[kevinmrowland]

Any body done this?

Seems like you could just screw hinges on one side and a latch on the other an be all set.
It is essentially a traditional metal sided cooler.
I am usually all for drilling holes and modifying stuff........but.................... this is an awfully expensive thing to drill holes in

P.S. Thanks Kurt, fridge arrived just in the nick of time!

[Trunk Monkey]

The 60qt. opens like that, but has a much bigger footprint that the 40.

[reffug]

Glad I have the 60.

I thought they all opened like dat......

[kevinmrowland]

Hey,
Could any of you guys with the 60 post a detail shot of the hinge/latch?

I am thinking that I could order the hinges and latch for the 60 and then be a little more secure in thinking that the holes would not interfere with anything.

The more I think about it the more I want to do this, it would facilitate opening the fridge from the tailgate or the back seat, I could mount it closer to the side and not have to worry about having a slide out for it, therefore loosing less sleeping area..................

[cruiseroutfit]

Hey Kevin, sorry for the delay, been out of town...

I'm honestly not sure if there are any reasons you couldn't add some side hinges... I too have had time I wish mine opened that way (when I have it in the back seat of my ExCab Tacoma.

Do it and let us know

PS, glad it made it in time , thanks again!

[alia176]

I agree, it's a good idea. I would like to add hinges to mine also.I have another bitch point; why don't the transit covers make room for the latching mechanism in these things? :-)

[spressomon]

That's one of the reasons I went with the Waeco...

[kevinmrowland]

Cool, I'm doin it.

Found an exploded view on the internet that pretty much eased my fears.
I have the hinges and the latch sitting on my bench so sometime this week I will post up how it goes.
From the looks of things this will be a pretty easy mod, let you know how it goes.

Alia, you must be referring to a different transit bag, mine does not seem to interfere with the latch at all.

[cruiseroutfit]

The ARB Transit bag should clear the latch just fine?

[cruiseroutfit]

PS, sorry for the huge pic...

[alia176]

The Engel transit bag falls on its face in the latch area! Just about all of the Engel transit bag has this area totally stretched out or just plain messed up!

[kevinmrowland]

You can zipper yours shut though.
Of course that might be a pain as well.
Time to call Kurt.
Or get out the scissors.

[kevinmrowland]

Ok, my ARB fridge is now even cooler.

The hinges have a tension adjusting screw so the lid will stay in whatever position you put it and they have just enough room to fit over the welting.
The latch is a spring compression one that holds the lid nice and snug.
And I cut the transit bag around the new latch for clearance.
I like it.
Pics:

[kevinmrowland]

More:

[firetruck41]

Very cool, how about a source for the parts?

[cruiseroutfit]

Very cool

I assume you ran the bolts all the way through the side of the freezer and used a nut on the inside?

Did you re-sew the cover? Looks OE

[yooper]

I would have thought you would make it open the other way and put the compressor forward, so you don't have to reach around it.....or do you need access to that end?

[kevinmrowland]

Thanks, glad you guys like it.

Mc-Master-Carr Parts
Friction Hinge 1791A48
Draw Latch 1794A43
6-32 X 1/4” self tapping screws 98273A155
12-24 x 1/2” self tapping screws 93380A400


Kurt, I decided to just use self tapping metal screws (not self drilling). If they don’t work I will dismantle the fridge and put nuts back there. They seem to hold very tight and I think they will work quite well.
I cut the bag and sewed binding on like the other latch opening has. I am not thrilled with the way that turned out, it’s a real bitch to stuff that bag through the sewing machine. But, it looks good from a distance.

Yooper, I thought it would be better hinged the other way as well. However, if you look at the way the D pillar angles in you can see that there is not enough room for the lid to open unless it is where it is. As it sits, the lid opens right into the window and clears everything perfectly. It’s a bit further of a reach, but it fits best that way and makes it a bit easier to get at from the back seat. Also, it keeps things from getting stuffed against the cooling fins like would happen if they faced the other way. Everything is a compromise I guess. Amy likes it, so that's all that matters.

A close up from the same pic:

[yooper]

Originally Posted by kevinmrowland

...Amy likes it, so that's all that matters.

I always thought that you were smart. Now I know that you are also wise...

[reffug]

Nicely done very cool.

[LEXUSBEN]

Very nice, I just ordered all the junk for mine. Thanks for the parts list. very clean looking.

ben

[kevinmrowland]

That's cool !

Post a pic when you get it all done.
Hope it goes well, I might feel a teeny tiny little bit responsible if it doesn't.

[Owyhee Jackass]

Originally Posted by yooper

I would have thought you would make it open the other way and put the compressor forward, so you don't have to reach around it.....or do you need access to that end?

he said "reach around"

[tabraha]

Nice work!

[alia176]

I just had a thought...would those hinges have enough power to keep the lid open as the cooler comes from OEM? Just curious!

[kevinmrowland]

I don't think so, they work ok for this but you have to open the lid about as far as it is in the photo for them to really grab. Plus, they would not fit in the stock position. I am sure there is one that would work, check mcmaster under "friction hinge" and see if there is anything that looks right.

[LEXUSBEN]

Ok, i installed the new friction hinges tonite and am very happy with the way they turned out.

First of all thanks kevin for breaking the ice on this

I did it quite similar to his except I used nut zerts for the hinge screws instead of just going into the case. I ended up using the old hinge screws and put some washers under them for strength, they also don't look too bad, I'd rather have the strength personally.

Also I bought the other latch but don't think I'm going to install it, at least not yet. Enjoy the pics and I love that I can now use the fridge one handed.

[kevinmrowland]

Sweet, glad it worked out for ya.

I highly recommend the other latch, at first I though it would not work that well but, as it turns out, I like it FAR better than the OE one. Very easy to operate, no fumbling with the spring loaded one.

[Teotwaki]

Very nice mod and may be just what I need. My Engel will go in the back cargo area and this mod would make the fridge's interior more acessible from front or back. Right now the lid won't fully open as it hits the ceiling.

[97 FZJ80]

My Koolatron Arcti-Kool Freezer has side latches from the factory - no mod needed.