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Thread: 3rd Gen Cargo Shelf

  1. #1

    3rd Gen Cargo Shelf

    As you've all seen my my cargo area is jammed full of stuff when my family goes on a trip. So much I take pictures loaded up.


    This is just going to the in-laws for Thanksgiving. They asked that we bring some tables and chairs.


    Same thing but a birthday party.


    Camping with stuff on the roof.


    Camping with a 2 month old.


    Home Depot trips.


    These pictures have come in handy. I know what and where I carry stuff. How I used to carry and how I carry now. With the addition of kids the loads changed a lot and have started to mellow out. My plan is to build a shelf in the cargo area. I've always thought drawers or a sleeping platform would be cool but for everyday life they wouldn't be used or they would be in the way. The shelf wouldn't be used everyday but would work with my near everyday setup and maybe replace the sunshade.

    I was talking with Sean about the shelf at Pismo and when he had the opportunity to remove his interior cladding I asked him to snap some pictures. I'll put them here for reference.


  2. #2
    For the most part our excursions take an ice chest, our kitchen box and food boxes. These all fit together and create a platform I pile everything else on. I'm thinking this shelf will be about as high as that first layer of gear. It will mount on the side of the interior body and would require some small holes drilled in the plastic cladding. I've got plans for the holes as well as covering them up if need be.

    The items that would go on the shelf are lighter weight goods that are usually duffel bags (X4), sleeping bags (X4), tools, blankets and maybe an extra duffel of assorted items. For the most part soft items are smashed into any crevice and when it's all said and done nothing has to be tied down. However if you want to get a beer out of the ice chest or change your underwear after Sean rolls his truck you need to remove half the gear to access what you're after.

    The hopes is that an appropriate sized shelf will allow items on the bottom to be slid out to be opened or moved to get something on the bottom layer without removing the top layer. Right now I have half the material and an idea but usually I need to start building before it comes together. I've staged the bottom layer and have just eye balled stuff trying to imagine the scenarios I want and need the shelf and what would occur that would make the shelf useless and result in it staying home.

    I store fishing poles and chairs up against the upright rear seats and the ice chest and boxes hold them against the seat. I'd like to still access the chairs and poles from the top so the shelf probably won't go all the way to the seats. In order to fit all of our stuff I fill the cargo area until stuff starts falling out them close the hatch and continue to stuff through the open window. As such I need to leave room near the back of the hatch to stuff the stuff I put there. The width I'm thinking will go about mid wheel well which will allow storage below and above the mounting arms.

    Material will most likely be steel with a plastic shelf base. I'm thinking large cutting boards Velcro'd down but even large ones might not be large enough. We have a plastic place about a mile away so I'm going to stop in there to see what they've got. I put my front bike wheel on top of the sun shade currently but it makes a mess when it's wet or muddy. Opening the hatch with a bike in the rack and rolling down the window is a bit of a pain to do everyday so I go through the back doors. Having plastic will be a bit nicer than expanded steel but that's a decision to make down the road. Of course there will be LED under lighting and the metal will be painted hammer black but the rest is just brain storming.

    Is there anything I should consider you think I may be leaving out? Something I should integrate?

  3. #3
    Hopefully I have more time to post up later, probably already late leaving for work at this point...

    Look into installing rivnuts or PEM nuts into the sheetmetal. You can then take some careful measurements of what length standoffs you need to clear the plastic. I'll draw something up on my break at work.

    I've had this idea kicking around in my head since before Pismo. My sleeping platform is somewhat awkward, lacks tie down points, etc. I was looking into building a new platform from steel that would bolt in (no more hooks and turn buckles). Never got a chance to draw it up since I decided to go belly up, but it will be in my 4Runner V2.0.

    I think the biggest thing to me is tie downs. After rolling and having everything fly everywhere (it was just a backpack, junk drawer bag, and some other odds and ends that weren't secure) it's apparent to me that every thing needs a tie down. The lighter stuff can get elastic nets or bungees. Heavy stuff needs ratchet or at least cam straps.
    2005 Lexus LX470 - Stock for now...

    1998 Toyota 4Runner SR5 V6 4x4 + a bunch of goodies. Lifted, Locked, Illuminated and Armored. Winner,"Best Offroad Truck" - 2010 Pismo Jamboree. It's been upside down and still drives me to work.

  4. #4
    I'm a big fan of the factory tie downs and use them a lot. Most of what gets crammed in the cargo area is light stuff and a cargo net does good to hold that down. While I haven't rolled I'd had great results with cam straps and a Yakima bungee net. Another feature I'm going to incorporate into the shelf is a passenger cargo net of sorts. Something to keep things from sliding forward onto the kids. So far other than space this has been my biggest issue. I try to put the sleeping bags in the front so if anything would fall forward it would be those.

    I don't want a huge or vision hampering net but probably some shock cord strung through strategic points that are enough to create a fence of sorts. I did have a PVC mock up of a fence this summer and it utilized the head rests. I liked it but never executed it, now the design has changed.

