PU bed covers

Long been a fan of covering the bed for utility... so E36 M3 don't fly out down the road as well as security. Back in the day aluminum caps (or toppers, whatever ya call 'em) were the thing, I could walk one off by myself. Later, liked fiberglass caps for improved lockable security for tools etc. Had soft tonneaus w/ bows and snaps in the 90's, nice but PITA in winter. Traded in my '12 Sierra w/ a Leer mid-rise fiberglass cap last week. Loved that cap, w/ large rear window could haul most domestic thingys. Never tried to wrestle it off myself but it looks heavy. Gonna be scrappin' a lotta stuff in the spring so looking for alternatives to caps.

FF, just bought a '14 Silverado, 6.5' bed. Lotta possibilities. Folding soft tonneau, easy removal, around $280 +/-. Folding hard tonneau (BAK, Extang), added security, $800 +/-. Rollup soft tonneau. One-piece hard shell tonneau w/ hinge. Then there's always back to the fiberglass caps. Rear back-up visibility is not an issue anymore w/ rear back-up alert and cam. I kinda like the BAK or Extang folder, but at around $800.

I definitely need to talk w/ more owners about this. What's the soft folders like? Hard folders? Hard shell?

Starting here becuz GRM mindtrust.

TIA

I have a Truxedo soft rollup tonneau on my F-150. I like it a lot. I don't like the idea of anything that restricts the capacity of the bed like the one-piece hard covers do. However, if I had it to do over, I might do one of these: https://www.peragon.com/ It still folds all the way out of the way, but it offers better security.

I had a BakFlip G2 on my 2011 Ram. I liked it a lot. It was about 99% leak free and I could fold it up if I needed to carry large stuff. It was pretty secure and fit well.

Previous to the Ram, I also had an F150 with a one piece hard toneau. It was a no name, chinese brand that I bought from a guy who had about 30 of them (factory blems) for $220. It went over the bed rails and was water tight. It had these cheesy barrel locks that didn't inspire a lot of confidence but they worked OK. It was heavy and awkard to remove with one person which was a PITA when hauling furniture in the bed.

If I was a rich man, I'd look at Pace Edwards Full Metal Jackrabbit.

and I shoulda added Pa. weather/ winters, so the more weathertight moar better

We put a Leer hard lid on our '14 Ram 1500 and I think it's fantastic. I like being able to keep the stuff in the bed out of sight and locked up without having to deal with a full-size cap. So far the inability to haul tall stuff hasn't come back to haunt us. Theoretically it's not difficult to remove the lid if necessary, but I haven't found the need to yet.

I used a Roll-n-Lock on a Ranger I had some years ago. I found it more secure than the soft tonneaus, but allowed me to carry tall stuff. The downside is the box it rolls into takes up some space at the front of the bed.

Undercover i one I've looked at. It appeals to me because it's light-ish and semi-easily removed.

My truck has a locking, folding hard cover comprised of four sections with three hinges. The aft sections fold forward to stack on the bed just behind the cab which slightly diminishes load carrying ability. It originally had some type of composite rails that helped with weatherproofing but that stuff heat warped from southern summers and was rendered useless. Weatherstripping from any number of sources helps but hasn't made it totally water proof. The lock isn't very robust; anyone with a crowbar and the will can pretty easily defeat and access the bed but it discourages the last scum.

It's been on the truck for years and I have no idea who made it. But, it still works and will for a long time to come; it's a lot sturdier than hard-shell fiberglass units.

Buddy had one of the fiberglass bed covers on his last truck that tilted up. Secure but it was a huge PITA to get anything in or out if it wasn't touching the tailgate. His new truck has some metal tonneau thing that rolls up at the front like a rolltop desk. It's all slats. Can't remember the name but it was a little spendy. It's a lot nicer but I think it's not been quite as water tight as the fiberglass.

If'n it was me I'd have a fiberglass camper shell with side windows that hinge out for bed access. But it ain't me.

If I had to get one I'd look at the roll up ones. My dad's truck has the fold up into three panels kind and when we needed to move big objects we were always taking the thing off. Not that hard but still a pain.

