Aluminum Drop Fridge Slide (1 Viewer)

[Pascoscout]

Working on building my own drop down fridge slide. Going with aluminum to keep the weight down. Made the mount and the arms so far. Waiting on the drawer slides to show up and need some more material for the fridge cradle. Designing it around my 63 quart ARB Classic Fridge.

Here's what I have so far:

 

[cruiserpilot]

Just couldn't justify the cost to upgrade to aluminum TIG. Wish I could. Looking forward to see
how this comes along. I assume the slides will be steel. Are you getting locking slides? Or just going
to add latches afterwards?

 

[Pascoscout]

Just couldn't justify the cost to upgrade to aluminum TIG. Wish I could. Looking forward to see
how this comes along. I assume the slides will be steel. Are you getting locking slides? Or just going
to add latches afterwards?

Yeah steel slides. Aluminum versions don't support the weight and are very expensive. I did get locking slides, they showed up today so will get to make some progress on this again. I am still going to add a latch too.

If you have a mig welder that's spool gun capable its not too expensive to get aluminum welding capability. But yes a dedicated TIG is an investment.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Keep posting updates. I like the fab work so far!

 

[Pascoscout]

Got the slides bolted on. These have deep enough channels that I could put the nuts on the inside for a cleaner look. Having trouble sourcing the correct length bolts so short 4, but this will hold while I finish fabrication.

 

[Pascoscout]

Drilled the holes in the drop arms and mounted them up. Pics show up and down positions. Now on to the fridge cradle.

 

[Pascoscout]

Made good progress today. Got the main portion of the slide done so down to just a few details and mounting in the cruiser. Added some UHMW strips for the cradle to slide on, seems to work very well. It's pretty light, the drawer slides themselves are most of the weight. I'll weight it once I have everything done.

I unfortunately found that I made the slide a little too narrow. I took my measurements at the top and bottom of the fridge but failed to notice that the middle bulges out about half an inch. The arms rub the side of the fridge just slightly. It still functions but I will probably end up making another one that's about an inch wider. Someday I plan to get one of the covers for the fridge so will need room for that.

Video of it in action. Holds the weight easily and does not take much effort to operate:

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Looks killer!

 

[cruiserpilot]

How wide is it then? I’ve got a NL Weekender 50. so ya know, if you’re making another….LOL!
Really nice, I like the simple design and function. I do have a guy who does my aluminum TIG
here, did all my FMIC tubing. At the very least I could use your design cues. I just watched that
video, fantastic.
My wish would to be able to slide and drop the fridge from the side door. Thanks for sharing.

 

[gnob]

This is very cool.
What's keeping it from bouncing when closed?

 

[MrMikeyG]

This is awesome. I've been waiting for someone to tackle this. There's a 10+ year old video I've seen on youtube a few times were a guy built a similar design out of a bunch of scrap steel, but he didn't get close up to any of the parts.
It looks like the fridge cradle is longer than needed, are you future proofing for a fridge upgrade, or did the overall slide extension and amount of drop needed dictate the size?
@gnob were you wondering about some strap,etc to hold fridge into fridge cradle at least?

 

[gnob]

No. i assume the fridge is bolted from the bottom.
I can't see whats keeping the two beds from rattling?

 

[MrMikeyG]

Ah.

 

[Pascoscout]

This is very cool.
What's keeping it from bouncing when closed?

I added some catches today. Will add pics shortly.

 

[Pascoscout]

This is awesome. I've been waiting for someone to tackle this. There's a 10+ year old video I've seen on youtube a few times were a guy built a similar design out of a bunch of scrap steel, but he didn't get close up to any of the parts.
It looks like the fridge cradle is longer than needed, are you future proofing for a fridge upgrade, or did the overall slide extension and amount of drop needed dictate the size?
@gnob were you wondering about some strap,etc to hold fridge into fridge cradle at least?

Yes it's longer than needed. The thought was to make it as big as would fit in my truck so if I ended up with a different fridge someday I had more flexibility. I could go about 6 inches shorter and still have it fit this unit. When I make the next one to fix my width issue I may drop the length down a few inches to the next length slide.

 

[Pascoscout]

How wide is it then? I’ve got a NL Weekender 50. so ya know, if you’re making another….LOL!
Really nice, I like the simple design and function. I do have a guy who does my aluminum TIG
here, did all my FMIC tubing. At the very least I could use your design cues. I just watched that
video, fantastic.
My wish would to be able to slide and drop the fridge from the side door. Thanks for sharing.

The cradle is 17" wide. Will fit any fridge under that width. Mine is 17.5 inches in the middle so the arms rub a little. I put some 3/4 " wood under the fridge and that helped push it up so the arms rub less. Works for now, going to use it for a little bit and make changes as things come up. I put 50lbs of weight in the fridge today and while I could still lift it pretty easy an air spring would ensure the wife and kids could operate the lift too.

 

[Pascoscout]

No. i assume the fridge is bolted from the bottom.
I can't see whats keeping the two beds from rattling?

The frame is bolted to my drawer set. The cradle sits on top of two UHMW stuck to the frame. There are catches I added at the front and rear that lock it down when closed. I have not driven with it in the truck yet but now that it's installed I cannot move it up and down when shaking it.

 

[Pascoscout]

Pictures of the catches I added front and rear to hold the cradle down when the unit is in the closed position. It's now fully installed in the truck. Had to shorten the handle a little as it hit the rear hatch. Works good even with 50 lbs of weight in the fridge. Going to use it for a couple weeks and work out any kinks. Already think I will be adding an air spring to help with the weight. I can operate it but I want my wife and sons to be able to easily lift it too. Also going to look at adding a roller on the front edge to help with sliding it in. The UHMW works pretty well but it could be smoother.

I forgot to weigh it but I can easily lift with one hand. I'd guess it's 25 lbs at most.

I'll call this one version 1. Will use it to test a few things and then build version 2. Probably will put this one up for sale. Not right away though, want to get a trip or two under my belt to see if there is anything I want to change or add.

 

[cruiserpilot]

Really nice, and good description of everything. I don't think my NL is that wide at all. But it's 22" tall. I will appreciate
the updates and mods as they occur.

 

[Pascoscout]

The ARB is only 17" tall. I have it sitting on a 3/4" plywood to get the bulge out in a better spot so the arms don't rub so bad. The handle clears the top by several inches though. From what I have seen this particular fridge is shorter but wider and longer than most other brands/models of similar size.

I'll be sure to post any additions or changes I make.

Once I have a design I am satisfied with is this something people would be interested in buying? Could do pretty much any size and drop amount. If there was a market for these might be an enjoyable side business.