Bronco sliding tail gate and floor leveling

[CarryOn]

Here’s a video of what I came up with. Next post will have instructions and parts list.

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[CarryOn]

Parts list



Plywood 4’x4’x3/4”

4x4 douglas fir x 8’ long https://www.lowes.com/pd/4-in-x-4-i...37-in-x-3-437-in-x-7-937-ft-Actual/1000028817

2 each of 48” long x 12” x 1” thick pine stair treads https://www.menards.com/main/stair-...492797420.htm?tid=2954335932258313170&ipos=29

48” of 1” x 1/8” aluminum angle https://www.menards.com/main/hardwa...lid-aluminum-angles/11334/p-1444432412012.htm

Set of locking 24” drawer slides https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08C56Z6GF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1

Menards automarine carpet 6’ wide x 10’ long https://www.menards.com/main/floori...08-c-6542.htm?tid=-2433676722122166500&ipos=1

One can of spray adhesive for carpet to plywood https://www.menards.com/main/paint/...64-c-7923.htm?tid=-8499634572309301396&ipos=5

Staples for hidden carpet to plywood edges

Continuous Hinge - 30”

2- 6” strap hinges - black https://www.lowes.com/pd/ReliaBilt-N236-990-ReliaBilt-6-In-Black-Strap-Hinge/5001781801

16 - Black carriage bolts 1/4-20 x 2”, washers, and nuts for attaching 6” strap hinges to plywood. If you can find shorter that is better. I had to cut mine shorter after bolted together.

8 - structural screws for tie downs https://www.menards.com/main/hardwa...10-c-8742.htm?tid=8623719224557601739&ipos=14

4 - 1/4” x 2-1/2” lag bolts for fastening drawers slides to 4x4’s https://www.menards.com/main/hardwa...ead-lag-screws/zhl14212-4/p-1444421587938.htm

#12 machine screws and nuts for fastening slides to aluminum angle https://www.menards.com/main/hardwa...02-c-8933.htm?tid=2988488976367348458&ipos=10

8 each of 8mm-1.25 x 90mm or longer hex bolts and washers for fastening 4x4’s to existing tie down mounts. Can find at a hardware store or pay more for them at a place like Lowe’s https://www.lowes.com/pd/Hillman-8mm-x-90mm-Zinc-Plated-Coarse-Thread-Hex-Bolt-2-Count/999996050



