1500fp's Silverado 1500 working dog cruiser

[1500fp]

Hey guys, figured I would do a thread on this in case anyone else was trying to do similar.

 

I'm working on building out the passenger area and bed into living and storage areas for me and my dog.

 

This build will focus on 2 main projects:

 

Passenger area build out (in progress)

 

Truck bed stealth camper build (will start when weather warms up).

 

So to start, here are some pics of my build and a few key points to why I did things a certain way so you can consider these points in your build.

[1500fp]

Ok so here are some build pictures.

 

I chose 1/2inch plywood for the floor as it was on the thinner side but still sturdy enough to need minimal support underneath. (which i have yet to build becuase it barely flexes as it is now). I bought some grey cheap outdoor carpet from home depot, and stapled it down. I did some research into glue vs. staples, and for the floor i wanted to be able to rip it up and put a new piece of carpet down when it gets ditry and tattered.

 

I cut another piece of plywood to cover the exposed back wall since the seats are missing. Bought some L brackets and bent them to fit around the hooks for the stock seats, and a couple more to put on the floor so i can secure it both ways. This piece of wood i will carpet with the same stuff as the floor, except i will glue it down since nobody will be walking all over this and its a more permanent piece. This part is currently in progress so you may see some updates here once i finalize the design.

 

The custom dog cage is made from hog panel, which you can buy at tractor supply co (basically the walmart of farm/garden stuff). This stuff is incredibly hard to bend, so make sure you have a pair of vice grips on hand and bolt cutters or a grinding wheel. I used a dremel to cut the panel apart, but i went through the little discs like crazy, so a more heavy duty cutter/grinder would be a better choice for this task. All i did here was measure the floor in the back where i wanted the cage, then cut a piece of hog panel for each wall.

 

Its a 2'x3' design, and the 2' pieces are cut to length, while the 3' pieces i left about 1.5 inches extra on each end so i could bend the ends and create a hinge. This works great for getting it in and out of the truck. Had i not bend the front piece to contour to the driver seat, i would have a fully collapsible crate for about 25$ thats tough as hell. The bends for the driver seat were really easy, just took a piece of 2x4 and laid it down across the wire then bent it up a little with my hands and tested the fit, i got lucky on my first try and bent it perfectly (and this is my first time working with metal like this, its easy). I still need to decide if i will put a roof on it, and a door. More to come when i make more progress.

 

Will also try and get some more pictures up of the brackets and stuff as thats built.

 

 

 

[1500fp]

The rest of the back passenger area i am going to install an ARB fridge next to the dog cage. Not sure what i will put on the other side of the fridge near the door, will probably leave it empty or build shelves to store things have not decided yet.

 

Has anyone been able to get the rear middle seatbelt out without destroying it? I looked at it for a good while and the only way i could figure was to take the seatbelt apart and did not want to do that so just bolted it back down in place. Its fine leaving it in there since its hidden behind the rear wall but i'd still like to know if its possible.

[1500fp]

Could also use some ideas for mounting hardware to secure the dog cage to the plywood!

[1500fp]

Extra supports added to the floor. Two 8" strips of plywood on each end, and another section in the middle with a vertical 2x4 acting like an I beam to support under the fridge as that will be the heaviest thing back there when fully loaded.

 

Got the rear wall board carpeted yesterday, and put in some L brackets on the floor to line up when my back wall is vertical.

 

Designing some mounts which will wrap around the factory seat mounts. WIll 3d print out a few and probably just drill straight into it. Once i get the design perfected i may add some holes to slip a few nuts in and hold them in place so you can screw in a nice hex bolt from the other side of the wall.

 

Pics to follow.

[1500fp]

pics

[1500fp]

more pics

[sahls01gmc]

I like the custom work!

 

What is the intention behind the actual cage? To keep Fido contained to a certain area? I ask because if he gets a wild hair, I see him trying to get through the gaps at the top of your fencing.

 

How long do you plan on "living" in the truck? I'm interested to see what the bed will look like. Topper?

 

Great stuff so far!

[1500fp]

I like the custom work!

 

What is the intention behind the actual cage? To keep Fido contained to a certain area? I ask because if he gets a wild hair, I see him trying to get through the gaps at the top of your fencing.

 

How long do you plan on "living" in the truck? I'm interested to see what the bed will look like. Topper?

 

Great stuff so far!

Thanks man, I am just a tinkerer and use readily available parts from the store but want it to look halfway decent. I think I am doing an alright job so far, hopefully the whole thing comes out good.

 

The cage is mostly to keep him contained in that area and for safety while driving, if you are ever in a crash your dog becomes a flying projectile unless you have them in a harness connected to a belt system. The cage itself is still not done, i need to cut the roof panel and make a door panel so it's a totally enclosed box. Then i need to weld a few wires here and there and grind the rough edges down.

 

I have it in there the way it is now as its better than nothing at all for the time being.

 

I am doing a month long road trip this fall across the US from east coast to west and back, with my wife and dog. Looking at some ARE caps right now, just saving up cash as they run about 1k and i have a thousand other expensive things on my list to buy like the ARB fridge.

 

Once i get a cap on the bed, i am going to make a raised sleeping platform that sits at the height of the wheel wells that bulge in the middle of the bed. I think it's about 1ft tall, and all that area underneath will be used for storage, and just throw some memory foam mattresses on top. I will then probably build out some shelves and whatnot after i do a few trial runs camping in the summer out of it.

 

I will also be installing a 2nd battery to power all my other accessories like fridge and whatnot, since the truck already has an empty 2nd battery bay. Just need to get some cables and a relay to prevent the main battery from draining while the truck is off and you are good to go.

[1500fp]

One thing i forgot to point out, in the image showing under the platform you will notice the 2x4 support does not run the full length underneath. This was intentional as i figured i may need to store long thin items (golf clubs, fishing poles, tubes, etc) and this gives me a small area that runs the entire width of the back floor.

[UplandPa]

Very informative Post. I do a lot of bird hunting and haven't found a dog crate that will fit in the back of a double cab.

[1500fp]

You should be able to fit a standard 2x3 crate in the back if just take the 2 seater out of the back. I was running that setup for a while as it gave me the extra seat in the back but was too crammed for the dog on long trips.

[1500fp]

Moved the crate over some to give the pooch more room. Secured it to floor with some home made 3d printed brackets.

 

Just ordered a dometic fridge which will be going in next week when it arrives.

[1500fp]

Pics

[1500fp]

Roof is almost done, just need to cut the ends down and bend them so they hook around the top of the cage. Also working on a door setup so he's fully caged in. Printed out a bunch more brackets to make sure cage is fully secure.