# Rear Slide Brace



## Paul (May 14, 2008)

I spent a little of time figuring out a brace for the rear slide. Many Thanks to you "Outbackers" for planting the idea which got me going on this project. The brace is made out of leftover maple and walnut from the cutting board I made to cover the cook-top. The top support was made so that it would support the under part of the slide and the edge of the white board behind the fascia board of the slide. I took the mechanism out of a wood clamp that I had in the garage to make the screw assembly. All you have to do is pop it into place and then take a half a turn on the screw and it's locked in. This was not an easy project by all means. I like to tinker and do woodwork so I feel it was time well spent. An H-Frame made with a 2X4 would work just as good.


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## russk42 (Sep 10, 2007)

Wow- that really looks great, but I can't quite visualize how it works--I see the hinges, does it open like a scissor jack? I'd love to see a picture of it open or folded, or whatever happens when the hinges bend


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## Eagleeyes (Aug 1, 2007)

Paul said:


> I spent a little of time figuring out a brace for the rear slide. Many Thanks to you "Outbackers" for planting the idea which got me going on this project. The brace is made out of leftover maple and walnut from the cutting board I made to cover the cook-top. The top support was made so that it would support the under part of the slide and the edge of the white board behind the fascia board of the slide. I took the mechanism out of a wood clamp that I had in the garage to make the screw assembly. All you have to do is pop it into place and then take a half a turn on the screw and it's locked in. This was not an easy project by all means. I like to tinker and do woodwork so I feel it was time well spent. An H-Frame made with a 2X4 would work just as good.


Why did you need this brace?


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## Paul (May 14, 2008)

Eagleeyes said:


> I spent a little of time figuring out a brace for the rear slide. Many Thanks to you "Outbackers" for planting the idea which got me going on this project. The brace is made out of leftover maple and walnut from the cutting board I made to cover the cook-top. The top support was made so that it would support the under part of the slide and the edge of the white board behind the fascia board of the slide. I took the mechanism out of a wood clamp that I had in the garage to make the screw assembly. All you have to do is pop it into place and then take a half a turn on the screw and it's locked in. This was not an easy project by all means. I like to tinker and do woodwork so I feel it was time well spent. An H-Frame made with a 2X4 would work just as good.


Why did you need this brace?
[/quote]

This will remove some of the stress from the ceiling rails in the closed position. There are a couple of places that I have to drive down some pretty rough roads and this will provide some support. It will also allow for someone to get in the rear slide when closed. There was a big thread from the factory rally talking about getting in the rear slide when in the closed position. I also saw some other threads about Outbackers putting these braces in for the very reason I described above. This is what instilled me to build thins brace. Besides I had time, material and thought that it was a logical idea.


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## bradnjess (Mar 25, 2007)

Pretty cool.







So when do you expect this to go into mass production?







Thanks for sharing.

Brad


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## Paul (May 14, 2008)

bradnjess said:


> Pretty cool.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


No mass production on this brace. This was strictly a simple design (I thought) that turned into a quest to see if I could build it after the first plan failed. I do have an idea for one that could be made really simply and would provide the very slight jacking effect that the one I built provides. It would way smaller, break down into three pieces and just about anyone could make it. I will play around with it this weekend out of some scraps and if it works I will go public with the plans.


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## PDX_Doug (Nov 16, 2004)

Wow Paul!

That is very, very cool! As have many, I have thought about building a brace for our bed for some time. This looks like a really great solution, and the craftsmanship is top notch!









Thanks for sharing!

Happy Trails,
Doug


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## Paul (May 14, 2008)

russk42 said:


> Wow- that really looks great, but I can't quite visualize how it works--I see the hinges, does it open like a scissor jack? I'd love to see a picture of it open or folded, or whatever happens when the hinges bend


It opens like a scissor jack. It only has to open just a very little bit to take to pressure off an have some slop to put it in place.

Paul


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## shaela21 (Aug 16, 2005)

That is absolutely ingenious. I suppose there are simpler ways to do this, but yours is really neat, and easier to use then most of the ideas I have had. I was going to just build a frame that slides under the bed frame with some carpeting on top to allow for cushioning, but I like the adjustable idea.

Thanks for sharing.


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## skippershe (May 22, 2006)

Great job Paul!
I agree...beautiful craftsmanship and a fantastic design


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Nicely done







I thought of doing this (not nearly as nicely though) a while ago so we could get on the bed without extending the slide but I haven't gotten to it yet. Something to keep in mind would be to not put too much pressure on that support because the floor is 1/4 inch plywood skin on the top and bottom laminated to styrofoam in the middle, too much weight in one spot might cause an indent in the floor.