General steps to build

1. Cut the 8’ 4x4 to fit. I cut to fit so I could get all 8 bolts into existing tie-down mounts (plastic trim at rear to plastic trim behind the seats), then angled each end to be wider at the top. The cut for the portion by existing tailgate hump took several trial and errors for clearance.
2. NOTE: THE TIE-DOWNS ARE NOT PARALLEL TO EACH OTHER. The tie-downs towards front of Bronco are further apart than tie-downs at the rear. Will have to do your own math on where to drill holes to make the 4x4’s run parallel with each other. I set mine to be 32” apart - inside face to inside face. I didn’t write it down, but I think the front holes are 36-1/4” apart and the rears are 35-1/4”apart. That leaves you with 2-1/8” from inside face for the front hole centers and 1-5/8” from inside face for the rear hole centers. This centers the 4x4 over the mounts and leaves a 32” parallel space between them. I’m sure that sounds very confusing, but you’ll see. Hopefully my memory is correct. Double check against a pic I just drew up to explain better.
3. Drill holes for the 4x4’s. Figure out where the head of the 8mm bolt will end up when tightened down, then drill with 5/8” spade bit or larger to that head depth. This will be large enough to fit a washer under the hex head and provide more bearing surface when tightening. Then use 3/8” or similar drill bit to drill the rest of the way.
4. Test fit with the bolts. Be careful to not strip the factory mount nuts and don’t force anything. I added a little bit of anti-seize to help. I had one that was acting like it was beginning to gall.
5. I cut my plywood first to 35” deep and about 43” wide, then cut the edges to fit both sides and hump of existing rear door. The plastic sides are flimsy and have some play.
6. Figure out where you want to cut the hinged section. I wanted at least 1” of bearing on the 4x4, and still have room to lag the tie-downs into the same 4x4, all while making sure the tie-down hoops clear the lid. A person could also get other tie down that are more slim and give some more play to this measurement.
7. Cut out the hinged section. Mine is roughly 24” deep and 35” wide. I cut it out first, then cut another 1/4” of material off the sides that will be screwed down to give clearance for adding carpet later. I should have cut off another 1/8” to give a bit more clearance, as it is pretty snug right now.
8. Layout the hinges underneath and drill holes for them. Test fit as you go. Use the 1/4 black carriage bolts for these. You could also put the hinges on top so it could fully open, but I didn’t need that and didn’t want the hinge protruding from the floor.
9. Disassemble and carpet everything. Menards carries the carpet linked above in their store. You can get by with less than 6’x10’, but it’s pretty cheap in case you mess up a cut. I just used the adhesive on the big flat sections so it wouldn’t get wavy. Stapled other areas. I’m sure there are professional ways of doing it all without staples. I poked holes thru the carpet as I went so I didn’t lose where my hinge holes were located.
10. Use the structural screws to go thru the tie-downs and plywood and into the 4x4’s. I did pre-drill for them.
11. This works pretty well as is. No need to add sliders unless you want
12. Install sliders. Make sure they don’t hit the rear door before using the 1/4” lag bolts. I shimmed up the sliders off the existing floor with a few big washers to clear the rear plastic trim piece. Also, there are several holes in the slider to choose from to mount. I test fit a lag at several locations to make sure the hex head would clear slide mechanisms. There are a few holes it will not. I also pre-drilled the 4x4’s for the 1/4” lags. No washers used
13. Figure out what you want to use for a slider shelf/table. I used some stair treads as they are thick, cheap, and can screw into the edge easier than plywood. I then cut down the aluminum angle to fit the slider, figured where the #12 machine bolts would fit and clear slide mechanisms, drilled the aluminum, and bolted it on the sliders.
14. My shelf ended up being 30” wide, with the 30” hinge added in the middle.
15. The shelf was notched underneath to fit around those #12 machine screws. I’m going to add a few more to sturdy up some more.
16. Can add a few short wood screws to hard mount the shelf to the aluminum

In the future, I may switch my sliding table to an aluminum one. I’m thinking 1/4” thick with all four edges turned down, and can then eliminate the current aluminum angle altogether. I’m going to ask at the local metal fab shop if they can do that. I’d like to still hinge the 2 pieces as it’s very nice option to have.

 

[710-oil-614]

Looks awesome. What is the weight capacity for the slide out?

 

[CarryOn]

Looks awesome. What is the weight capacity for the slide out?

Manufacturer of slide says 449 pounds for the pair. I only tested 200. The weakness would be the aluminum angle and minimal bolts I used to support the wood plank.

 

[grayshadow]

WOW, you discovered how to make the floor level with the seats down, add a slide out table an hide hardware. Congrats.

That’s handy as a shirt pocket.

 

[PonyHunter]

It took me several nights in the garage, but I finally finished leveling off the cargo area and installing a sliding tailgate.

I wanted to build something like this to serve many purposes:

1) A more level area to sleep on when I'm camping and don't bring a tent or want to get off the ground. It's not totally level, but it's actually quite comfortable with the seats being at a slight angle. Also, the lip where the plywood meets the seats is a non-factor for me as my hips/butt rest on the plywood. My body spans the lip and I don't know it is there, especially if on a sleeping pad.
2) An area more secure, with either the top on or off, to keep a few tools and supplies. Out of sight, out of a mind is the main idea, but I do want to figure out a way to lock the lid down, I just haven't got that far yet. If I put a rubber cargo mat on top of this, I don't think most regular people would know it's a false floor if casually looking in. Heck, most probably wouldn't know anyway. A nice Bronco feature is the tailgate cannot be unlocked with the buttons on the doors unless the key fob is near, so I think I can make it pretty secure.
3) I go to my shooting range quite a bit, and like having an area to spread out without having to stoop under the rear part of the soft-top. The slider comes in handy to place some gear, and also will support my feet when sleeping on my back on a spring night when I leave the tailgate open. I think there is still room to add a tailgate table, but I don't need one yet.
4) I still wanted to have access to the factory storage areas under the floor.

