Dual Fold-Out Tailgate Advice

[MattL]

Looking for some advice on an idea I'm trying to make a reality.

I'm trying to create more surface area at the rear of an FJ80 than exist with the OE Tailgate. My idea is to attach folding pieces of wood to my already existing simplistic storage platform.

I have already cut/mounted the first piece which covers 80% of the tailgate width. I'm now looking for advice on how to attach and support the second piece which will have approx. 3 in. overlap on the tailgate and remainder off. Arrow shows the piece I'm talking about.

My initial idea was to use a piano hinge but I'm beginning to sway away from that as it will disrupt the seamlessness of the surface as seen in the image below.

Extended out:

Folded up:

Thanks!

 

[MattL]

I decided to go the piano hinge route. It sticks up a little bit but nothing I can't deal with. I may recess the hinge in the future but I'm pleased with the way it turned out the first time around.

My design is focused around being light but functional. I'd love a set of drawers but their weight and cost just don't jive with me.

I still need to decide on a protective coating for the whole storage/table area and also find some sort of latching mechanism to fully secure the tailgate table to the platform. Additionally I may also attach some sort of suspension to support the cantilevered table piece more than it is currently.

 

[AaronK]

Nice! Much more space

Sent from my OnePlus One using Tapatalk.

 

[MattL]

Thanks, yes a bunch more surface for food prep.

I added circular magnet latches to the corners to secure the wood to the storage system when stowed away.

The next step is to design some sort of support system for the cantilevered piece to beef it up when fully opened.

 

[rayra]

If I understand correctly how things are unfolded and stored, you should be able to do it with a pair of trapped sliding braces, akin to something used for a fold down table eave.

With a router or table saw, you can cut the interlocking rabbets of the sliding braces and the pieces that trap them in.
When you mount the setup, mount the sets on the furthest unfolding section. Then extend the sliding braces halfway, crossing the hinge, then screw in the other trapping rails using the slider as an alignment tool.

Make it snug for a friction fit, without being so tight in binds. round the edges on the ends so the sliding brace smoothly transitions.

sketch in a minute.


eta

 

[MLu]

Oooh, that's a neat idea. I have a similar setup that folds forward over the rear seats to make a sleeping platform. The disco's rear door opens to the side, so you don't get any surface at all. Hmm...

 

[MattL]

Good idea rayra, my only concern is that the wood sits flush with the tailgate but that could be altered by slightly raising the platform so the brackets sit higher and allow for sliding braces.

Last night I attached some vinyl-wrapped 3/16 in. wire to use to suspend from the 3rd row upper seat belt bolts. I'll snap a photo tonight for reference. The wire is a little cumbersome to stow away when folding up the tailgate though and I am concerned that the wood will bow over time. Sliding braces would solve all these problems.

 

[rayra]

You'll lose double the thickness of the slider braces from the overall extension of your double fold-out. I wouldn't use anything less than 3/4" thick and a hardwood or poplar, pine will break / the rabbets will tear off. And likewise if the material is thinner than 3/4", keeping in mind the rabbets are half as thick as your material, so a 3/4" thick piece of wood gives you a 3/8" thick rabbet / tongue.
Some of that fragility can be offset by making the sliding brace itself nice and wide, 2"-3". But the rabbets will do better with less width in the face dimension. Maybe a 1/4".

But the same brace idea works with something like a 3/4 square metal tube, or a 1/2"x3/4". They could just be placed loose under the foldout and make them full span for the most support.


Another idea in the same vein is make your sliding supports on the edges of the folding flats. Using metal hardware. Something like door security sliding bolts.

Or better and simpler yet, keep everything as it is now and just add strips of aluminum C-channel to the edges when it's unfolded. They'll slide right on, if you have a common thickness. Or buy wider and bend their edges in slightly so they go on snug, or shim their opening with masking tape to make them snug / take out the slop. You just unfold your table and slap on the C-channel segments on both sides of the hinge. Best to shorten your hinge a bit to clear the C-channel, rather than vice versa, as notching the C-channel to clear the hinge is taking away the very bit of metal you need to get the support you are after.

I'll keep thinking about it, maybe I can figure something else out.

 

[MattL]

Really like the simple approach of C-channel added on there. Thanks for the idea rayra! You've got some serious engineering/woodworking skills, just spent some time looking through your signature links.

 

[rayra]

Thanks very much and you're welcome. Glad I could be of help.
The C-channel came to mind as I'd just done something similar a couple weeks ago on my roof rack deck as a way to keep the two separate pieces aligned / control their warp. I used a 6"L piece of 3/4" C-channel jammed onto both the front and rear joint where the panels meet. It's keeping them aligned with each other pretty well. My problem there was the two halves can from two difference sheets of plywood. Different stresses, different movement. I forgot to consider that when I was cutting things up, started the project with a piece left over from something else, then bought another sheet to finish. Should have just cut them from the same sheet and used its natural curve to full advantage.

 

[MattL]

The warp is what I'm most worried about here. Glad the C-channel is working out for the roof rack.

I still need to decide on a type of coating that's not too expensive but repels liquids. After protecting the wood I've been thinking using velcro to attach an assortment of coverings from carpeting to cutting board material depending upon the occasion. Maybe even use chalkboard paint on the outside facing side when folded up so we can write/draw on it for fun.

In the meantime here are some updated photos of how it currently sits.

 

[demonslaer]

I have a 96 jeep grand cherokee it dosn't have a tail gate I wonder if that would work for my jeep?

 

[rayra]

looks good and the bright green wire will be visible well into dinner twilight. And I notice your piano hinge is already well clear of the edges, so the C-channel should be easy. Nice use of magnets, too, isstead of fumbling with latches.
How close is the folded wood to the actual tailgate? Close enough to support the board against loose stuff stored behind it?

 

[MattL]

I have a 96 jeep grand cherokee it dosn't have a tail gate I wonder if that would work for my jeep?

I think if you use one of the approaches rayra described in previous posts you could get this to work. The tailgate has the added benefit of supporting that first piece of wood.

looks good and the bright green wire will be visible well into dinner twilight. And I notice your piano hinge is already well clear of the edges, so the C-channel should be easy. Nice use of magnets, too, isstead of fumbling with latches.
How close is the folded wood to the actual tailgate? Close enough to support the board against loose stuff stored behind it?

Thanks, yes the green was picked in hopes it would be more visible. There's approx. a 3 in. gap between the tailgate and folded table. I have yet to have the magnets not hold (they're 40 lbs ea.) and have done one light off-road trip. I'll be testing this out thoroughly at the end of August on a week long trip up in the Sierra Mtns and let you know how things hold up.

 

[rayra]

3" would be good for a couple folding chairs. Have a good trip up there, great way to beat the heat. We had a 'vacation' house in Riverkern for 11yrs, roamed around the south Sierras for quite a bit. Watch out for the marijuana grow ops. Trail of 100 Giants is an excellent day trip, too, just north of Johnsondale. Not sure if you can get there direct from Sequoia-proper area. And Horse Meadow a real nice place this time of year.