RC Van Build Series

In this episode, we begin the final stages of the van -- upper cabinets, fold-down table and massive upper deck. We had to break this part of the build into two parts. Part 1 (this video) will cover the construction of the upper cabinets from RB Components. We left out the installation of the bracing that gets riveted into the van in order to support the cabinets but that's pretty boring anyway! The fold-down table from RB Components is super handy for charging batteries or doing light bench work.

The cabinets are very easy to install, but you need a bracing kit from RB Components to properly mount them. I had to scrap most of the bracing kit because I only had uppers in the front part of the driver's side. The kit they sell covers both sides because it's typically used for camper vans. Regardless, it was worth it. I riveted in the bracing and then drilled through that and the van so I could insert Rivnuts (the thickness of the bracing and the van wall made Rivnuts a useful way to mount the cabinets vs riveting the cabinets directly to the van).

The fold-down shelf was its own journey. The partition is not flat so getting the mounting brackets in the same plane required shimming. Not technically difficult, just a bit of trial and error using thick aluminum spacers. In the end, the table is MASSIVELY useful for putting my chargers and batteries on while at the field. I store the chargers in the front-most cabinet and just pop them onto the table when needed.

In Part 2, (the next chapter) we will take a detailed look at the installation of the upper deck.

Our sponsors and mentioned product links for this episode are:
Mercedes-Benz of Oklahoma City - https://mbokc.com
Horizon Hobby - https://horizonhobby.com
Slide Master - https://slide-master.com
RBComponents - https://rbcomponents.com