Pickup Bed Cover

[Ed Brownfield]

We just took delivery of a 2015 GMC Denali Diesel crew cab. We ordered if from GM and we picked it up yesterday. It has lots of bells and whistles except one - a cover for the truck bed. I have never owned a truck so this is new to me. I'm not sure what to do as far as covering the truck bed, I don't think that I want a topper, but I am open to hearing what others have to say. I think that I either want a tonto cover (think that's what it is called) or a flat hard shell cover that just covers the truck bed and tilts upwards from the back. I would like to know what others think? Being water tight (water proof) so that I can store things and have them safe from rain is important. Where do you purchase these covers? The dealer or some after market place? What are the best brands etc. Our truck is black so I want whatever cover we get to match the truck. Also can you recommend a good box - one of those silver or black tool boxes that go in the back? I've seen them at Lowe's and Home Depot but someone said that the cheap ones don't last. Thanks for any words of wisdom and advice that you can pass along.

[dwightdi]

What you decide to do with your truck bed is determined by your usage when towing or other uses you have for the truck in your other life. I have a 42 inch high cap to transport my bikes in the stand up position and cart around refrigerators and other building supplies in my other life. Others have solid covers with pull out roller beds to get at articles stored in the back. Soft vinyl covers are good to keep rain off and peeking eyes at bay. They can be easily removed, if you need to transport furniture standing up.

[dznf0g]

What Dwight said. I have experimented with different Toneau covers on my demos for several years and I am settling on a soft vinyl roll up one. That sounds counter-intuitive, but for me, carrying a scooter in the bed, precludes a tri-fold or solid one piece glass one. A roll up allows for covering and hiding stuff after arriving at my destination and removing the scooter.

Different needs dictate the right one for you.

[featherbedder]

If you are going to use across bed tool box seal tite makes best box but can not use cover w/this type of box

[Cyclist]

We have a folding hardtop cover that works fine. Our folds into quarters; the back three sections can fold forward and snapped into place (so wind won't flip them back) if large items need to be carried. The front section opens as well for access. There are times when a higher cap would be useful (when carrying propane for example) but this would only encourage us to bring more stuff.

The cover is waterproof and was installed by the dealer when we bought the truck.

[terryV]

I had several toppers; you can carry a lot of stuff in them. Then I needed to be able to get into the bed by going over the side, so I went to a roll up tonneau cover that snapped up. (That was before the ones with velcro along the sides.)

I grew tired of the roll up and went to a three section fold up with vinyl stretched over a frame. It was very light weight, and could be easily removed if I needed the whole bed exposed. However, the plastic corners of the frame kept breaking. I was replacing a pair of them about every year.

Now I have a heavy duty Al one that folds up in 3 sections. It's over an inch thick, and strong enough to hold a square dance on. The downside is it's way too heavy for me to remove by myself. So, I'm content with being able to expose only 4 1/2 feet of my 6 1/2 foot bed. If I need more space, I pull a trailer.

Like all have said, buy what fits your needs.

[Phoenix]

We had this tonneau cover on our Tundra for six years. It worked great for us, but we needed extra storage for bicycles.

• LT Sport Tonneau Covers - Aluminum truck bed covers by Lazer Lite

Last fall, we bought this bed cap (a.k.a., camper shell). While the tonneau cover served us well, I wish I had originally bought the bed cap; because it would have saved us money in the long run.

• SNUGTOP SNUGPRO Commercial Fiberglass Caps

Note: I have no affiliation with either of these vendors other than being a satisfied customer of both.

[carver 1]

Rollo n Lock

Had one for many years when we owned a 5th wheel. When i returned to the AS fold we now have an ARE topper. Definitely recommend the Roll N Lock. Great people to deal with also.

>>ron<<

[Dan and Liz]

We had a hard tonneau cover hinged at the front. It was good for traveling, locked to keep things secure. BUT -- seriously limited my ability to haul anything of much size. The soft ones aren't very secure. Went to a cab-high for better hauling capacity, and with rails can carry our little dinghy on top, plus it's lockable so somewhat secure. This seems to suit our needs a lot better.

[Ed Brownfield]

Thanks for your help! Can you tell me what brand you purchased and do you have to drill holes in the truck to install it? About what price was your cover?

