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Post by phatdaddy on Jan 15, 2024 5:08:35 GMT
Any updates? Spring will be here before you know it ;-)
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 17, 2024 0:07:14 GMT
Any updates? Spring will be here before you know it ;-) Perfect timing as usual--I was just about to post =) Three of the bigger items that were on my "potential hurdles" list have cleared for manufacturability. 1. The 62" extruded aluminum tray / drawer was a potential concern as it's a fairly big profile to extrude. It was looking like we were going to have to extrude it in two halves, (the design is symmetrical left to right) and STIR weld those together, which would have added a step and more cost. Fortunately the factory was able to suggest a few changes that I can incorporate that they think will make a one piece extrusion work. The downside is that one of the changes was increasing the minim wall thickness by 1mm which will add about 5 lbs of weight to the drawer--it will be stronger/stiffer though so not all bad. 2. The 60" extruded plastic power transfer rails can be extruded in PVC without any major revisions. 3. We have found a source for the 2mm x 5mm x 60" brass power transfer strips. As I mentioned in an earlier post, almost everyone (more than 95%) opted for power outlets in the tray and it's silly to send out the Utility Tray first and then the power upgrade a few months later so I think we are just going to include it as a standard feature rather than an option--It's just easier for everyone that way. It will slow me down a couple of weeks as I still need to test the electrical systems. Last item for this update is a correction to something I said in the December update; That there would be no assembly required. I'm not sure a 120 - 130 pound single box is something everyone would be able to maneuver around. It probably makes more sense to split that into 2 or 3 more manageable boxes with a little bit of fairly straight forward assembly. I'll try to keep it as simple as possible--just screws--and provide very clear instructions. 25 plus pages of 2D drawings are also all done--again. The changes to the tray extrusion required a LOT of revisions downstream. Including one below for those of you interested in what they typically look like =)
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Post by phatdaddy on Jan 17, 2024 6:04:40 GMT
Getting exciting! Thanks for the effort and the update! Looking forward to hearing more.
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Post by stationmaster on Jan 17, 2024 15:18:04 GMT
Speaking mostly for myself, I'm not certain I will be able to handle "... 2 or 3 more manageable boxes ..." and "...very clear instructions." ...sounds almost like an oxymoron. My preferred assembly method is to spread all (well, most all) parts out on the living room floor, invite the dog to help (who will eat one or more of the screws) and ignore the written directions. After about four hours of frustration and confusion, it is time to call in my daughter, who reads the directions, and 15 minutes later has successfully assembled the project. Good luck to all .... the dog and I are off to the vet to look for lost screws.
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Post by rosst on Jan 17, 2024 15:53:39 GMT
I'm loving the progress and very excited!. I hope after the tray gets further into production you are able to revisit the totes you posted about on 3/15.
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Post by psklenar on Jan 17, 2024 16:52:07 GMT
Speaking mostly for myself, I'm not certain I will be able to handle "... 2 or 3 more manageable boxes ..." and "...very clear instructions." ...sounds almost like an oxymoron. My preferred assembly method is to spread all (well, most all) parts out on the living room floor, invite the dog to help (who will eat one or more of the screws) and ignore the written directions. After about four hours of frustration and confusion, it is time to call in my daughter, who reads the directions, and 15 minutes later has successfully assembled the project. Good luck to all .... the dog and I are off to the vet to look for lost screws.
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 18, 2024 1:26:05 GMT
Speaking mostly for myself, I'm not certain I will be able to handle "... 2 or 3 more manageable boxes ..." and "...very clear instructions." ...sounds almost like an oxymoron. My preferred assembly method is to spread all (well, most all) parts out on the living room floor, invite the dog to help (who will eat one or more of the screws) and ignore the written directions. After about four hours of frustration and confusion, it is time to call in my daughter, who reads the directions, and 15 minutes later has successfully assembled the project. Good luck to all .... the dog and I are off to the vet to look for lost screws. We've had a few of those vet visits =)
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 18, 2024 1:43:35 GMT
I'm loving the progress and very excited!. I hope after the tray gets further into production you are able to revisit the totes you posted about on 3/15. I've drawn them up and manufacturing them isn't an issue. My concern is the economics. I've recently had a few group members with R1T's ask for bed boxes designed to perfectly fit the bed and stay below the tonneau cover so I roughed up a design. They are a little bit expensive but not that much more than quality Rubbermaid totes, but the roto-molding mold can only be cycled twice a day. If you need 6 boxes per order--that's what the bed holds--and 100 orders to pay for the tooling, that's about three months. People tend to get impatient =) If there were only 2 or 3 totes on the slide tray that is a more manageable time frame of course.
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Post by 0r1tmax0 on Jan 21, 2024 2:29:28 GMT
I like the plank idea with T-slots, for mounting and transporting a Harbor Freight Badland jack. Jack dimensions are 31-3/4" (L) x 14-1/4" (W) x 10-12" (H), excluding the detachable handle. The Pro-Eagle 3-ton off-road jack is roughly the same dimensions. So I'm thinking either mount the jack directly to the plank and secure with straps secured to D-rings riding in the T-slots. Or, there is a company making and selling mounts they designed specifically for this jack (https://www.ebay.com/itm/295853946216), which could be bolted to the plank?
