Tailgate folding table

sdunnavant

Sep 22, 2022

I purchased the Bronco folding tailgate table and installed today. It will work fine but the fit and finish leaves a bit to be desired. I'm certain my install is correct. Took my time, checked and double checked before drilling (yikes) into the tailgate for the anchors. The first thing that caught my (and my coworker's) eyes was the cutout Bronco logo on the back mounting plate. I'd almost Ford have left it off rather than leaving the cutouts where the wiring harness and holes behind it could be seen. My initial thought is to order a piece of colored (probably red) Lexan off Amazon, remove the assembly, affix the Lexan behind the logo and reattach for a red background color. Secondly the tray when folded up rubs the right side of the frame. Not a huge deal, doesn't impact performance but I just expected a bit more. And by the way, if you decide to go this route, the included instruction sheets are of the "international" variety where they use symbols and very little wording to describe where everything goes. Took me a sec to figure it out. On the plus side, Ford did see fit to include a brand new 11/16" bit to drill out for the molly anchors (is that the correct term?)

Laura, Steve777468

Last edited by a moderator: Sep 22, 2022

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Sep 23, 2022

Careful with those factory rivnuts. They are cheap and rip out easy. I think the 25lb weight limit is more for those than anything.

2022 Big Bend, 4 door, Cactus Grey, on 285/70/17 KO2s

Steve777468

Sep 23, 2022

thgdfathr
Careful with those factory rivnuts. They are cheap and rip out easy. I think the 25lb weight limit is more for those than anything.

RIvnut, yes, that's the word I was looking for. You're correct. Instructions listed a torque value of 6.5 lb/ft and I did my best to get it perfect. About the biggest load it will see is a Jetboil and "cooked" dehydrated meals or some drip coffee. Should be okay.

Laura, Steve777468

Sep 23, 2022

sdunnavant
RIvnut, yes, that's the word I was looking for. You're correct. Instructions listed a torque value of 6.5 lb/ft and I did my best to get it perfect. About the biggest load it will see is a Jetboil and "cooked" dehydrated meals or some drip coffee. Should be okay.

I accidentally leaned on mine and popped one right out. I have a thread on here if you ever need it for a fix. Looks like you installed yours very well! My Bronco is also cactus

2022 Big Bend, 4 door, Cactus Grey, on 285/70/17 KO2s

Laura, Steve777468

Sep 23, 2022

I ordered one of these yesterday, then read the complaints about the flimsy hardware and subsequently cancelled my order. If I'm going to drill into my Bronco, it'd better be for a damned good reason and a high quality product. This doesn't seem to be it.

Sep 23, 2022

Reserved 7/14/2020 - Ordered 1/20/2021- home on 9/18/21.
Outerbanks, A51, High package, Tow capability, (MIC top-REMOVED 8/12) , Aux

TMars, BroncoBullet

Sep 23, 2022

Blitzjb
View attachment 45129

Now I know what I need for my tailgate table. Blackstone for the win!

2022 Big Bend, 4 door, Cactus Grey, on 285/70/17 KO2s

Big Papa, Ditchrunner

Sep 23, 2022

Blitzjb
View attachment 45129

I dig it!

Sep 23, 2022

thgdfathr
Careful with those factory rivnuts. They are cheap and rip out easy. I think the 25lb weight limit is more for those than anything.

I agree. I ended up using a nut/bolt for one of them.

Sep 23, 2022

I used white acrylic as a backer on the cutout. I also popped one of the cables so I replaced both of them with stainless steel braided cable.

thgdfathr

Sep 23, 2022

#10

I didn't drill mine at all and it works great. For the rubbing I left velcro that sticks to the tailgate (left over from my tailgate molles I removed in favor for the table.) I also used 3m tape and rubber washers for good measure. This may also be why there is zero noise from it. This was my first choice but the techs at my dealership advised me that they were very noisy and I also didn't want to drill into the tailgate. A found 2 other options with no drilling but with supply delays I ended up circling back to this one since it was available and I saw it installed with no drilling in the Ford display at Overland Expo.

Sep 23, 2022

#11

TechnicalDisaster
I used white acrylic as a backer on the cutout. I also popped one of the cables so I replaced both of them with stainless steel braided cable.
View attachment 45150

Confirms what I thought. I also like that white better than red. Nicely done. Decision made.

Sep 23, 2022

#12

OrangecrushBronco
I didn't drill mine at all and it works great. For the rubbing I left velcro that sticks to the tailgate (left over from my tailgate molles I removed in favor for the table.) I also used 3m tape and rubber washers for good measure. This may also be why there is zero noise from it. This was my first choice but the techs at my dealership advised me that they were very noisy and I also didn't want to drill into the tailgate. A found 2 other options with no drilling but with supply delays I ended up circling back to this one since it was available and I saw it installed with no drilling in the Ford display at Overland Expo.

It's a little late for me not to drill but my fallback if I ever decide to do something different is to fill those holes with the black plastic pop-in plugs I've seen at Ace or similar. I looked at other designs and felt like for the cost this model would work okay. I'll be trying it out in the mountains of SW Colorado next week....

thgdfathr

Sep 23, 2022

#13

sdunnavant
It's a little late for me not to drill but my fallback if I ever decide to do something different is to fill those holes with the black plastic pop-in plugs I've seen at Ace or similar. I looked at other designs and felt like for the cost this model would work okay. I'll be trying it out in the mountains of SW Colorado next week....

Nice. Enjoy the mountains!

Sep 23, 2022

#14

ried
I ordered one of these yesterday, then read the complaints about the flimsy hardware and subsequently cancelled my order. If I'm going to drill into my Bronco, it'd better be for a damned good reason and a high quality product. This doesn't seem to be it.

I installed mine without drilling. Ford had it displayed as a non drilled install (the rep said they didn’t want to drill into somebody's Bronco it must be a rig they will sell) my wife really wanted a table so I thought I was going to have to drill it but I avoided it. The bottom right corner doesn't connect and the drilled backet is designed to keep them together. I used a flat head screwdriver and the supplied rivnut to attach these pieces together directly rather then with the drilled bracket. It works like a charm. Sturdy, no rattle and when it's closed it provides extra storage for slim items.

BGBlew

Sep 25, 2022

#15

Is there a no drill install video on YouTube?

Sep 25, 2022

#16

OrangecrushBronco
I installed mine without drilling. Ford had it displayed as a non drilled install (the rep said they didn’t want to drill into somebody's Bronco it must be a rig they will sell) my wife really wanted a table so I thought I was going to have to drill it but I avoided it. The bottom right corner doesn't connect and the drilled backet is designed to keep them together. I used a flat head screwdriver and the supplied rivnut to attach these pieces together directly rather then with the drilled bracket. It works like a charm. Sturdy, no rattle and when it's closed it provides extra storage for slim items.

Great to hear - any pics?