lupinsea
07-28-2010, 03:56 PM
This is a repost from one of the Jeep forums I'm on. Thought some might be interested in this project. It was started July 19th and I finished it up enough for it to be functionally complete this morning.
Jeep Cargo Deck / Camp Table
For a while now I've been wanting some way to organize and secure cargo and gear in the back of my Jeep for camping and so forth. Sure, there are footman loops riveted to the bed of the Jeep but it seems like they are never in the right spot or that the loop is too shallow to fit a ratchet strap hook under it. I didn't want a big box back there because I wanted flexibility with arranging the load. Plus I wanted to make sure there is room for my dog, Zoe, and her dog bed.
Instead, I started thinking about a cargo deck. This would sit up higher than the seat brackets and fill in the recess where the seats go. A grid of anchor points would give me the flexibility I needed.
And to make the deck a bit more functional. . . why not have it convert to a camp table?
Design
The design of the deck is pretty straight forward. A piece of plywood cut to fit the back of the Jeep at a point about 7-8" above the cargo deck. Fastened to this will be a grid of low-profile anchor points. On the bottom of the cargo deck will be some basic custom fabricated bracketry to interface with the stock OEM seat brackets as well as folding game table legs. I haven't fully worked out the details but it would be nice to mount and remove the table with a minimum of extraneous parts or tools.
And yes, it will be an oddly shaped table but a weird table is often better than no table when out camping. And besides, I get the use of a camp table without wasting space in the Jeep.
Construction
This Saturday I bought some high quality plywood from my neighbor who runs a cabinet shop. He gave me his wholesale price which saved a pile. The night before I was going to pick up the half sheed of 3/4" plywood he asked if I wanted to have it cut out on his CNC machine.
Say wha? Sure!
That night I took some quick measurements and drew up plans. The next morning I met him at his shop and he coded in the plans to the CNC machine. When everything was said and done I had a beautifully cut out cargo deck blank with radiused corners and all the anchor point holes pre-drilled. Sweet! I could have cut it out myself but not with this level of quality or precision.
At home I glued in some 5/16" t-nuts I picked up from Tacoma Screw. I opted for the 5/16" over the available 3/8" because the smaller size has a longer threaded barrel. Given my concern about using wood and it's ability to have fasteners loosen up and hog out holes the longer barrel seemed to be a better option. The theory being that any eccentric loading might eventually dislodge a t-nut which are usually just hammered into their mounting holes.
http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/1502/p1070660.jpg
The beginnings of the cargo deck, a sheet of 3/4" plywood. This is the
bottom of the cargo deck where I have used some Gorilla glue and
bonded in some 5/16" t-nuts in a grid.
One thing I did a bit different with these t-nuts is that instead of just hammering them in I used a bolt and nut to draw them into the wood. Doing some research this is apparently the preferred installation method. If they are hammered in there is a chance the t-nuts might skew. Also, subsequent hammering of other t-nuts might loosen ones already installed.
As a secondary precaution the t-nuts were glued in place. More research and it pointed me toward the Gorilla Glue, a polyurethane glue that activates when the parts are damp. It's a strong glue that remains somewhat flexible. In the presence of water it expands 3-4 times it's original volume before hardening. This is good for filing voids and such in the wood for extra strength. The glue also bonds well to metal and wood. To prep the area for gluing I used a cheap small brush to "paint" water on the wood and in the pre-drilled holes. Then I smeared minute amounts of the Gorilla Glue onto the barrel of the t-nut an inserted it in the hole. A bolt, washers, and nut were then used to draw the t-nut into the wood where's it's spikes would keep it clamped to the wood until the glue cured.
http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/6281/p1070657.jpg
A t-nut to the left with the bolt and nut used to draw
it into a pre-drilled hole.
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/234/p1070662.jpg
Here is a t-nut fully installed with the Gorilla Glue "foaming" up
and oozing out from under the t-nut. Nice.
http://img838.imageshack.us/img838/5347/p1070661.jpg
A close-up of a portion of the anchor point grid. This is the bottom side. The
t-nuts offer a very wide flange to keep bolts from ripping through the wood.
Once the glue for the t-nuts was curred overnight I lightly sanded the edges of the plywood and eased the crisp machined corners. Then ebony stain went down to drastically darken the wood color. I was hoping for more of a charcoal gray to match the interior of my Jeep but it turned out darker than that. No matter, I think it will still look good. Last night I started putting on the Spar Varnish, a heavy duty marine grade varnish. The plan is to sand between each coat and eventually build up three coats. Then work on the mounting hardware and table legs.
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/9072/p1070668.jpg
Setting up the cargo deck to apply the first coat of spar varnish. By
setting it up on edge I can paint both sides at the same time instead
of doing one side at a time and waiting for the last coat to dry to
flip over the board.