[OldVwHunters]

I've had the best luck with the Access brand rollup cover, heavy duty, rolls up out of the way to carry bigger loads. All the ones I've had were easy to install with no drilling. My first one came on a used truck I bought years ago, told my Wife I'd put it on Craigslist since I thought they were a goofy, until I found out how handy they are. I've bought two for other trucks since then, found Amazon to have the best price with free shipping. One came damaged in transit and they replaced it fast with no trouble. My current truck came with a nice Leer topper which is awesome, but I hate the poor visibility that comes with a shell, and the back glass seems to always be covered with dust or road grime.

[NHdigger]

I put a Bakflip hard tonneau cover on my Tundra. Very secure when you lock the tailgate. No holes to drill. I ordered the heavy duty model which is overkill and heavy to fold up. The good feature is that the sections can be folded up against the back window when you haul tall objects.

[sparkymark]

If you want a solid box, look at Knaak. I prefer a shell, more storage, better aerodynamics!


Ford F-350 crew cab 4X4 diesel, 25' Jack Bauer edition AS

[TinShack]

I'm a topper kind of guy too. Here's what it looks like on my 2015 Denali.

[Boxite]

I will venture that what you want is a BAK-FLIP. I have one on my Ram and drive it thru those high-pressure-whirling-brushes-high-air-pressure-blower car washes almost weekly. I keep soft athletic bags full of junk and valuable office-work and tools inside my bed....and not even a DROP of water gets in there! (I did add a bit of weatherstripping to the aft, vertical walls of the bed where the tailgate shuts...but that has nothing to do with the Bak-Flip at all...every truck on the market will need that area weatherstipped if you truly want driving rain and car pressure-washers to stay out.

It is BLACK, hardened against hail, etc., and powder-coated (or hard-paint... I can't tell, but it's awful durable because I've carried heavy laden trash cans on it to the front gate of my ranchhome and it supports several hundred pounds of weight without evidence when it's closed.)

I was a bit off-put at first as to how it folds up (when fully open) against the rear window and blocks the rearview...but then I realized I LIKE THAT because it prevents shifting cargo from slamming forward in a panic-stop and busting out the rear window!)

It will take serious crowbar-effort to get inside it if you have a locking tailgate (which you certainly should have if you don't want to lose your tailgate to thieves.)

I ordered mine from AutoAnything and it was delivered ON TIME and in good shape, properly packaged. The instructions were easy to follow and all the hardware necessary was included. It took about an hour and I'm a slow/careful/fussy installer. No. It's not cheap. (Shop Amazon, etc and you might find it around $750/up.) But I don't like cheap. I like quality.

BakFlip F1 Tonneau Cover - Reviews, Best Price & Free Shipping on BAK F1 Truck Bed Covers

[Nomad518]

To protect the bed itself, I had Line-X spray-on bed liner put on. Then to cover the bed, I installed a BAK Roll-X cover. As you can see from the photo, it fits flush with the top edge of the bed. There are two tracks that clamp (with bolts) to the inside edges along the top of each side of the bed (no drilling required). The top locks to these tracks all along each side of the bed. And, when the tailgate is closed and locked, the entire cover is locked too. It's water tight except for a couple of small gaps at the top edge of the tailgate, but only a small amount of water gets in when I take the truck through a high-pressure car wash. It's really sturdy with interlocking metal strips underneath and rugged vinyl of some sort on the top. If you need to carry tall loads, the top rolls up toward the back window of the cab where straps hold it in place. I installed it myself in about 30 minutes. I bought mine online from AutoAccessories Garage where I got a 10% "newbie" discount for placing my first order. It's great! I love it!

[Al and Missy]

I had a hard cover hinged at the front on my F150. It was good, but had to be separately locked, and was too heavy to remove to carry taller items. I recently traded trucks and now have an Extang Solid Fold. It sounds like the same as the one previously mentioned, 1" thick, aluminum skinned, aluminum honeycomb interior, foam insulation. It is SOLID! MY wife and I installed it in about 15 minutes. It does not have a separate lock, but when secured over a lockable tailgate, the back of the truck is very secure. We love it; the prefect solution for us.

The only bad thing in your situation is it may not be compatible with a toolbox. Google Extang and check their web site for other options.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Al

[ShinyPete]

Checkout fold-a-cover. Well made, works great on our F150 super crew and the only one I found with a toolbox option under 1st section behind cab. A real nice cover.


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[mefly2]

Hard to beat the topper for extra cargo capacity ... at the expense of clear rear vision.

[Rjpuckett]

F150 Crew Cab with short bed. Leer Cap with Thule luggage rack with Thule kayak holders.