Those are pretty slick setups. Very utilitarian, and they also look good. Would be cool to see those concepts applied to American trucks that don't look born to deliver feminine hygiene products. Who knows, maybe one day I'll ditch the bed altogether and try something like that.We would move vehicles like this:
Mercedes-Benz Sprinter
316 CDI 2.7 402 156pk oprijwagen Diesel uit 2003 - www.autobedrijf-wagenaar.nlwww.autobedrijf-wagenaar.nl
And what youre trying to do, i would gravitate towards something like this: an open bed with dropsides, and tool cabinets under the floor on each side.
Des années d'expérience résultent en une qualité parfaite
Spécialiste dans la construction et l'aménagement de camions et camionnettes, conteneurs et pulvérisation. Aussi bien du travail sur mesure que des solutions standard. Solide et durable.www.alumac.be
DIY pickup bed cover that will carry a load.
- Thread starter strantor
- Start date
Renze
Elite Member
Now you got me envisioning sanitary pads the size of a canoe stacked up on that dropside bed..
Ok I got it primed and painted (badly, very badly), dressed the edges of the aluminum, and installed the aluminum deck. The aluminum had a bit of a bow in it from welding but 90% that went went away when I screwed it down to the metal frame. I think I can get the other 10% out with some mechanical persuasion.
The gas struts no longer do their thing now that the aluminum is on it. I was counting on that but hoping for the best. I'll need to modify the gas strut arrangement to make it work again.
After that just need to grind those aluminum tack welds off the top and wire wheel the whole top so it looks like one nice piece of aluminum instead of 3 pieces of scrap.
The gas struts no longer do their thing now that the aluminum is on it. I was counting on that but hoping for the best. I'll need to modify the gas strut arrangement to make it work again.
After that just need to grind those aluminum tack welds off the top and wire wheel the whole top so it looks like one nice piece of aluminum instead of 3 pieces of scrap.
sodamo
Super Star Member
- Joined
- May 20, 2004
- Messages
- 17,002
- Location
- Big Island, HI
- Tractor
- LS XR4140H (Mine) BX2380 (wife’s)
Great project 
duffer
Platinum Member
Kudos to you for your ingenuity, persistence, and a helluva idea !!
My concern for your setup is if you put pallet(s) on the top, how are you going to strap them down, without scratching the outside fenders on that new truck? And you'll need some really long straps if you figure that out.
Great fabrication job.
My concern for your setup is if you put pallet(s) on the top, how are you going to strap them down, without scratching the outside fenders on that new truck? And you'll need some really long straps if you figure that out.
Great fabrication job.
Handloader109
Gold Member
Agreed, while it looks good, that smooth lid will not hold a load of any sort going down the road. Put a skid with 500 pounds on it going down the road and hit the brakes, and it will be inside tha cab with you. I wouldn't trust strapping a thing on top....
There is a BIG reason this isn't offered on ANY pickup truck, and it isn't due to the rail load. it is safety. Be DANG careful....
There is a BIG reason this isn't offered on ANY pickup truck, and it isn't due to the rail load. it is safety. Be DANG careful....
I bought some D-rings for it that have not made it off the mental drawing board and into the deisgn yet. I really should have welded on the supports for them before I put on the aluminum but I was running out of time. I needed a bed cover to keep the water off my gear. Until I get the D-rings retrofitted that's all this will be doing. Also I was thinking of putting a headache rack on it. I will have to wait and see how things look after I re-adjust the gas struts, if they have enough power left over to also lift a headache rack. They are rated 200lbs each and I have 4 of them, but that doesn't mean I can make an 800lb bed cover. They have a stroke length of 20" but the bed cover comes up double that, so the theoretical max would be roughly half, with some trig sprinkled on top.
With a headache rack it would have to always come up in the front first and then the back, or else the headache rack would make contact with the cab. I have some ideas on how to make that happen, but none of them are simple. In my mind there is a limit to how complicated a bed cover should be, and if I can't think of a simple solution then the headache rack isn't going to happen.
With a headache rack it would have to always come up in the front first and then the back, or else the headache rack would make contact with the cab. I have some ideas on how to make that happen, but none of them are simple. In my mind there is a limit to how complicated a bed cover should be, and if I can't think of a simple solution then the headache rack isn't going to happen.
Last edited:
deezler
Elite Member
- Joined
- Jan 30, 2012
- Messages
- 3,471
- Location
- Southeast MI
- Tractor
- Cub Cadet 7305, Kioti CK3510seh TLB
What about a stationary headache rack mounted to the truck bed, then notch out your cover to fit snugly around it?
I would have needed to design it that way from the start. It would require a significant amount of modification at this point, and I'm feeling too close to "done" to make that large of a course change.
I might make a non-stationary headache rack that either folds down or detaches entirely when not in use. Then there won't be any concern about it hitting the cab.
cqaigy2
Super Member
Wow!