Rear storage suggestions

[izakjbrt]

Ok, so this past river trip I have had a long thought about my drawer system at the back of my patrol. And it’s just not filling me with a warm fuzzy feeling. It’s just not working. The second time in a year , a heavy bump on the trip has dislodged some of the wiring next to it. Now that’s not really the front runner drawer systems fault . But it’s big and limits the space of what you can fit next to it. And it’s HEAVY!

The small space next to it , limits the size of a dual battery and even tying the battery down so that a bump on the sand does not move it to cause issues.

So I’ve decided I want to remove the drawers (can put them in the other patrol). And perhaps put a marine ply base (using the point where the rear seats bolt down to)

Perhaps make sure there is a space underneath to perhaps fit one of those roof rack pioneer plastic 50L water tank. Have a standard fridge slide bolted on the marine ply. Don’t have drawers , but just tie down points and ratchet some ammo crates (everything in the drawers are in ammo crates anyways).

Then there should be enough space to add a bracket (or even one of those battery boxes as a bracket) for my battery with a panel (don’t know where to put this yet).

And perhaps even fit my compressor in the back. Now I’m next to utterly useless working with my hands so it’ll be as simple as possible with a lot of YouTube videos for the dual batteries.

Anyone has some advice? Good idea/bad idea? Things I should look at (the fridge is an 80l NL, that is the only part of the current drawer system that works every river trip without an issue)

Thanks

[Witbobbejaan]

It doesn't sound like you intend to have any slider other than the fridge then? If you use your troll only for stationary camping where you can unpack your ammo crates for a few days, then your planned setup sounds ok IMO. But if you intend to move between camps often and live out of the vehicle, like overlanding, then that's probably going to get old really quickly. You could mount another slider just for the crates on the plywood base...but if you stack a bunch of crates on each other then even that won't be great. Sounds like you need to do a custom drawer & packing system that's built inside the car, for the space. There are plenty of examples on this form and the 4xcommunity forum. Buth then you can't use that troll for anything else other than camping, since it's not easily removable.

Please post your build on the forum; looking forward to it

[Steele]

Hey Izak, sounds like what you are planning is similar to what I have, see here - https://www.patrol4x4.co.za/viewtopic.p ... 4&start=20
You wouldn't be able to put the battery where I have it as your fridge is a lot bigger than mine.
I went very simple as we normally tow an offroad camper so I don't need a lot of packing space.
It does get tedious when you have to keep unpacking ammo boxes to get to stuff, but it is very light....

I would give it lots of thought before making changes

[izakjbrt]

It doesn't sound like you intend to have any slider other than the fridge then? If you use your troll only for stationary camping where you can unpack your ammo crates for a few days, then your planned setup sounds ok IMO. But if you intend to move between camps often and live out of the vehicle, like overlanding, then that's probably going to get old really quickly. You could mount another slider just for the crates on the plywood base...but if you stack a bunch of crates on each other then even that won't be great. Sounds like you need to do a custom drawer & packing system that's built inside the car, for the space. There are plenty of examples on this form and the 4xcommunity forum. Buth then you can't use that troll for anything else other than camping, since it's not easily removable.

Please post your build on the forum; looking forward to it

Currently we live out of the crates, as swambo hates to work out of the drawers , only to pack the crates in. Currently the drawers are there to organise the crates lol

I’ll definitely post the progress

[izakjbrt]

Hey Izak, sounds like what you are planning is similar to what I have, see here - https://www.patrol4x4.co.za/viewtopic.p ... 4&start=20
You wouldn't be able to put the battery where I have it as your fridge is a lot bigger than mine.
I went very simple as we normally tow an offroad camper so I don't need a lot of packing space.
It does get tedious when you have to keep unpacking ammo boxes to get to stuff, but it is very light....

I would give it lots of thought before making changes

Thanks for the reply and the pics!

I was thinking of putting the battery behind the ammo crates . Maybe also in a battery box , with my own panel on it. I tell you the current lack of space with the front runner drawer system and my battery is driving me insane . Every year (especially in the letaba with these nice little ditches in the sand) on the river trip the stupid battery moves cause there’s not enough space for a bracket. I seriously need some kind of solution . And that stacked drawer system from front runner costs a crap load

[Peter Connan]

Take me some pictures of the current battery area?

I personally HATE ammo crates. But big drawers are even worse. Hate digging for stuff. Some guys make zipper bags with clear lids in various sizes which are great for organising.

If it's just the two of you, perhaps move the battery to the gap between the front and rear seats? I have my Ctek DC-DC charger mounted right on top of the battery now.

[izakjbrt]

Take me some pictures of the current battery area?