Jeep Cargo Deck / Camp Table
For a while now I've been wanting some way to organize and secure cargo and gear in the back of my Jeep for camping and so forth. Sure, there are footman loops riveted to the bed of the Jeep but it seems like they are never in the right spot or that the loop is too shallow to fit a ratchet strap hook under it. I didn't want a big box back there because I wanted flexibility with arranging the load. Plus I wanted to make sure there is room for my dog, Zoe, and her dog bed.
Instead, I started thinking about a cargo deck. This would sit up higher than the seat brackets and fill in the recess where the seats go. A grid of anchor points would give me the flexibility I needed.
And to make the deck a bit more functional. . . why not have it convert to a camp table?
Design
The design of the deck is pretty straight forward. A piece of plywood cut to fit the back of the Jeep at a point about 7-8" above the cargo deck. Fastened to this will be a grid of low-profile anchor points. On the bottom of the cargo deck will be some basic custom fabricated bracketry to interface with the stock OEM seat brackets as well as folding game table legs. I haven't fully worked out the details but it would be nice to mount and remove the table with a minimum of extraneous parts or tools.
And yes, it will be an oddly shaped table but a weird table is often better than no table when out camping. And besides, I get the use of a camp table without wasting space in the Jeep.
Construction
This Saturday I bought some high quality plywood from my neighbor who runs a cabinet shop. He gave me his wholesale price which saved a pile. The night before I was going to pick up the half sheed of 3/4" plywood he asked if I wanted to have it cut out on his CNC machine.
Say wha? Sure!
That night I took some quick measurements and drew up plans. The next morning I met him at his shop and he coded in the plans to the CNC machine. When everything was said and done I had a beautifully cut out cargo deck blank with radiused corners and all the anchor point holes pre-drilled. Sweet! I could have cut it out myself but not with this level of quality or precision.
At home I glued in some 5/16" t-nuts I picked up from Tacoma Screw. I opted for the 5/16" over the available 3/8" because the smaller size has a longer threaded barrel. Given my concern about using wood and it's ability to have fasteners loosen up and hog out holes the longer barrel seemed to be a better option. The theory being that any eccentric loading might eventually dislodge a t-nut which are usually just hammered into their mounting holes.
http://img830.imageshack.us/img830/1502/p1070660.jpg
The beginnings of the cargo deck, a sheet of 3/4" plywood. This is the
bottom of the cargo deck where I have used some Gorilla glue and
bonded in some 5/16" t-nuts in a grid.
One thing I did a bit different with these t-nuts is that instead of just hammering them in I used a bolt and nut to draw them into the wood. Doing some research this is apparently the preferred installation method. If they are hammered in there is a chance the t-nuts might skew. Also, subsequent hammering of other t-nuts might loosen ones already installed.
As a secondary precaution the t-nuts were glued in place. More research and it pointed me toward the Gorilla Glue, a polyurethane glue that activates when the parts are damp. It's a strong glue that remains somewhat flexible. In the presence of water it expands 3-4 times it's original volume before hardening. This is good for filing voids and such in the wood for extra strength. The glue also bonds well to metal and wood. To prep the area for gluing I used a cheap small brush to "paint" water on the wood and in the pre-drilled holes. Then I smeared minute amounts of the Gorilla Glue onto the barrel of the t-nut an inserted it in the hole. A bolt, washers, and nut were then used to draw the t-nut into the wood where's it's spikes would keep it clamped to the wood until the glue cured.
http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/6281/p1070657.jpg
A t-nut to the left with the bolt and nut used to draw
it into a pre-drilled hole.
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/234/p1070662.jpg
Here is a t-nut fully installed with the Gorilla Glue "foaming" up
and oozing out from under the t-nut. Nice.
http://img838.imageshack.us/img838/5347/p1070661.jpg
A close-up of a portion of the anchor point grid. This is the bottom side. The
t-nuts offer a very wide flange to keep bolts from ripping through the wood.
Once the glue for the t-nuts was curred overnight I lightly sanded the edges of the plywood and eased the crisp machined corners. Then ebony stain went down to drastically darken the wood color. I was hoping for more of a charcoal gray to match the interior of my Jeep but it turned out darker than that. No matter, I think it will still look good. Last night I started putting on the Spar Varnish, a heavy duty marine grade varnish. The plan is to sand between each coat and eventually build up three coats. Then work on the mounting hardware and table legs.
http://img841.imageshack.us/img841/9072/p1070668.jpg
Setting up the cargo deck to apply the first coat of spar varnish. By
setting it up on edge I can paint both sides at the same time instead
of doing one side at a time and waiting for the last coat to dry to
flip over the board.