We won't be able to get the new truck until Wednesday afternoon. It's 120 miles to Colorado Springs, and you have to go through Denver on the I-25 to get there.
And then do it again to get back.
With traffic, and the Denver area is starting to resemble Lost Angeleez in that respect, it's a good four hour round-trip, plus any time the guy spends there in the dealership.
Since this was Dealer Trade, or "swap", our sales guy called us this morning and told us they had to drive one of the trucks they had in stock that the Colo Springs dealer wanted down there, and then return with our truck. I suppose the other dealer could have sent somebody up here with it, and picked up the exchange vehicle, but oh, well....this is how it's working out.
And then after it gets here they're going to check it out to make sure it got here OK, and then clean it up all shiny-pretty (yeah, run it through the wash rack...) for us, and that takes a bit of time. So, we get it tomorrow.
That leaves me 24 hours to scout out where, and possibly what brand to look for, to get the spray-in bedliner applied. And find a tonneau cover. And maybe some side steps, but SLW has said several times when asked that she didn't have any problems getting in and out of it. I've always found that the side steps are nice in really muddy/snowy conditions, so they might get shopped for next Spring....
So, does anybody have any experience with spray-in bedliners? I looked online at the 4x4 and Off-Road places we have here (there's a zillion of them), and most of them do bedliners. They might farm them out to the same place for all I know, because In Ye Dayes Of Olde, that stuff was a PITA to apply, and was toxic, nasty stuff that took specialized spray guns to shoot.
I'll google about a bit and see what I can find, and start calling.
Hmmm....seems like it's a popular topic for discussion on the forums....
For a tonneau cover I was looking at the rigid ones that "Tri-Fold", but I saw some nifty roll-up ones that weren't too much more. I just wonder how well they work with a layer of snow on them.....
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<i>The Fisher Saga</i> Continues - Act III -
Been working on this post since right after Thanksgiving. I'm making very good progress on the Fisher, and will most likely power it up...
I can't speak to the spray-on liner although we did consider it at one time. We're on the second drop-in liner now and they work OK for us. We do have the triple-fold cover but don't worry about too much snow load here. Both vehicles live in the garage most of the time - her little 1998 Sebring JXi convertible and my F-150.
ReplyDeleteMy son and the Ex had drop-ins on their first two trucks, and didn't like them. It could have been the installation, but they both complained about squeaky noises, and the drop-in shifting around.
DeleteAND......the wife thinks the spray-in ones are cool.
THe roll up liners do well with over 18 inches of snow on 'em.
ReplyDeleteOr at least the one I recommended does. BAK
It has been my experience that the prep work on the existing paint matters as much or more than the actual spray in liner. Yes, thickness matters but so does surface prep.
Were it me, I'd look at Google reviews for the shops in your area.
That's what I'm doing. ALL the reviews and discussions on the truck and Jeep forums indicate that they're all good products, BUT they absolutely, positively, have to be installed correctly, and 90% of the "correct way" involves preparing the surface.
DeleteI'll check the BAK, but I think the SLW prefers the tri-fold ones.
If yer worried about security (not that any cover is totally secure) then the BAK is much more secure than the tri-folds...as long as you tailgate locks.
DeleteHmmm. Second try on comment.
ReplyDeleteI have a 2010 Tundra. It has Line X spray in bed liner and a roll up bed cover. That truck has been with me from New Hampshire to Wyoming, to South Texas, Virginia and back to New Hampshire. The bed cover has experienced heavy snow load in Wyoming and New Hampshire and is still in great shape to this day. The bed liner is also in great shape. No cracks or chips, just some fading. Line X has a 10 yr warranty. I also have a 2012 F 250 with Linex. In great shape. That truck has a hard cover. I hate that cover and it will be replaced this fall.
Is it a one-piece hard cover? Those look like a royal PITA to work with.
DeleteI can't find prices on-line for the local places. They say "Call" or "Contact Us", so I've got emails out to them.
It is a one piece. Pain in the ass to take off when you need to put something tall in bed. Plus the locking system needs to constantly “adjusted”. All the liner places are like that. One of my friends had it done last year for an F150. It was $570 if I remember right (NH price).
