Tacoma Sleeping Platform

The final product with a pug for scale.

Around Christmas this year, I ditched the sedan and finally upgraded to this '08 Tacoma Access Cab

A few weeks later, I bought this cap and started working on a sweet sleeping platform. I'm a pretty tall guy so I went with the mid-rise cap.

This is the main box of the platform (Upside down, sorry we were furiously working to meet a deadline before I move across the country so I didn't keep a consistent flow of events). After squaring up the three sides of 2x's and OSB board, we clamped it in place and let it dry for a day. The 2x's were held together with dove tails and later sanded down to create smooth lines.

The main box after completion. You can see the bearings that the drawers will run on as well as the two horizontal braces that will help support the hinged hatches that will later be put in place. A glimpse of the master architect himself on the left side of the screen.

Looking down one of the drawers. Just a better view of the placement of the bearings.

Outside view of the box. The nuts/bolts holding the bearings are flushed with the outside of the box to optimize usage of space in the bed.

Front of one of the drawers before the face plates were put on. Each drawer is held together completely by pocket screws.

The completed box in the bed of the Tacoma. We glued and screwed side rails on the box that will later support side panels.

Who's a good boy!?!

Front view of the drawers with face plates added.

The two hatches propped open. They are supported individually so that they can be opened one at a time, or both at once.

The drawers all of the way pulled out with the hatches open. The hatches let you get to the back of the drawers. Each of those dividers can be removed to customize the space of each compartment (see next picture).

One of the dividers removed. You can see the routed slots that each divider will slip into.

A slide lock was installed on the inside of the back of each drawer. When fully extended, it hits the first of the two hatch supports. It can easily be unlocked to remove the drawers entirely.

This shows both the rails that the drawers ride on as well as the brackets that keep the drawers locked at different positions (see next two pictures). There are three of those brackets on each drawer so that they can be 1. locked shut, 2. locked in a cooking position 1/3 of the way out (a few pictures down is the cooking board), and 3. locked all of the way out. These are used so that the drawer can be locked in each position regardless of whether the truck is parked on an upslope or downslope.

This is one of the six brackets. It is cut to come out 7/8" since the rail below comes out a full 1".

The bottom eye bolt is what's seen poking through and hitting the L-bracket two pictures ago. It slides easily in an out. The blue paracord holds it to an upper hook so that if fumbled, the eye bolt hangs and won't roll under the box.

The drawers locked in the mid position with the hatches up.

The kitchen board placed on top of the drawers in their mid position. Cooking supplies can be reached when the hatches are up. Also, my brother suggested that I could pull of the drawers completely out so that I have extra accessible drawer space while still maintaining the full cooking station.

One of the four turnbuckles holding the main box down. The two in the front (tailgate end) link between a D-ring in the bed and an eye hook bolted into the side 2x's.

A turnbuckle in the back (cab side) of the bed. Since there was no D-ring, we utilized two of the three drainage holes in the back of the bed with an eye bolt that a turnbuckle could attach to.

The full set up with all four side panels removed. Once again, the two middle side panels are screwed in which aids the overall design (plus they only cover the wheel wells).

Just an upper view of the sides.

One major problem with people sleeping in most truck caps is the inability to lock the cap while you are inside. After decent research, we decided to come up with our own solution (next 3 photos). We used a 1/2" x 1/16" x 4' piece of u-shaped aluminum to make the locking pieces.

First, the bottom slot of the piece slides onto the latch in its closed position.

Then the carved out hook latches onto the metal piece that holds the piston to the cap.

Another view of the lock in place. The lock is shaped so that even if it begins to slide off of the carved out latch, the sides of the aluminum hit the plastic ball and prevent any further movement. Very easy to put in and take out.

Here's the futon mattress that will be put on the platform. Just unwrapped it a day ago and am letting it fully expand before putting it out in the cold. Pugsy is a big fan of it and refuses to sleep elsewhere.