I personally HATE ammo crates. But big drawers are even worse. Hate digging for stuff. Some guys make zipper bags with clear lids in various sizes which are great for organising.

If it's just the two of you, perhaps move the battery to the gap between the front and rear seats? I have my Ctek DC-DC charger mounted right on top of the battery now.

Will do and will post it tonight . I have my solar controller , dc2dc and normal 220v chargers all mounted above the drawer system , luckily

[graham1]

My setup is very very similar to Steele's one, but I just have the fridge on the other side as its then easier to just open the small door to grab that beer quickly.
It works for us, but, more often than not you land up with all of the ammo boxes unpacked and on the floor outside the vehicle cos guaranteed, the thing you need is always in the box right at the back.

[iandvl]

My packing system consists of a drawer system (think it is African Outback). The drawer system has a built in fridge slide, but using that, the 90L fridge is difficult to rummage around in, so I installed an Alucab tilt slide.

As recently mentioned (viewtopic.php?p=121352#p121352), I'm making quite a number of changes to my packing system. Mostly just for the sake of convenience. I'm tired of having stuff fall around behind the fridge when I pull it out. And I've also got a little gatvol of the NL Battery Box. It's large, and with the DC/DC charger, I no longer need the solenoid type thing. I'm currently wiring a new set up and will update that post when this is done. It's smaller than the NL box.

Things can get pretty full when we're 4-up in the truck (which means extra tents etc), but we've managed pretty well. I also think the accessories one takes with (ie: camping chairs etc) also make a difference. Size and "packability" is one of the biggest considerations I have in terms of everything I acquire.

Packing smartly also makes a big difference. For example, unless you're using sleeping bags, one of the biggest contributors to space is bedding. We've actually got "square" packing bags for this, and we only use "fleecy" blankets - which provide great warmth with the benefit of taking up very little space.

I'm also a complete believer in the "less is more" concept when overlanding...

Drawers get used for provisions, kitchenware. Battery box and fridge are on the right, and we've still got quite a bot of room on the left for the camping chairs (Front Runner), tent ladder extension and our bags. I removed the door cards from the doors, and my tool roll and spares live inside the rear doors.

I also made shutter-ply covers for the drawers. Not only can they interlock to create a windshield for the gas stove, but they also make convenient table-tops when the drawers are extended. I've often even cooked on them... As per the photograph... :)

In any case - I think these things are 100% an individual preference thing. I personally cannot stand ammo crates. I find them super annoying - especially when touring. ie: regular stop, camp, move on.

Good luck - if you make modifications, please post here so that others can "steal" your ideas...

20190728_090644.jpg (179.4 KiB) Viewed 782 times

[izakjbrt]

My packing system consists of a drawer system (think it is African Outback). The drawer system has a built in fridge slide, but using that, the 90L fridge is difficult to rummage around in, so I installed an Alucab tilt slide.

As recently mentioned (viewtopic.php?p=121352#p121352), I'm making quite a number of changes to my packing system. Mostly just for the sake of convenience. I'm tired of having stuff fall around behind the fridge when I pull it out. And I've also got a little gatvol of the NL Battery Box. It's large, and with the DC/DC charger, I no longer need the solenoid type thing. I'm currently wiring a new set up and will update that post when this is done. It's smaller than the NL box.

Things can get pretty full when we're 4-up in the truck (which means extra tents etc), but we've managed pretty well. I also think the accessories one takes with (ie: camping chairs etc) also make a difference. Size and "packability" is one of the biggest considerations I have in terms of everything I acquire.

Packing smartly also makes a big difference. For example, unless you're using sleeping bags, one of the biggest contributors to space is bedding. We've actually got "square" packing bags for this, and we only use "fleecy" blankets - which provide great warmth with the benefit of taking up very little space.

I'm also a complete believer in the "less is more" concept when overlanding...

Drawers get used for provisions, kitchenware. Battery box and fridge are on the right, and we've still got quite a bot of room on the left for the camping chairs (Front Runner), tent ladder extension and our bags. I removed the door cards from the doors, and my tool roll and spares live inside the rear doors.

I also made shutter-ply covers for the drawers. Not only can they interlock to create a windshield for the gas stove, but they also make convenient table-tops when the drawers are extended. I've often even cooked on them... As per the photograph... :)

In any case - I think these things are 100% an individual preference thing. I personally cannot stand ammo crates. I find them super annoying - especially when touring. ie: regular stop, camp, move on.

Good luck - if you make modifications, please post here so that others can "steal" your ideas...

20190728_090644.jpg

Thanks Ian, I’ll definitely post any changes I make