My other potential uses could just be general cargo. Duffles, groccery totes, long rifle cases... So, I think what I'm trying to say is: for me, the ideal design would be one that is easily configurable to have compartments (end-to-end), just a plank, or a combination of both.
Color-wise, I'm not a fan of plastering yellow all over the place. It's an accent color for the Rivian brand, and for consistency it should be used sparingly (only the handle) or not at all. All or mostly black, or gray
-Paul
PS--Apologies. Way behind on developments and slowly catching up. I think the single plank, two-way slide would suit my needs best.
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 21, 2024 5:51:03 GMT
I like the plank idea with T-slots, for mounting and transporting a Harbor Freight Badland jack. Jack dimensions are 31-3/4" (L) x 14-1/4" (W) x 10-12" (H), excluding the detachable handle. The Pro-Eagle 3-ton off-road jack is roughly the same dimensions. So I'm thinking either mount the jack directly to the plank and secure with straps secured to D-rings riding in the T-slots. Or, there is a company making and selling mounts they designed specifically for this jack (https://www.ebay.com/itm/295853946216), which could be bolted to the plank? My other potential uses could just be general cargo. Duffles, groccery totes, long rifle cases... So, I think what I'm trying to say is: for me, the ideal design would be one that is easily configurable to have compartments (end-to-end), just a plank, or a combination of both. Color-wise, I'm not a fan of plastering yellow all over the place. It's an accent color for the Rivian brand, and for consistency it should be used sparingly (only the handle) or not at all. All or mostly black, or gray -Paul PS--Apologies. Way behind on developments and slowly catching up. I think the single plank, two-way slide would suit my needs best. The problem with a "plank only" design is that everything must be strapped to it. If you throw on a duffel bag or a bag of groceries, or smaller items, they end up falling off or being pushed off when you slide the tray in and out. This kind of defeats the purpose of a utility try for most users--not having to climb into the gear tunnel to get things. That being said, I know that for a smaller subset T tracks on a platform can be useful for item specific mounting--like your jack. I included linear reinforcement flanges on the top edges of the tray to make mounting auxiliary items pretty straight forward. Using your case as an example, it would be very simple to hinge a 3/4" plywood deck on top of the drawer that has T tracks embedded. That lets you still use the space underneath the shelf and still have the ability to mount your jack to the T tracks. The same goes for a dedicated rifle locker, a water tank...pretty much whatever you need--within the size limitations of the gear tunnel. The drop in Camp Kitchen I'm working on is a prime example. There are presets for the divider spacing--shown below--but the tray is aluminum so custom spacing is not too hard if needed. The standard / stock configuration it will ship with is the 3 compartment with a slightly smaller center section. A lot of people have asked for a dedicated center section for use from the back seat. You can also see the position of the two 120V outlets if you look close. You can also see the double flanges lengthwise along the sides I mentioned above. Extra dividers will be available in a 3 pack or a 5 pack--whatever the group thinks is best. Lastly, the colors shown are for illustration only at this point. I will be polling the group about the color/colors as we get closer. My GUESS is we will end up with everything matte black as not everyone will like the yellow. Maybe a dark gray. The end caps are easily removable for anyone wanting to paint them a specific color--maybe color match their trucks.
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Post by leonbmx on Jan 22, 2024 3:08:29 GMT
I am so excited for this!
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 22, 2024 8:46:11 GMT
I am so excited for this! I'm getting into the more stressful portion--wrangling all the manufacturing aspects. Laying awake in bed running through everything for the 200th time trying to think of anything I missed, etc.. I do get excited when I think about all the possibilities for a utility tray people will come up with to fit their use cases / life style. There are a lot of existing cases and boxes with lids and dividers that people will find, and we may end up 3D printing some custom stuff. Once people have had some time using the tray I will start asking what sort of organizers they would like to see. This is just a quick example to illustrate what I mean.
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Post by bksnacker on Jan 22, 2024 19:14:55 GMT
This is really shaping up beautifully. In the interest of thinking about future inserts, could you provide a profile of that example box with dimensions (maybe a simple print-out to play with). I find myself wondering whether/how random tools and toys might fit and whether a custom box could be made. Looking forward to the final stages!
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Post by 0r1tmax0 on Jan 23, 2024 1:56:17 GMT
The problem with a "plank only" design is that everything must be strapped to it. If you throw on a duffel bag or a bag of groceries, or smaller items... Sounds good! Thank you.
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Post by BoxGods on Jan 23, 2024 2:21:00 GMT
This is really shaping up beautifully. In the interest of thinking about future inserts, could you provide a profile of that example box with dimensions (maybe a simple print-out to play with). I find myself wondering whether/how random tools and toys might fit and whether a custom box could be made. Looking forward to the final stages! Sure. I will post some dimension files once everything is locked down.
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