build with the hardware in a laid down configuration (evlander is one), I wanted to build the shuttle that has the hardware in the manufacturer intended orientation

wondering if all the other folks making sleds are using something totally different from a traditional cabinet slide, but the rest of them the slides seem to be underneath so that got me curious!

 

[HighVoltOverland]

wondering if all the other folks making sleds are using something totally different from a traditional cabinet slide, but the rest of them the slides seem to be underneath so that got me curious!

I think there is just a regular physics limitation to this
Iirc I couldn’t find and under mount slides longer than 24 inch full extension, and all those had a max rating of 100lb
All the builds I’ve seen use nearly identical slides and the manufacturer very clearly only shows the slides in the taller configuration when advertising weight capacity

 

[Dark-Fx]

why not slides that go under instead of on the side, they would free up another inch and then they’re hidden

pic for example

Load rating of undermount slides is significantly lower. If I'm putting boiling stuff on something that slides in and out, it's not something I'd consider. I think my 60" slides go from being rated for 600 lbs to under 200 lbs. I considered doubling up the slide pairs but I don't really like that option either.

The heavier duty under mount slides end up taking even more of the limited room up.

 

[AYAYRON]

Load rating of undermount slides is significantly lower. If I'm putting boiling stuff on something that slides in and out, it's not something I'd consider. I think my 60" slides go from being rated for 600 lbs to under 200 lbs. I considered doubling up the slide pairs but I don't really like that option either.

The heavier duty under mount slides end up taking even more of the limited room up.

Roger that!

Sponsored