Those of you with flatbeds...

[Niki]

What do you do w/ them? I'm buying a truck w/ one and besides being easier to hook to a gooseneck trailer I think it makes the truck pretty impractical compared to a pickup bed. Unless you drive around w/ a giant welder/toolbox on it or something. Anyone put sides on it? Just wondering...

 

[Philip]

pretty impractical

Compared to what?



The flat bed gives you places to tie down your cargo. A p/u bed only has stake pockets. These are fine for tie down points "If" the load is higher than the bed sides. If it is below the sides. Then it is a sliding cargo.



This W350 I have is dually #6 over the last 20+ years. I had a p/u bed on it for 7 years. You don't know how glad I was to finaly get rid of the p/u bed this spring. The flatbed gives you more options when you haul than a p/u bed ever will.

 

[Niki]

Compared to what?



The flat bed gives you places to tie down your cargo. A p/u bed only has stake pockets. These are fine for tie down points "If" the load is higher than the bed sides. If it is below the sides. Then it is a sliding cargo.



This W350 I have is dually #6 over the last 20+ years. I had a p/u bed on it for 7 years. You don't know how glad I was to finaly get rid of the p/u bed this spring. The flatbed gives you more options when you haul than a p/u bed ever will.

The ony reason I say impractical is you have to tie down everything, and boxes and small stuff are kind of hard to tie down. Large items, yes I can see that a flatbed is better for them. Then there's firewood, I have to find some stakebed sides or something.

 

[Philip]

Here is a pic of my last load. Look closely.



There is a 4' chest of drawers.

a 4'X2' computer desk

a 7' fouton

a dining room table

a steel trundle bed

the four chairs on the back

a folded up outdoor table

2 ea 5' book shelfs





A p/u bed wouldn't have held that much. That pic was taken after a 60 mile drive.



A set of sides does help if you move smaller items a lot. I just leave mine flat.

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

'Nuff said



PS: Just hamming for the cam. I DON'T let the dogs ride in the back OTR. They are either in a dog crate, topper, dog pen, or inside the cab.

 

[1stgen4evr]

Anyone put sides on it? Just wondering...



Yes. If they are done right you can easily remove them (the sides) and you have the best of both. There are very nice under bed boxes that make great places to store things that you wouldn't want in the cab. I have seen a number of custon touches that make the flatbed even better (eye appeal) than stock. After you use it a while and get acustom to the nuance of the thing, you will see others that you like. I have had both and like them somewhat equally but there are loads that make each more suitable for specific things. Generally they are tougher than the stock box. So like they say at the circus, pay your money and take your choice. I think you will like the flat.



Nice looking pups there Traildog.



James

 

[swankmetal]

i've been driving with junk on my bed for years now, and have only lost one thing: a pair of wet shorts. i've forgotten my carhartt on the bed and driven for an hour at 65 without losing it.

 

[tugboatphil]

A p/u bed wouldn't have held that much. That pic was taken after a 60 mile drive.

Ahemmmm... . this was moving the daughter 180 miles to Tennessee.

 

[Greenleaf]

Ahemmmm... . this was moving the daughter 180 miles to Tennessee.

CLASSIC!!



Look like that when you moved her BACK?? :-laf

 

[FYarcho]

Hey Swank seems like you drive around alot without your pants on LOL!!!!! :-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[Kiohio]

Both are good, flatbed and regular factory bed.

You really can fit alot of different things on or in each.

The nice thing about a flatbed is you can fit physically larger stuff.

Like a 0-turn that has a 60" deck.

I am going to pick up some loaders for my equipment, I'm not gonna use a trailer.

I couldn't do it with the factory bed, not easily anyway. LOL

Thinks of that nature.

Another reason to like a flatbed..... you can weld anything you like to it.

A downfall I just realized after putting an f-bed on my truck... .

I can't take the trash to the dumpster unless I wanna drive reaaaaaallll slooooow.

For the record, for looks, I generally like a factory bed BUT I have seen a few dually flatbeds that looked REAL nice.

For overall functionality I like a flatbed.



KO

 

[swankmetal]

Hey Swank seems like you drive around alot without your pants on LOL!!!!! :-laf :-laf :-laf

carhartt JACKET... i guess i shoulda been more specific.

 

[tugboatphil]

Swank,



You still didn't explain the wet shorts... . or do we really want to know?? :-laf



Scott,



I made her boyfriend move her back here. Since she left high school, we've moved her 11 times... . I'm trying to get her out of state again.

 

[PToombs]

Out of state? Tugger, you looking for a scenic drive again? :-laf

I figgered Jay would ask about the shorts, after the Nuthugger thing! :-laf

 

[Niki]

'Nuff said



PS: Just hamming for the cam. I DON'T let the dogs ride in the back OTR. They are either in a dog crate, topper, dog pen, or inside the cab.

How exactly did you get those logs in and out of there?

 

[Ol'TrailDog]

How exactly did you get those logs in and out of there?

By myself with a lot of grunting and encouragement from the BCs :-laf



Dead Lodgepole aint bad. But the beetle killed stuff is HEAVY and really doesn't burn very well because the trees are trying to pitch out the beetles when they die. Really should be cured for a couple of years.



Always thought how nice a small side-mounted boom winch would be. Even looked at some models on the net and from Northern Tools.



Now that another year has gone by and I'm much much older and brighter, not so much, I did it this way



Another year and it will be small chunks. :-laf But I thoroughly enjoy cutting firewood.

 

[MXTMOPR]

Both are nice

I like the flat bed on the 350 for major hauling jobs and working on site. The flatbed makes a nice scaffold, and a great workbench for welding or sawing outside the shop. No more sawdust in the garage or sparks from the welder flying onto the antique cars. My D150 has a factory bed with a cap on top. The factory bed is alot nicer for hauling parts home from a swap meet and is especially nice to carry luggage and stuff you don't want to get wet. Eventually I'd like to build a soft top for the flatbed similar to a military bed cover for those odd occasions I'd like to haul something that requires protection. Now I'm going into "lets modify the truck" mode and want to check out the military surplus sites for a canopy. Either way, it depends on what you prefer and how you plan to use your rig.

 

[DKasper]

I just got a Bradford Built flatbed on mine -- it is the most useful accessory I could ask for! Here is what is great about it:

- 94" x 102" of flat space!

- Recessed gooseneck ball for the trailer

- Tiedown locations all over! Chain grabs and recessed "D" rings

- Tool boxes underneath that don't get in the way of loads

- Headache rack so I don't have to worry about breaking the window when getting firewood



This one has 6" flip down steel sides that help keep the small suff in. I'll make some stake sides down the road for more versatility.



For those who really use their trucks for a wide variety of things, a well-thought out flatbed is a great tool.

 

[Sri Ram]

Guess I'll weigh in here…I use my p/u for loose stuff: pieces of wood or scrap metal, gravel, sand, dirt, etc. #ad
I use my buddy's flatbed for big stuff: furniture, timbers, plywood, drywall, hot tub(!), etc. #ad
Although I have a p/u bed, I'm gonna have to get a flatbed on the next one…

 

[Niki]

I guess its a good excuse to keep both trucks.