A bit ago i posted a question on cup holders and andrew gave me an idea i thought i would try. I happen to have some left over material from the threathholds i installed and the day off so i started measuring and cutting to make this support so that the water bottles wont be rolling around while on the trail. If i am having this issue i figure others are as well so i thought i would post my mid day project in hopes it might help someone else.

i used a vise and a mallet to bend the edges and a jig saw to cut the circles after drilling an access hole. I used a cardboard template to define the areas to cut out. After several fit checks and once i was happy with it i sanded the sharp edges down and used silicone to hold it in place. At some point i might paint it flat black depending on how much glare it gives off.
Installed pic.
Due to the glare the photo looks a bit dark
I am in the process of bending the second lip
About to drill a hole so the jig can start the cut. I set the cardboard template next to it.

 

How does it work for you ?

 

thanks for the question Andrew, I have only used it on road so far and it seems to be working as intended. I had a long glass water bottle that normally "lays" in the holder over the hand brake but this time it stayed upright and out of the way. I have not tried it on the trail yet but I would expect the same results. the jury is still out on painting it or not.


another thing I noticed is since the bottom of the holders have two different sizes it can also be a bit unstable, at least for the glass bottle I had last night. I am currently debating picking up a set of those "jeep" cup holder inserts from ebay and installing those (makes a great excuse to match the floor mats). the good - it will make an even bottom, the bad - it will decrease the depth of the cup holders.

 

Been doing some off roading in the tahoe area this week and through all the bouncing around the cup holder has worked like a champ. I had a couple of tall metal water bottles and it jept them in place the whole time.