DIY panel for recovery boards

[SDXLT]

I like a good project and didn’t want to spend a ton of cash for a Molle panel just to attach recovery boards. I’m also not planning to keep them on the truck 24/7.

I had some Baltic birch leftover from a project so figured I could fab something basic up.

$8 in screws and washers from the Ace. I have a set of these coming in tomorrow to finish it up.
RULLINE T Track Bolts Mounting Pins Kits for Traction Boards Compatible with All Recovery Tracks with 4.72"~6.69"（12~17cm） Hole Spacing(Red https://a.co/d/0dqTSEW

I’ll keep updating as I get more done but so far:

Front panel is 1/2” Baltic and I just grabbed the jigsaw to cut free hand to use the top 2 holes for the tie down that was deleted and get the board as much on the surface for support as I could. It’s roughly 11”x16”. Then I used 2 M8x40 and some stainless washers.

For the rear I used 5/8” Baltic and it’s about 5”x15”. I put a backer on the bottom where it mounts of another piece of 5/8” and glued and screwed in the corners. Wanted to ensure enough back spacing for mounting the pins. Should be easy enough to remove them when I don’t need the boards. I’ll probably cover them in varnish or epoxy so they don’t have issues if they get wet.

Update:
Got the Amazon hardware today. The steel plates were solid. The bolts were not as I expected. They epoxied the red knobs to the end of the bolts. I don’t get how I would get them off if needed without wrenches. So I double nutted them and took the channel locks and broke the epoxy free and now they work as I needed. Had to cut the 2 bolts towards the rear shorter so they wouldn’t gouge the bed. I’m thinking about replacing the red knobs with through bolt knobs like I have in my woodworking jigs so I could drill a hole in 2 of the bolts for some small combo locks. Won’t stop bolt cutters but may be enough of a deterrent to keep my Tred pros on the truck. Overall I am really happy and will probably coat em in some bed spray to keep it all from rattling.

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[Danager]

Looks good. Wood is cheap and modular.
I mounted mine in the same spot. Had the same thought, why spend the money on the molle panels and then the molle mounts? I used some leftover extruded aluminum.

 

[SDXLT]

That’s cool! I want to see what I can design in CAD and see what a CNC shop would charge me to get me what I want out of aluminum. I think I could leave some “tabs” that could be bent to keep all the mounting points and the panel 1 piece without welds. The current stuff will serve the purpose designed for which is keeping the recovery boards out of the way.

 

[Grumpaw]

I like a good project and didn’t want to spend a ton of cash for a Molle panel just to attach recovery boards. I’m also not planning to keep them on the truck 24/7.

I had some Baltic birch leftover from a project so figured I could fab something basic up.

$8 in screws and washers from the Ace. I have a set of these coming in tomorrow to finish it up.
RULLINE T Track Bolts Mounting Pins Kits for Traction Boards Compatible with All Recovery Tracks with 4.72"~6.69"（12~17cm） Hole Spacing(Red https://a.co/d/0dqTSEW

I’ll keep updating as I get more done but so far:

Front panel is 1/2” Baltic and I just grabbed the jigsaw to cut free hand to use the top 2 holes for the tie down that was deleted and get the board as much on the surface for support as I could. It’s roughly 11”x16”. Then I used 2 M8x40 and some stainless washers.

For the rear I used 5/8” Baltic and it’s about 5”x15”. I put a backer on the bottom where it mounts of another piece of 5/8” and glued and screwed in the corners. Wanted to ensure enough back spacing for mounting the pins. Should be easy enough to remove them when I don’t need the boards. I’ll probably cover them in varnish or epoxy so they don’t have issues if they get wet.

Instead of varnish or epoxy why not get a spray can or two of spray in bedliner coating and coat them. It's a black coating, so it will match your truck and won't be so noticeable.
It will also be easier to touch up if they get scratches/gouges.

 

[SDXLT]

Great idea! Might even cut down on rattles.

 

[subquark]

I like a good project and didn’t want to spend a ton of cash for a Molle panel just to attach recovery boards. I’m also not planning to keep them on the truck 24/7.

I had some Baltic birch leftover from a project so figured I could fab something basic up.

$8 in screws and washers from the Ace. I have a set of these coming in tomorrow to finish it up.
RULLINE T Track Bolts Mounting Pins Kits for Traction Boards Compatible with All Recovery Tracks with 4.72"~6.69"（12~17cm） Hole Spacing(Red https://a.co/d/0dqTSEW

I’ll keep updating as I get more done but so far:

Front panel is 1/2” Baltic and I just grabbed the jigsaw to cut free hand to use the top 2 holes for the tie down that was deleted and get the board as much on the surface for support as I could. It’s roughly 11”x16”. Then I used 2 M8x40 and some stainless washers.

For the rear I used 5/8” Baltic and it’s about 5”x15”. I put a backer on the bottom where it mounts of another piece of 5/8” and glued and screwed in the corners. Wanted to ensure enough back spacing for mounting the pins. Should be easy enough to remove them when I don’t need the boards. I’ll probably cover them in varnish or epoxy so they don’t have issues if they get wet.

Update:
Got the Amazon hardware today. The steel plates were solid. The bolts were not as I expected. They epoxied the red knobs to the end of the bolts. I don’t get how I would get them off if needed without wrenches. So I double nutted them and took the channel locks and broke the epoxy free and now they work as I needed. Had to cut the 2 bolts towards the rear shorter so they wouldn’t gouge the bed. I’m thinking about replacing the red knobs with through bolt knobs like I have in my woodworking jigs so I could drill a hole in 2 of the bolts for some small combo locks. Won’t stop bolt cutters but may be enough of a deterrent to keep my Tred pros on the truck. Overall I am really happy and will probably coat em in some bed spray to keep it all from rattling.

Wow! Super nice and tidy and so custom - beautiful work!

 

[mtbikernate]

Instead of varnish or epoxy why not get a spray can or two of spray in bedliner coating and coat them. It's a black coating, so it will match your truck and won't be so noticeable.
It will also be easier to touch up if they get scratches/gouges.

I've used the flex seal in a can for wood I used to mount bicycles in my bed.

so far works pretty well for small projects that need to be sealed up from the elements.

 

[Orpheus_16]

Looks good. Wood is cheap and modular.
I mounted mine in the same spot. Had the same thought, why spend the money on the molle panels and then the molle mounts? I used some leftover extruded aluminum.

This looks great! Do you have any more photos of the mount closest to the back of the bed?

Been looking for an excuse to use 80/20 and this might be it.

 

[Danager]

This looks great! Do you have any more photos of the mount closest to the back of the bed?

Been looking for an excuse to use 80/20 and this might be it.

Not the greatest pic.

 

[Cmar]

Nice, you call them "recovery boards" we call them "Maxi Trax" generically after one of the first local people to make & market them over here.

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