pickup to flat bed

[Rhon]

So I'm thinking of pulling the box off my truck and replacing it with a flatbed. It's been in the back of my head for years. I don't haul anything in the box other than hay, lumber, stove pellets and it would be easier to stack hay on the flat bed than in the box.
Has anyone else done it? Pros...cons...

 

[56FordGuy]

I love my flatbed. There's a lot more space, and it's easier to properly strap things down. The downside is, pretty much everything has to be strapped down unless you build some sides that drop down into the stake pockets.

You can side load with a forklift. In a regular pickup, you might fit two pallets in if you take the tailgate off, and use one pallet to push the other all the way to the front of the bed. Good luck getting that front one out, too. :laughing: I can fit 4 on a 9' long flatbed, and 6 on a 12'. Each one is easily forklift accessible, too. What you want to do sounds ideal for a flatbed.

I'd recommend you get rub/ strap rails down the sides, not just strap to the sides. Most pickup sized beds are 96" wide, and the extra couple of inches the rails stick out make it much easier to hook straps if you're loading pallets on it. Be sure when you start looking for beds you make sure to find ones made for a truck with a pickup bed. 'Regular' beds are designed for chassis cab trucks, and the frames are a little bit different. Neither one is really better, but it is something to be aware of when you're shopping.

 

[snowjoker]

So I'm thinking of pulling the box off my truck and replacing it with a flatbed. It's been in the back of my head for years. I don't haul anything in the box other than hay, lumber, stove pellets and it would be easier to stack hay on the flat bed than in the box.
Has anyone else done it? Pros...cons...

Once you have a flatbed you wont ever want a pickup box again!! You can haul so much more with a flatbed than a regular pickup box.Easy to work off 3 sides of it if you put removable side boards on..Depending on your location for winters I would recommend a 2x6 deck boards with a full rub rail on all 3 exposed sides so you have plenty of tie down space and a way to keep things inside the bed.. My next flatbed for my pickup is going to be 7 foot wide by 8 foot long with 6 feet of lumber with a 2 foot wide steel deck on the back of it to work off of.

 

[Case485Guy]

I am a flatbed fan, I think the main draw back is having to tie down the small stuff that you can throw in a truck bed. On the other hand properly secured items on a flatbed wont fly out of the bed.
Flatbeds offer more load versatility, you can also hang the tool boxs/aux. fuels tanks under the bed, keeping the full bed space for loads. To me its easier to add accessories like removeable racks, vices, winch and pole setups to flatbeds. Another thing is its easy to touch up the paint if you go with the standard black bed

 

[hrcarver]

I know the next truck I buy will be a flatbed srw. Not sure what it takes to convert one. I know the chassis are setup different on pickups.

 

[flusher]

So I'm thinking of pulling the box off my truck and replacing it with a flatbed. It's been in the back of my head for years. I don't haul anything in the box other than hay, lumber, stove pellets and it would be easier to stack hay on the flat bed than in the box.
Has anyone else done it? Pros...cons...

I thought about doing that on my 2001 F150, but then I found a good deal on a 2004 Isuzu NPR/EFI stakebed (8x14 ft bed, 49500 miles, 6L GMC LQ4 V-8 gasser, $11K on eBay). You're right--it's a lot easier to load than a pickup. I bought about 800 lb of seed a few weeks ago---palleted and fork-lifted by the seed guys onto the stakebed, no muss, no fuss.



Good luck.

 

[cmyoung2]

Pro's- It's flat. With stakes/standards you can haul a lot. Easy to make a dump bed. some loads are easier to strap down if you have tie down points. No fenders to bang up
Cons: May be harder to climb up on. The bed will be higher. Think about trailer hitch, especially if you use a gooseneck. May be wider than the truck body, something else to catch on that gate post:confused2: Stuff won't stay in the bed unless restrained. Tool boxes can either be easier to use(under bed) or harder to get to,
If you have duals, width of the bed is not much of an issue, wide is ok. If you have SRW, then a wide bed looks like an add-on, not "normal" what ever that is

A little more rust on mine, it might end up a flatbed too

 

[Diamondpilot]

Also check with your insurance man. A flat bed will change things with some companies.

I have had both and went back to a Pickup Box. The cons were just too much for me and if I need to haul that kind of stuff I just use my trailers.

Chris

 

[powerstroke444e]

For a work truck flat bed is only way to go, but with a hoist they are priceless.
Here's a picture of one I built. There's a tread on it some were on here.

 

[Rhon]

Lots of great comments. I didn't think about the difference between a pick up and a chassis frame. I'd be converting a srw 96 F250 4x4. All of my trailers are bumper pull but I'd make sure it came with a turnover ball. It just seems more practical for me. The biggest hurdle won't be doing it but convincing the wife/boss...

Thanks guys