I've used a Truxedo Lo Pro XT on my last two. They're great. Roll out of the way when required, waterproof when closed. Very easy to live with. They're not lockable, but with the tailgate locked it's a pain to get the thing open even if you know how to do it. More importantly, it's impossible to tell what's inside.

My wife's work truck had one of those hard fiberglass ones. As far as I'm concerned, they're the worst of all possible worlds.

You've turned that into a Monaco sedan, you know...V8, 4 doors and a trunk.

Claff wrote: We put a Leer hard lid on our '14 Ram 1500 and I think it's fantastic. I like being able to keep the stuff in the bed out of sight and locked up without having to deal with a full-size cap. So far the inability to haul tall stuff hasn't come back to haunt us. Theoretically it's not difficult to remove the lid if necessary, but I haven't found the need to yet.

Seems the tri-fold hard and soft covers might be a pita if not easily removable allowing full use of bed length. Everything's a compromise, ain't it. Currently leaning towards a roll-up like the Truxedo Lo Pro or Extang Revolution?? (no velcro, iirc). Guys at work don't like the one-piece hinged hard tonneau, good security but difficult to remove and not so easy access to stuff in the front of the bed. In their words, they're good as a semi or permanent cover but ya don't wanna wrestle 'em all the time.

Watched a lot of videos too but would like to see these function in person if possible. Geezus, seems they make one of everything anymore, do this, do that but w/ all still some kind of compromise. Gonna hit the truck accessory store this week for a bed liner, see what they have.

Still like my old mid-rise cap but that isn't practical for what I'll be doing in the next year. IMO, it really completed the looks of the '12 Sierra.

Compromises...

I've used the Access roll up cover for years and I can unconditionally recommend it. Long-lasting cover--mine is over ten years old and still in one piece. Good sturdy cover when you need a cover and gets out of the way quickly when you don't.

http://www.agricover.com/access/original/

At the truck toy store yesterday seen a guy had a Extang Full Tilt on a '03 GMC 8' bed, soft covered w/ bows, hinged w/ gas struts, holding up good for 7-8 yrs. old, tonneau to bed rail weatherstripping looked more than adequate.

Guy claims he can remove the tonneau top in 2-3 minutes by himself. Disconnect gas struts, rotate the tonneau up about 75 degrees and remove from extruded hinge. Or, you can roll up the cover from the perimeter frame (snaps or J- channel types), remove the bows for full bed access.

Only downside I can see is catching wind and taking a kite ride. Should be easier on a 6.5' bed rather than an 8 footer like I seen.

I know I swore off of the hinge types but gonna look further into this.

Quick look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aX-Uu9fpKng

Toy store guy says some of the soft or hard folders aren't snow/ ice friendly no matter what they claim. I'll keep looking before jumping in too soon. Got the bed liner in anyway.

My last truck had a canvas roll-up tonneau. Thought it was nice at the time. Things in the bed is out of sight. Rolled up when carrying big things. The snaps were inconvenient and was the downfall to the top. Next truck I get I'm spending the extra $$ to get the roll-top type. They lock and more secure plus roll out of the way for large items. Have friends with hard plastic sliding sections type and fold up canvas. They are nice but I like the roll-top better.

One of the benefits of being a fireman is that I get to check out every conceivable option for every conceivable pickup truck just by going out to the parking lot at the firehouse. As the only GRM'er on the department, my truck just has the rubber bed mat that it came with.

*modified for extra tie-downs

I'm on my second truck with a ADvantage tri-fold soft cover. $300, flips in seconds and removes in less than a minute with the bonus I don't need two people or an entire family to take it off like a hard cover. I tried a hard cover once that I found in a junkyard...the wife and I struggled and sweated with the heavy-ass thing. It was miserable, and if I'd mounted it I'd never have taken it off again. I can't see spending $800 on a tonneau cover that doesn't work any better than my $300 version at keeping stuff dry. I'd rather spend the difference on more race tires and entry fees.

I have a Tekstyle roll up cover on my Colorado and I love it. I originally wanted a hard tonneau, but got such a good deal on this one I figured it was worth a try. Installation was about 15 minutes, and it rolls out of the way in 10 seconds.