    These guys have done some cargo organizing that have gotten my gears turning.

    This one is nice but I don't have that much room to give up. Mine will still take up room but this is a bit big. I think it's a HF ATV cargo rack he made some legs for. I want to mount to the sides as I use the tops of the wheel wells for storage. Similar to my roof rack I don't think I need something deep like this tray. More of just the shelf with some footman loops for strapping if need be.


    This one is more of another example than something I would do. I definitely don't have room for something like this but I do like the locking shelf. I was thinking about building a thin locking drawer into the shelf but what I'll probably end up doing is making a mount for a Nano Vault 100 or 200.


  5. #5
    Sean, I was thinking about Rivnuts with a stud/standoff. I don't know what the distance between the plastic and sheetmetal is but I don't want to compress it. With a stud I could put a nut on the stud if need be, at plastic level, and have a solid point. Now I just need to figure out if my feet will have one mounting hole or two.

  6. #6
    I can't claim credit for the idea but Dirtco did an idea similar to the other two but his is removable (which is why I like it so much). Here's a link to the thread.

    http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-ge...e-request.html

    I am in the process of slowly building towards that (one of the reasons for the welder and stuff). So far so good. Only small difficulty I had was welding the chromo since my experience in welding could be counted on your hands. I got it done though and I guess that's something lol.

    Here's a pic of mine installed. With the spacer it really puts it up against the sides of the truck nicely.



    98 3rz 4x4 5spd- Monstalined, 99 Talls, 4.30 E-locker, Extra Lights
    In Progress:
    Tundra/Rear Disc Brakes w/parking brake
    Roof Rack/Rear Ladder
    Sliders
    1st Gen Rollbar Shelf

  7. #7
    I've got a co-worker that has been trying to sell me his 1st gen roll bar for cheap.

    I fired up the Amazon Prime a few weeks ago and some parts have come in, none ended up being Prime shipping. Just little tabs and some straps but I'm still trying to figure it out. I've got too many ideas in my head and now that I've seen more builds I'm coasting a bit at the moment.

  8. #8
    Could you use the existing tie down hook mounts to bolt the legs of a shelf system to? The legs closest to the hatch would probably block some space, but it might be an option.

    I've been pretty happy with my drawer setup that I have, but I do wish I could have built it out of aluminum. I also wish I would have built longer drawers instead of the small cubbies at the front. One giant slide out drawer would be even better, but then I have no center support for the platform, which I think is needed for a wooden platform.
    -Daniel2000 4Runner Sport | V6 | 5spd | 4x4 | Leather | 265/75-16 BFG AT/KO | OBA | BudBuilt front skid

    1990 4Runner SR5 | V6 | Auto | 2wd | 3.90 rear | Cobra CB | 265/65r17 Bridgestone Duelers H/Ts | '08 Tacoma 5 spoke rims | Has an 11:1 crawl ratio! SOLD

  9. #9
    Dan,
    I use the front tie down hooks to hold the rear anchors for the car seat. The rear ones would probably take up space like you mentioned but may be an option. After messing around this weekend I took some pictures and some measurements.
    Here is our larger ice chest (by about an inch in all dimensions), our kitchen box and food boxes.


    It looks like I'm going to have to tie into the side near the window sill or go from the floor. The rear tie downs are used for the car seats,as mentioned, although slowly being phased out by booster seats. That area is also where I store the camp chairs and I need every inch from wheel well to wheel well.

    I scrounged up a 20% HF coupon and headed over there on Friday since I only worked a few hours. I bought the hitch basket in the above pictures. Of course it wasn't exactly as I needed, even though I don't know that yet, so I had to cut, weld and grind. I cut the top piece off so it's just a shelf with no depth. I didn't need the 2" receiver part so instead of bolting it together I welded the left and right pieces to together. Now that Dan brought up the tie down mounts I'm wondering. Tying into the side will be nice but a lot of work. I'd have to remove the plastic, weld, cut, etc so we'll see. I could use the metal I cut off the rack to make feet to the sides or the floor.

    I did source some knobs online and at a local shop so if I tie into the side I'll have to consider studs or screws, both of which I found knobs for. The knobs are cool but not necessary and eliminate a bit of security which I was sort of considering.
    Last edited by 4x4mike; 11-10-2014 at 02:57 PM.

  10. #10
    Looks like we are headed down the same path in a way. I am planning my shelf to be right at the top of the seats. I think I will have to modify or eliminate the side railing sadly. The width of the railing is just a hair too wide but hopefully I can rig something up so I can do all the fitting outside the 4runner. I have found working with the partial shelf inside the cab is rather difficult.

    I am looking forward to how you fit everything. A shelf supported by the sides would be a first and pretty cool looking imo.
    98 3rz 4x4 5spd- Monstalined, 99 Talls, 4.30 E-locker, Extra Lights
    In Progress:
    Tundra/Rear Disc Brakes w/parking brake
    Roof Rack/Rear Ladder
    Sliders
    1st Gen Rollbar Shelf

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