> This will remove some of the stress from the ceiling rails in the closed position


Those ceiling tracks are very light duty and aren't there to carry much weight of the slide. They're there to guide the slide in but not carry any weight, the rear wall and the locking mechanism does the brunt of the work. The tracks in our trailer started to crack around the screwholes because they were carrying some of the weight so I adjusted the rollers to not be carrying any weight when the slide is in and that was a couple of years ago.

I'm in the cabinet business and looked into replacing the track since mine cracked and I discovered that the hardware in our trailer is rated for only 50 to 75 pounds, not nearly enought to support the slide.

Mike


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

camping479 said:


> Nicely done
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Are you talking about the floor of the trailer?? Mine has 5/8" OSB structure board flooring. I have not seen any that use a laminated floor.

Now the slide is thin material but the edge where the support is placed is reinforced.


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

> Are you talking about the floor of the trailer?? Mine has 5/8" OSB structure board flooring. I have not seen any that use a laminated floor.
> 
> Now the slide is thin material but the edge where the support is placed is reinforced.


I'll check into it at home and post a pic, the only place I can get to it is where the tub drain goes thru the floor. and there was definitely styrofoam there.

Mike


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Here's a photo of the floor structure, the top layer is a piece of 1/4" plywood laminated to what looks like a piece of 3/16" plywood, then the styrofoam and then the bottom layer is 1/4" plywood. I'm guessing they changed the flooring material if yours is 5/8" Andy.










Mike


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## Paul (May 14, 2008)

camping479 said:


> Here's a photo of the floor structure, the top layer is a piece of 1/4" plywood laminated to what looks like a piece of 3/16" plywood, then the styrofoam and then the bottom layer is 1/4" plywood. I'm guessing they changed the flooring material if yours is 5/8" Andy.
> 
> Mike


Mike,
Her is a quote from the Keystone Outback Site.

"Two by 3" floor joists with 5/8" think floor decking makes Outback's floor the sturdiest in the light weight market".

I hope the site is right??


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

Mike - that must have been a Lite-Way method of construction as I know mine is not that way. Below is a picture of current construction.


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## camping479 (Aug 27, 2003)

Yep, definitely a different construction method. Of course when we bought it this was the latest and greatest floor decking material and was the best thing since sliced bread









Can't complain though, it's held up well

Mike


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## dunn4 (Feb 16, 2008)

This is one reason we love this forum - you learn so much on what to do and what not to do in the Outback. We just talked about making adjustments to the bed rails (outside) and now I have learned more about the rails inside, the adjustment, and more importantly, the weight limit. I have thrown some luggage and other items on the bed (nothing over 75 lbs.) but without thinking one day I crawled in while it was closed to make the bed. Trying to get it ready for the next trip since we like putting it away clean and ready. Duh! Thanks for the great tips, common sense advice, and the mod ideas. We love our Outback and are still convinced we made the right purchase in February and this forum is a blessing before and after purchase.


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## aplvlykat (Jan 25, 2004)

Well I am glad I have a 2004 model because mine has, starting from the top down, 5/8 OSB, foam and a thin piece of laun for the bottom. They are all glued together very tight. I know this off subject but I have heard this several times and I am confused. Everyone keeps talking about wood covers for their stoves. Mine came with a white metal fold up cover that matches the stove. It fold up and is hinged so it stays in place towards the back side of the stove. When in use it completely covers the burners and adds counter space. Am I the only one that has this type of stove cover? Wedgewood use to ship them with all stove/oven units to be installed by the factory. Did Keystone stop installing them? Sorry for the hijack but like I said I have heard several members say they had to make covers. Kirk


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## CamperAndy (Aug 26, 2004)

aplvlykat said:


> Well I am glad I have a 2004 model because mine has, starting from the top down, 5/8 OSB, foam and a thin piece of laun for the bottom. They are all glued together very tight. I know this off subject but I have heard this several times and I am confused. Everyone keeps talking about wood covers for their stoves. Mine came with a white metal fold up cover that matches the stove. It fold up and is hinged so it stays in place towards the back side of the stove. When in use it completely covers the burners and adds counter space. Am I the only one that has this type of stove cover? Wedgewood use to ship them with all stove/oven units to be installed by the factory. Did Keystone stop installing them? Sorry for the hijack but like I said I have heard several members say they had to make covers. Kirk


2005 and later - no stove cover from the factory but they could have been installed by individual dealers. My DW purchased one and I still have to install it.

Also I think on all 2005 and later all the trailers had loose insulation batting in the floor, like the picture I posted.


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