diesel_driver_3500
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I thought I would show everyone how I installed my Transfer Flow 50 gallon refueling tank in my 2021 SB, even though Transfer Flow said it would not fit my application.
This is the tank I installed:
When I tried to order the tank, Transfer Flow said it would not fit a short bed with the OEM 5th wheel prep group. They were right, but they were also wrong! I decided to drive 14 hours, round trip, to Chico where they would place their template in the bed of my truck, while my hitch was installed, to see if it would work. With my hitch, it did fit. What I had determined, that they did not know, was that only certain hitches work with this tank in a short bed. I use a B&W slider hitch, and it fits with plenty of clearance at the locking handles, and only sits above the bed rails a couple of inches. I have about 11" of clearance between my bed rails and the bottom of my trailer, so the tank height was no problem at all. I can easily remove and install the hitch without fussing with the tank.
As I said, my B&W slider hitch fits well with the tank, but a B&W Companion, non-slider, will not work with this tank. This is because of the direction the handles turn when locking and un-locking from the pucks. If you are looking for an in-bed tank, don't be discouraged if the one you want supposedly won't fit. Take your own measurements and look closely at the hitch you are using. You may be able to simply rotate the handles or even modify them slightly to make everything work together.
I ended up mounting my tank a little differently than everyone else would, and I wanted to show you what I did. When positioning the tank in the bed, I could not find a location that centered the tank and allowed the tank brackets to be used. The pre-drilled brackets would not align with either the high or low ribs of the floor pan. You could drill the holes in the bed, but they would cut through the sides of a high/low ridge, making the use of spacers and washers impossible. Every spacer and washer would need to be highly modified to work, and the tank would not be centered in the bed. So, I built adapter plates:
These plates allow me to place the fasteners where I want, and where they are easy to get to. The passenger side under the bed is pretty wide open. The driver side, however, is tough. There are so many fuel and DEF lines, and the tanks, that getting wrenches above them is tough. These plates solve those issues.
The plates are 1/2" x 12" x 16" 6061 aluminum. The fasteners are 12mm x 1.50 pitch wheel studs, and as you can see, they are countersunk into the plates, utilizing the splines to hold them in place. These are the fasteners:
When I made the plates, I machined the holes to 1/4" initially. I then laid them out in the bed and used them to spot drill the floor. Just a dimple into the metal. I then removed the plates and used a step drill to enlarge the holes to 1/2". By doing it this way, everything was true and square in the bed. When using the step drill, I slid a piece of hepa pre-filter material between the bed and frame rails to capture all the metal shavings. The texture of the material grabbed the shavings as they fell through, and kept them all away from the tank and DEF lines.
After the bed was prepared, I used a 1/4" x 3/4" piloted end mill to drill the counter-bore holes in the plates to a depth of 0.180" to accept the studs. Once the counter bores were in, I drilled out the remainder of the 1/4" pilot holes to 14mm. This was the proper size for the press fit of the splines, and a little clearance for the threaded end.
Here are the plates installed in the bed:
The notches in the sides of the plates will be the "keys" that hold in the piece of 1/2" thick nylon that will support the center of the tank. The eight studs coming up through the plates fit the standard Transfer Flow tank brackets. I need to pop the plates back out in the morning and put a coat of primer/paint on them, and then bolt the tank down. I'll post pictures of the tank and hitch installed tomorrow night.
I know this is over-kill, but they were fun to make, and the attachments are solid, symmetrical, and stout!
This is the tank I installed:
When I tried to order the tank, Transfer Flow said it would not fit a short bed with the OEM 5th wheel prep group. They were right, but they were also wrong! I decided to drive 14 hours, round trip, to Chico where they would place their template in the bed of my truck, while my hitch was installed, to see if it would work. With my hitch, it did fit. What I had determined, that they did not know, was that only certain hitches work with this tank in a short bed. I use a B&W slider hitch, and it fits with plenty of clearance at the locking handles, and only sits above the bed rails a couple of inches. I have about 11" of clearance between my bed rails and the bottom of my trailer, so the tank height was no problem at all. I can easily remove and install the hitch without fussing with the tank.
As I said, my B&W slider hitch fits well with the tank, but a B&W Companion, non-slider, will not work with this tank. This is because of the direction the handles turn when locking and un-locking from the pucks. If you are looking for an in-bed tank, don't be discouraged if the one you want supposedly won't fit. Take your own measurements and look closely at the hitch you are using. You may be able to simply rotate the handles or even modify them slightly to make everything work together.
I ended up mounting my tank a little differently than everyone else would, and I wanted to show you what I did. When positioning the tank in the bed, I could not find a location that centered the tank and allowed the tank brackets to be used. The pre-drilled brackets would not align with either the high or low ribs of the floor pan. You could drill the holes in the bed, but they would cut through the sides of a high/low ridge, making the use of spacers and washers impossible. Every spacer and washer would need to be highly modified to work, and the tank would not be centered in the bed. So, I built adapter plates:
These plates allow me to place the fasteners where I want, and where they are easy to get to. The passenger side under the bed is pretty wide open. The driver side, however, is tough. There are so many fuel and DEF lines, and the tanks, that getting wrenches above them is tough. These plates solve those issues.
The plates are 1/2" x 12" x 16" 6061 aluminum. The fasteners are 12mm x 1.50 pitch wheel studs, and as you can see, they are countersunk into the plates, utilizing the splines to hold them in place. These are the fasteners:
When I made the plates, I machined the holes to 1/4" initially. I then laid them out in the bed and used them to spot drill the floor. Just a dimple into the metal. I then removed the plates and used a step drill to enlarge the holes to 1/2". By doing it this way, everything was true and square in the bed. When using the step drill, I slid a piece of hepa pre-filter material between the bed and frame rails to capture all the metal shavings. The texture of the material grabbed the shavings as they fell through, and kept them all away from the tank and DEF lines.
After the bed was prepared, I used a 1/4" x 3/4" piloted end mill to drill the counter-bore holes in the plates to a depth of 0.180" to accept the studs. Once the counter bores were in, I drilled out the remainder of the 1/4" pilot holes to 14mm. This was the proper size for the press fit of the splines, and a little clearance for the threaded end.
Here are the plates installed in the bed:
The notches in the sides of the plates will be the "keys" that hold in the piece of 1/2" thick nylon that will support the center of the tank. The eight studs coming up through the plates fit the standard Transfer Flow tank brackets. I need to pop the plates back out in the morning and put a coat of primer/paint on them, and then bolt the tank down. I'll post pictures of the tank and hitch installed tomorrow night.
I know this is over-kill, but they were fun to make, and the attachments are solid, symmetrical, and stout!
