Nissan Patrol 4x4 (Africa)

So while we all were stranded during L5 lockdown, i started the idea of this thread of my custom drawer system i had in mind. To reduce the cost of material, i used material available in my backyard so i'm sure there are better ways of doing this but this is just my ideas.

Using some 20 mm board i had, i cut out a rough template of what my system must look like and to figure out sizing of the system. Initially i wanted to go a full wood design but was wondering how am i going to fix it to the chassis. The mockup also indicated that it was a bit to wide and i had to narrow it a bit on the one side.
When i purchased the vehicle it seemed the previous owner already had a dual battery system installed. I have the solenoid, fuse and wiring including grey and red Brad Harrison plugs available in the back. At this stage in my life a second battery is not a necessity. All i needed was to fix my air compressor to the back as i have already forgot it at home once when playing in the dunes.

After speaking to Tinus, i found that the holes of the jump seat matches nicely with the hole in the compressor base plate and as such mounted the compressor there, connected a grey Brad Harrison to the existing one and got power from my main battery.
As i was wondering how to fix the wooden frame to the chassis, i saw a system which one of the CT guys did over lockdown as well. He too used a metal frame although his tubing seemed smaller.

Ideally i would have used 20mm or smaller tubing but as i had 25 mm available i used what i had. Also made some mounting points to which i can fix the frame to the chassis.
So this is going to be one of those long, slow threads as the next item is to purchase some 12mm plywood to encase the metal frame and for my top. Complete my 2 drawers and then i'm going to paint it with Duram 88. Depending on finances, i might put carpet on the top and on the inside of the drawers.

Very nice, I like the way you have incorporated the one seat. I would try rubberizing paint or something similar rather than carpet. Carpet is a b!tch to clean especially if you spill liquids.

Steele wrote:Very nice, I like the way you have incorporated the one seat. I would try rubberizing paint or something similar rather than carpet. Carpet is a b!tch to clean especially if you spill liquids.

Thanks for the advice steel.

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

Very nice lockdown project! I used one and a bit rubber floor tiles mounted onto plywood for my drawer - easy to clean and very durable.

Christo how did you stick it to the plywood?

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk

It's held down by aluminium around the edges and that's more than enough. You can even flip it upside down and the rubber remains in place - those tiles are quite rigid and not very "bendy" at all.

If you want to you could probably use rubber cement or something similar, but I've never found the lack of glue to be an issue...

So just to an update on my project, I know many of you have seen it on whatsapp and FB but for those members who are not on social media and to store this information for future use, here is how my idea panned out eventually.

When i started my whole project i wanted to do a full wood setup but as time went by I decided to do a steel tubing frame with 12mm commercial plywood.

Some of the decisions i had to make when doing my design.

1. Do I want/need the jump seats? Initially i wanted to retain both jump seats and build a small double storage unit behind it just to store my recovery kit for offroading. Overlanding is not currently part of my short to medium term plans so no need for to much storage place.
2. What is my plans for the Patrol? The Patrol was bought to be a family vehicle which means from time to time the in-laws would tag along, hence the need for the jump seats. After long consideration I decided and convinced the wife that I will only retain 1 jump seat for that 1 extra passenger, normally my 15 year old son as he loves to sit in the back. So this changed my mind on my design to a L shaped unit around 1 jump seat.
3. Functionality of the drawer system? Well like any drawer system I designed it to store as much of my offroading equipment as comfortable as possible. After going on a day trip once and leaving my compressor at home by accident, I decided to fit it inside the vehicle and build my unit around it. Besides storing my equipment, with the jump seat down, it is nice and level with enough packing space for when we go out as a family.
4. Cost of buying vs building a drawer system? Like most, Covid hit alot of people finacially, and as such i could not afford a new or evens a second hand drawer system. It must be said that most systems available are full length units which wasn't what i was looking for. I made the decision to build a cost effective unit using as much repurposed material I can find at my place.

The end result.
Using some very old repurpose shutterboard, I made a mockup of what I had in mind. The end result gave a good idea but I didn't like my handywork due to the lack of proper tools.
After a few months I realized I had some square tubing lying around and decided to ditch the full wood design and went the route of a steel frame with 12mm commercial ply. This also fixed my problem of how i would fix my system to my body.
Listening to the advice of the knowledgeable people on this forum, i made a few tactical decisions.
1. The top of the draw system must be able to be removed at anytime to access the fuel pump when needed.
2. The entire drawer over the fuel pump must be removable to give free access for maintenance purposes. Hence the cutout in my carpet.
So my final decision, carpet vs other methods of protecting the wood.
I know a lot of people have opinions on the negative side to carpeting, but I must admit I like the look it gives the end product.

So what was the cost of the system?

1. Steel tubing - R 0 (old material available)
2. Welding up of frame - R 0 (got a friend that can weld to assist with this.)
3. 12mm Commercial Plywood sheet, 2.4m x 1.2m - R 760 (includes the cuttings)
4. 21mm large flanged rivets - R 75.00
5. Fix wood to frame -R 0 (Proudly DIY)
6. Construct drawers out of old mockup unit - R 300 (my carpentry skill sucks and with no proper tools I got my neighbour to assist in building my 2 drawers)
7. Carpet, 2m length - R????? (for some reason I can't find my slip for this but it was a real barging at Kehl's in Salt River)
8. Contact adhesive, 2L - R 270
9. Applying carpet - R 0 (Proudly DIY after hours of struggling)
10. 2 x handles @ R30ea - R 60
11. 2 x springloaded locks @ R55ea -R 110 (still to be fitted)

Total cost (excl. carpet) R 1 575.

With the way the system is setup now, I can fit a fridge slide on the longer draw and when the jump seat is no long needed, I will build a modular storage box which will hold my batter box when needed. I will also switch my compressor to the other side as I don't think it will be a good idea to have the compressor and fridge next to each other.

Well done, looks very neat. I take it your jack is not in the original cavity anymore? Makes me want to start playing around with my patrol as well!

No I am using a highlift jack currently which is stored behind my rear seat. Planning to do a swing arm next so will make a better plan for the jack then.

Sent from my SM-N960F using Tapatalk