DeleteI've always thought the one-piece covers looked like a hassle to live with.
DeleteRE Bed liners. Don't overlook asking your dealer and/or a service writer in the shop or parts department. Check the parts department for bed covers. The dealers don't always have the highest prices in town. Some dealers do them, most will have someone they refer customers.
ReplyDeleteThey said they sent them out to be done. The rigid tonneau we wanted was $999, plus installation, at the Chevy dealer. I've seen the same things at the 4x4/off-road/truck places for around $750 installed.
DeleteThe bedliner at the dealer was $495, the same as the price from Chevrolet if we had them spray it on at the factory when the truck was being built. I think we might be able to do better at a specialty place, and perhaps they'd give us a deal on the two items together. Waiting for two places to get back to me.
We have a Rhino liner in ours. We like it. It's lasted through a lot of trips back and forth between NC and Louisiana.
ReplyDeleteSpare tank in the back (so don't know anything about covers). Right now it also holds 2 DC refrigerator/freezers and my hubby's wheelchair with a special made cap to cover his chair. The cap worked well to protect his chair during the tornado when a branch busted the back window of the cap.
I think the heaviest thing we've had in the back of the truck before hubby got his wheelchair, was a smaller mower deck. We've had lots of bricks, bags of dirt, etc.
The liner has held up well.
We're leaning towards Rhino right now. It's a bit softer than Line-X, easier to kneel on and crawl around it, and has a reputation of quieting the whole truck down because you no longer hear gravel and stuff hitting the bottom of the bed.
DeleteFinal decision depends on price.
Surprisingly, I've heard good things about Rhino-Liner, but...
ReplyDeleteApparently, it's a really good anti-spall covering for homemade trauma plates made out of UHMW and plate steel.
I think Travis Taylor (Rocket City Rednecks) made a UHMW suit out of kevlar cloth and Rhino-liner covered plates. Worked surprisingly well at catching bullet fragments.
Weird, huh?
Also have two friends with Rhino-liner lined beds. And they've abused them moving everything from armor to anvils. In Florida. In the summer. And the bed liners have held up for years.
Others have had Line-X with good results.
So... yeah, it's basically up to you to determine which one is more affordable and which shop has the better reputation.
Betcha never considered the liner's anti-spalling capabilities, didja?
I've read about them, but nope, never consider it important.
DeleteRhino is "approved" by some BigGov agency for it's ballistic properties. Some Kevlar cloth, and a few gallons of bedliner, and you could "up armor" your vehicle!
I know you asked about spray-in liners, but you might take a look at Bed Rug. I have had one in a Dodge Ram since 2006 and absolutely love it. The Bed Rug essentially turns your bed into one large trunk. And the padding is very nice on our older knees.
ReplyDeleteThe link for Bed Rug is https://bedrug.com/bedrug-classic-bedliners
ReplyDeleteAnd if your budget can withstand it, a very nice cover that will outlive you is the Diamondback Cover. The light duty version can hold 400 pounds on top. The heavy duty version can hold 1600 pounds.
https://diamondbackcovers.com
Rhino liner. You don't want anything that water can get under. That is just asking for rust in the bed.
ReplyDeleteThat's why we don't want a drop-in, or a mat, or a rug.
DeleteThe Line-X place here wants $525 (plus tax) for a Line-X liner, and they want $1100 (plus tax and installation) for a tri-fold cover.
I'm going to continue shopping.....
I have Rhino Liner in my 1996 Chevy K3500 and I have used and abused the dog slobber out of it. Firewood, quads, camping gear, 2.5 tons of hand shoveled crushed rock...still looks food and works great and it has to be at least 15 years old....I just hate the color, but it was there when I bought the truck used.
ReplyDeleteJ.D. Brown
We'll most likely go with Rhino. Just waiting for the store I requested a quote from to get back to me.
DeleteLooks like about $1,500 for a good tonneau and bedliner, installed.
I'm old school: factory paint works fine, no bed liner required. A few knicks and dings in it, makes you look like you use the truck.
ReplyDeleteThis isn't a "work truck", and we want to keep it "nice".
DeleteI've already told her that whenever we go to get a load of mulch or whatnot, we're putting a big, cheap, Harbor Freight tarp in the bed.