DIY pickup bed cover that will carry a load.

[sodamo]

Sorry you didn’t get the hoped for results. I do hope it proves to be durable.

 

[strantor]

Sorry you didn’t get the hoped for results. I do hope it proves to be durable.

Me too, I am optimistic about the durability, haven't read any complaints about that aspect of it, and I put more effort into prep than I ever have on any other project. My painting projects usually turn marginally acceptable because I don't have the patience for meticulous prep, but I forced myself through it on this one because of how much money the materials represented and how publicly visible the results will be. If it doesn't hold up, I'll have all the justification I need to hang the blame squarely on Raptor's shoulders; not that it would be of any consequence, but I would feel better.

 

[strantor]

I found myself unable to "just live with it" and decided to suck it up and spend the money for some more unreasonably expensive automotive paint tint and a couple more gallons of the Raptor bed liner, and spray over what I sprayed last week for a thicker coating. I had the Raptor stuff in my Amazon cart but before clicking "place order" I called U-Pol tech support to inquire if there is anything that needs to be done to prep the surface of the liner I already sprayed before spraying more on top of it, as they sell several other products including "adhesion promoter" and other prep products which I might need, and wanted to order everything at once. What they said is that it's not the same stuff as the bed liners you get sprayed 1/8"-1/4" thick, and wasn't ever meant to be sprayed that thick, and if you do spray it that thick, it will crack. So, bittersweet; they saved me the money I was about to spend, but delivered me the bad news that I am in fact committed to what I have right now, which is not what I wanted. This is what I get for being a cheapskate and a too-ambitious DIYer who doesn't fully research things before pulling triggers.

 

[jonsstihl]

Your honesty is much appreciated. It is sometimes hard to admit when we screw up but If it saves one person from making the same mistake it will have been worth it.

Nice fab work though it will definitely keep your stuff more secure in the bed.

 

[sodamo]

Enjoy it for what it is.
Was in town the other day and a Gen 1 Ridgeline was alongside, totally covered in black Line X, even a Line X emblem on fender.

Was admiring the attention to detail. Like various pieces must have been removed and painted. No place did a seam appear filled in.
It sure held the dirt though, lot of mud splatter.

 

[strantor]

Your honesty is much appreciated. It is sometimes hard to admit when we screw up but If it saves one person from making the same mistake it will have been worth it.

That's the idea. I don't enjoy publicly making a fool of myself, but my mistake is an easy one to make. There is not a lot of this kind of information out there. If you Google Raptor liner you'll find all kinds of instructional posts and videos on how to mix it, spray it, prep, etc, all the technical stuff, but for some reason all these resources start at step 2, when step 1 is understanding exactly what you're buying. Prior to purchasing, I never saw anything to indicate that it was only going to be paper (business card stock) thin. Even afterwards, going back to see what it was I had skimmed past, I only saw hints in a couple of poor reviews that weren't well worded. And not a whisper of not being able to spray it thick even if you want to. Like you said, I hope this saves someone else the trouble.

Nice fab work though it will definitely keep your stuff more secure in the bed.

Thanks!

 

[strantor]

Disappointment over the bed liner dampened my enthusiasm to get the bed cover put back on so it sat there for over a week while I flushed out all my feeling sorry for myself. Here it is installed:

The color match isn't great; it's too dark, but from certain angles it's less obvious. And (BONUS!) it turns out that from the angle that your average person will be viewing it, you can't really see the gnarly aluminum seams. It actually doesn't look that bad IMO.

Another BONUS, while the metallic flake in the tint doesn't lend it any observable glimmer (or whatever right word is for how it looks when mixed with paint) I think it is actually doing something to reflect sunlight. I just drank one of those waters you see in the picture after the truck has sat all morning in direct sunlight and the water wasn't even warm. Water from inside the passenger compartment was much warmer, not pleasant to drink. Water from the bed was like water that had been sitting in tree shade, just ambient temperature. This is great news for all my test equipment that will call the bed home. I have not installed any sealing gaskets yet, so I'm curious if that will make the bed get hotter than it does now.

Still on the TO DO list:
-install D-rings for lashing down loads on the bed cover
-re-do lift struts for load now that aluminum is installed.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Would paint not stick if you resprayed? Not the lining material, just top coat with paint.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Speaking of spray liners, this just popped up. Haven't watched it yet

 

[strantor]

Would paint not stick if you resprayed? Not the lining material, just top coat with paint.

I have no idea. It has a slippery surface like plastic which makes me think it wouldn't stick, but it's also textured, so .. maybe? Sounds like a question for Raptor Tech support. I'll let you know. But I have a feeling their answer will be "if it was paintable we wouldn't make it tintable."