heavy duty ultra strength cup holders....welding required

[fangotango306]

so I have a 93 explorer 5 speed. the cup holders are in the most ridiculous spot ever. the shifter will pretty much hit any size drink you try to put in them, I also hated the arm rest and storage compartment and prefer the pass through design as I sometimes need to crawl into the back seat. so I decided to eliminate the whole thing and build some extreme duty cup holders. my setup only works if the carpet has been removed or your able to locate the bolts in the trans hump cover without removing carpet, here is what I did,

start with some 3 1/4" drive shaft tubing or any other kind you may have. roughly 8 1/2" long. and about 3 1/2" of 1"x1"x 16 ga. square tubing.

Cut the d-shaft tubing, I made one piece about 3 1/2" tall and the other 4 1/2" tall. I figured 4 1/2" inches to be the max incase you use it for a canned beverage, any taller and you will have problems grasping the can. then I cut the 1x1 tube lengthwise.



then I weld the split square tube to the bottom of the d-shaft tube with some fairly large tacks. if you fully weld across condensation from a frosty beverage may collect in the bottom and cause rust. after welding I drilled a 1/4" hole in the bottom of the tube half






then sand and paint your choice of color.



install using holes in transmission hump cover. I utilized some extra ranger fender bolts as I found them to be longer than the cover bolt.



torque using the calibrated elbow and your done.
I made mine two different heights for no real reason. these are nice and strong and out of the way of everything. this setup will work in rangers and bronco2s if you have bucket seats and no console.

 

[kryptonitecb]

That's a bit overkill but I like it

Sent from the road while ignoring traffic

 

[fangotango306]

thanks! overkill is pretty much what I was going for, I have had some horrific cup holder incidents.

 

[Mark_88]

cool...good job...but I would end up hitting them almost every time with some part of my body and unleashing a string of curse words shortly thereafter...

I like my shifter boot cup holders...but they are a bit short...and I almost always have coffee spilled on the carpet and shifter...

I would like to see a cup holder that is able to move with the motion of the vehicle...but it would stay level at all times...sort of like a U clip with a dangling cup holder that will move freely if you go up a hill, down a hill, or mounting some of those huge speed bumps or driveway openings that seem to send coffee and other beverages in whatever direction they are forced...

 

[fangotango306]

they have gyroscopic cup holders but they are kind of huge. ive seen them at truck stops. and a friend has one in his bronco. its neat and does work. and forgive me but what part of your body hangs below the side of the seat and in the middle of the truck? lol

 

[jhammel85]

That's pretty awesome! I like It.

 

[fangotango306]

thanks!

 

[Mark_88]

they have gyroscopic cup holders but they are kind of huge. ive seen them at truck stops. and a friend has one in his bronco. its neat and does work. and forgive me but what part of your body hangs below the side of the seat and in the middle of the truck? lol

LOL...nothing really hanging...but I have a knack for whacking my knees and elbows on things that are fastened anywhere...and I've sometimes hung myself upside down over the seats to try to access something while working on it...

It will probably work well for most people though...normal people, that is!

Gyroscopic is what I was thinking of...I will look for them...

Years ago I came up with an idea for a gyroscopic type pilot seat for an aircraft...not that I ever fly or anything...but watching old war movies with dog fights in them I often wondered why the pilots had to be inverted and spun around with the body of the plane when it causes disorientation and all that...haven't seen one yet though so it's probably limited to coffee cup holders...

 

[fangotango306]

I use these for my cereal. lol

http://www.amazon.com/GYRO-BOWL-Spill-Resistant-Gyroscopic/dp/B004J69U98/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1376191685&sr=8-2&keywords=gyroscopic+cup+holder