I don't understand open bed trucks with racks and tents.

[grubworm]

What are those white strips inside your boxes. I know they help the drawers to slide but what are they and why do you have them on the side of the box too ?

they look like strips of HDPE or UHMW, which is a plastic that is slick and by having them on the side and bottom, the drawer is held in fairly tight but can still slide easily. wood runners would work but have more friction and could also swell with humidity and jam up the tolerance making the drawer hard to pull out. probably about 3/16" thick to be thick enough to get a good countersink for the screws without going all the way thru the material. just guessing...

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

they look like strips of HDPE or UHMW, which is a plastic that is slick and by having them on the side and bottom, the drawer is held in fairly tight but can still slide easily. wood runners would work but have more friction and could also swell with humidity and jam up the tolerance making the drawer hard to pull out. probably about 3/16" thick to be thick enough to get a good countersink for the screws without going all the way thru the material. just guessing...

Where would you buy it ?

 

[grubworm]

Where would you buy it ?

amazon has it as well as quite a few places online. HDPE is high density polyethelyne, which is what most of the cheap white plastic cutting boards are made out of. cutting boards have a texture on them to keep meat from sliding, but the sheets and strips you buy are smooth and slick. there is also UHMW which is about the same thing

 

[grubworm]

I am a Grandapa
So for us we like sleeping in the bed of the truck under our Grandpa shell.

cant wait for my kids to have kids so i can get a topper, too! haha

actually, i had one while in my mid-20s i put on a nice lifted ram 2500 diesel...it looked great and was perfect for traveling. i started carrying a LOT of tools and needed the cross bed tool box which of course wont work with a shell and i also carry a lot of stuff in the bed where it is easier for me to climb on a tire and reach over the bed...otherwise, i would be rocking a shell right now. a shell adds a lot of protection and security and gives a great place to sleep without fussing with a tent or towing a camper. its not practical for me now, but that doesnt mean they are not a great accessory to have. i had an ARE topper custom painted to match the truck and it looked really good...about like having a suburban without the seats in the back and nobody makes fun of them

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

amazon has it as well as quite a few places online. HDPE is high density polyethelyne, which is what most of the cheap white plastic cutting boards are made out of. cutting boards have a texture on them to keep meat from sliding, but the sheets and strips you buy are smooth and slick. there is also UHMW which is about the same thing

Thanks Grub. I watched a tv show about alaska recently and the guy on the show built a sled. I think this material is what he used on the runners as I remember.

 

[Daryl 32]

they look like strips of HDPE or UHMW, which is a plastic that is slick and by having them on the side and bottom, the drawer is held in fairly tight but can still slide easily. wood runners would work but have more friction and could also swell with humidity and jam up the tolerance making the drawer hard to pull out. probably about 3/16" thick to be thick enough to get a good countersink for the screws without going all the way thru the material. just guessing...

I bought UHMW 1/8" thick at a local plastics wholesaler.

Everything grubworm said - plus I used the side pieces on to hold up the weight of the drawers. I have 10' long pieces mounted on the drawers 1/32" or so below the ones on the frames/boxes. I mounted all the UHMW pieces using 1/4" flat head machine screws and "T" nuts.

 

[Daryl 32]

cant wait for my kids to have kids so i can get a topper, too! haha

actually, i had one while in my mid-20s i put on a nice lifted ram 2500 diesel...it looked great and was perfect for traveling. i started carrying a LOT of tools and needed the cross bed tool box which of course wont work with a shell and i also carry a lot of stuff in the bed where it is easier for me to climb on a tire and reach over the bed...otherwise, i would be rocking a shell right now. a shell adds a lot of protection and security and gives a great place to sleep without fussing with a tent or towing a camper. its not practical for me now, but that doesnt mean they are not a great accessory to have.

It is also a nice storage unit at the track, can lock things up and keeps things dry when it rains. I can also set up the awning for shade on sunny days.

 

[grubworm]

Thanks Grub. I watched a tv show about alaska recently and the guy on the show built a sled. I think this material is what he used on the runners as I remember.

i'm sure. its VERY tough material yet is pretty easy to cut and drill and doesnt cost much. i've been using it for years to make jigs for wood working, especially for jigs that will slide on a table saw, its slick and wont warp.

 

[Lanlubber In Remembrance]

I bought UHMW 1/4" thick at a local plastics wholesaler.

Everything grubworm said - plus I used the side pieces on to hold up the weight of the drawers. I have 10' long pieces mounted on the drawers 1/32" or so below the ones on the frames/boxes. I mounted all the UHMW pieces using 1/4" flat head machine screws and "T" nuts.

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You obviously are very skilled at building things. I wasn't keen on the idea of using anything with rollers (ball bearings) because of dust. This seems like a good choice to build drawers or sliders with to me. Thanks for the post.