Pass through storage mod

[mnsunset]

I decided to do a modification to my pass through on my 2013 ST22BH.




With our old RV and our new on I alway hated trying to utilize the middle of the pass through. I never carried anything long enough to go all the way across and was always using roasting sticks to reach and pull back items that had been forced to the middle.
So I thought a pull out "drawer was in order.

I am too cheap to spend the $200+ price for full extension slides that could extend a drawer over 5 feet out the side of the unit.

So, I built a box.



And I installed some cheap casters that do not swivel upside down to the deck of the passthrough.
These bare all the weight of the drawer.

You also may see how I re-used some fishing pole holders to hold my roasting stick and those misc. Manual override tools and the so called towel bars.

I also cut some deep groves into 2 X 4's to act as guides left to right. And if you notice those are shelf bracket holders that ride in the grooves to keep the drawer from tipping out.

A couple of screws stop the "guides" so the drawer cant be pulled all the way out.



And finally a home made latch keeps the drawer from ever pushing open the door on a corner and extending out while on the road.



Now I keep some heavy items way in the pass through and stack all my chairs and stuff in the middle. I actually have a little extra room for small things left!

There is still room to the right to store some long items if needed.

So for me it is worth it.
I lost a little room under the slide. 1 1/2 inch to be exact but more than made up for it with the ease of storing more in the center of the unit.

And I don't care much about the added weight as my unit is about 4500 lbs dry. So I have some room for "add ons"
I would guess the whole thing added about 30 lbs.

Just wanted to share.

kurt

[dalemac377]

Nice looking mod.

[Lloyd]

Nice job Kurt!
Thanks for sharing.

[Sirsea]

Very nicely done, been thinking of something like that; your description and pictures just might inspire me to get started. Thanks for posting...

[tator447]

Well done, the best part of this is that you wanted it and you did it. It looks nice and very sturdy too. Good luck with the rest of your travels.

Jim

[ewbldavis]

Looks great...now tell us more about that red beauty in the background...

[Ruck]

Originally Posted by ewbldavis

Looks great...now tell us more about that red beauty in the background...

You beat me to it, was thinking the same!
BTW, good looking work there in the pass-thru!!

Travel Safe ...

[socoguy]

Hey really nicer Mod specific to your needs and well thought out. Good pics anddetails. Thanks

[mnsunset]

"now tell us more about that red beauty in the background..."

That car in the background is the first car I ever owned.
Pulled it out of a salvage yard in the early 80's. Restored it the first time and drove it through high school.
Got in way too much trouble with it and ended up parking it for a couple years. Then I stuck it away and kinda forgot about it.
It sat for a long time until I pulled it out about 7 or 8 years ago and just finished up a full restoration/modification.
Now it is running around 400 horse. Disc brake conversion and a bunch of other things.
Don't drive it as much as I should but I know it is there when I want to.

Thats the quick story on the 65 stang.

[longhauler]

looks good, that will come in handy, it gets old crawling in the basement all the time to get those things in the middle.

[Country Boy]

I liked your basement mod and had been planning to do something similar. In checking around I found where another innovative 5th wheeler had decided to do the same thing, but used a slightly different approach. He purchased two heavy duty full extension slides that could support the draw and load weight from "Accuride". The internet address is http:www.accuride.com/woodworking/slide. This allows you manufacture the drawer much like a conventional cabinet draw and eliminate the casters all together. The slides I am considering purchasing are rated for 500 lbs. I am debating whether to build two smaller drawers or one larger one. The person who had completed this modification did one full width drawer, and he could pull it out either side. At any rate, this may help some of you considering a similar modification.</span>

[mnsunset]

I checked into using the full extensions slides. By far the easiest and likely the best way to go. But to be honest I got cheap and didn't want to pay the $$ for the slides. They are fairly expensive. Also, if you go that way you will have to build up the height of a mount for those to clear the lip at the bottom of the door. I think the make shift way I did it set me back $20 plus lumber costs....
Let us know what you do.

[harley]

I did this to mine ...

[Utahgoldrup]

Great mod!! I think the small loss of space is made up for in functionality and like you mention, you can now store stuff in the middle and easily get to it. The pass-through storage is kind of a pain when you have stuff stuck in the middle and need to drag everything out just to get to it. When we have been in a hurry to leave, too much gets thrown in there and pushed around and it's a mess.

[mark5w]

Went and looked at the mod. Very nice and professional looking.

[harley]

my pic got deleted , but hopefully back this time.

[ewbldavis]

No pic...I hung PVC in our old Zinger for hotdog forks and stuff