I won't go into the build much unless people want me to, but the supplies are pretty simple. I probably have $200 in it, with the heavy duty drawer sliders costing about $100. The sliders are hefty, and claim to have a capacity of 449 lbs. I sat on it fully extended and it didn't feel sketchy. haha. This whole setup feels quite solid since it is bolted down to the factory tie-down mounts.

No reason I picked a red slider, just did it on a whim really. Same with the metal Bronco grill piece. I haven't decided if I'll keep either option that way yet.

I'll post some pics and video since a video really shows what all is going on. I hope others can get a few ideas for themselves after seeing what I did.




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I for one would absolutely love for you to get into it. Congrats it looks amazing. This is exactly what I am hoping to do with my build and was waiting for Ford to finally release their slide out. I’m sure many others are in the same boat.

 

[Arokcrwlr]

Great idea and execution.

 

[Klink]

Next- some leds under the floor that switch on when it's lifted.

 

[BigFootie]

Your implementation looks great. I was thinking the same thing.

I just picked up a pair of heavy duty sliders as well. 3 inches tall, 500 pounds of load, full extension. Seems like a perfect fit. 50 bucks for the sliders on Amazon.

 

[Techun]

Wow. Best yet. I definitely want to copy this.

Can you link to the sliders and hinges? Any any other dimensions you can share? I guess the only real crucial dimensions are the two pieces of the slide out tray.

Edit I assume these are the slides?
https://www.amazon.com/SHUHANG-Locking-Extension-Industrial-Capacity/dp/B08MZSNLBB

 

[BroncoAZ]

I like your style, sir. I’d ditch those covers on the T2. I always run the IO covers.

 

[JediMcMuffin]

Well done! Once I have a hard top I’ll be doing something similar. For now my security drawer stays.

 

[CarryOn]

Next- some leds under the floor that switch on when it's lifted.

Great idea and something I want to add in the back in general. The factory lights in the Bronco are terrible.

Your implementation looks great. I was thinking the same thing.

I just picked up a pair of heavy duty sliders as well. 3 inches tall, 500 pounds of load, full extension. Seems like a perfect fit. 50 bucks for the sliders on Amazon.

They are quite a bit cheaper if you don’t want a set that locks. I’m assuming the $50 ones do not lock and that is what you prefer? I think non-lockers would be fine as well, I just didn’t know how tight these would be and didn’t want the slider moving each time I accelerated or braked hard.

I like your style, sir. I’d ditch those covers on the T2. I always run the IO covers.

Great eye! I haven’t heard of the IO’s before. Will look into it. Thanks!

 

[BigFootie]

Great idea and something I want to add in the back in general. The factory lights in the Bronco are terrible.



They are quite a bit cheaper if you don’t want a set that locks. I’m assuming the $50 ones do not lock and that is what you prefer? I think non-lockers would be fine as well, I just didn’t know how tight these would be and didn’t want the slider moving each time I accelerated or braked hard.



Great eye! I haven’t heard of the IO’s before. Will look into it. Thanks!

You are correct, they do not lock. I was planning to add that myself with slide locks on each side. They are really heavy duty though!

 

[CarryOn]

Wow. Best yet. I definitely want to copy this.

Can you link to the sliders and hinges? Any any other dimensions you can share? I guess the only real crucial dimensions are the two pieces of the slide out tray.

Edit I assume these are the slides?
https://www.amazon.com/SHUHANG-Locking-Extension-Industrial-Capacity/dp/B08MZSNLBB

Those sure look the same. I got the Vadania ones in the 24” locking model.
Same China factory I’m sure

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08C56Z6GF?ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details&th=1

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