Retrax PRO Tonneau Experience?

[katokahn99]

I'm looking at retractable tonneau covers and was wondering if anyone here has had experience with the Retrax PRO.
I want to have a retractable cover that:
1. I can lock
2. is water resistant (waterproof preferred)
3. requires no drilling to install
4. Looks good and lasts

Thanks in advanced for the inputs!

 

[katokahn99]

Bump, any help?

 

[Rollincoal420]

Subscribing...

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[Cthulhu]

I don't know what the difference between the ReTrax and ReTrax Pro is, but I have had a retrax on my truck since 2007, and wouldn't own a truck without one. It's water resistant, not proof, but if you keep your water-sensitive items away from the rails, you'll be fine... most of the water stays out but the odd drip gets in... same with the back at the tailgate.

I cannot notice any fading of the plastic, the truck is typically stored outside.

It does tend to ice-up at times through the winter, but I'd put that under the 'expected realm... if you stored it open, you shouldn't have any problems but mine is always closed. I can stand on top of mine with no issues, I'm 160lbs.

 

[katokahn99]

Thanks for the insight!

I have a follow-on question. Does the kit come with weather stripping or padding for the top of the bulkhead of any kind?

I don't know what the difference between the ReTrax and ReTrax Pro is...

Now this I think I can answer. The original, which you have, is made of plycarbonate. The PRO is made entirely of industrial grade aluminum.

Thanks again for the respsonse!

 

[Burla]

Check out Diamondback.

 

[65Bowtie]

I had the first retrax on my silverado and loved it. Took it off so the stealer wouldnt get it on the trade in and its in my garage. To bad this bed is shorter and it wont fit. I have loved it since I got it back in 2004 when I lived in vegas (people like to help themselves to whats in the bed of your truck there and think you can haul thier trash for them). The seals are extra and go around the tailgate on the bed side to eliminate a low pressure area from sucking road dust into the bed under the cover. While not completely waterproof its very water resistant and have hauled tons of stuff in there thru rain storms in my travels with little to no water getting on anything.

I would love to get one for this truck but the one thing thats keeping me from doing it is the size of the canister at the head of the bed. It took off almost 2' of bed length which was tolerable on a 6'2" bed, but on this one thats much shorter I dont know if I will go for it.

The install is super easy, then the off and on is simple once you have your adjusters set for with. the plastic does not fade but the painted rails on it did get a little chalky which can be fixed with some wax (I never waxed it).

 

[Rollincoal420]

I had the first retrax on my silverado and loved it. Took it off so the stealer wouldnt get it on the trade in and its in my garage. To bad this bed is shorter and it wont fit. I have loved it since I got it back in 2004 when I lived in vegas (people like to help themselves to whats in the bed of your truck there and think you can haul thier trash for them). The seals are extra and go around the tailgate on the bed side to eliminate a low pressure area from sucking road dust into the bed under the cover. While not completely waterproof its very water resistant and have hauled tons of stuff in there thru rain storms in my travels with little to no water getting on anything.

I would love to get one for this truck but the one thing thats keeping me from doing it is the size of the canister at the head of the bed. It took off almost 2' of bed length which was tolerable on a 6'2" bed, but on this one thats much shorter I dont know if I will go for it.

The install is super easy, then the off and on is simple once you have your adjusters set for with. the plastic does not fade but the painted rails on it did get a little chalky which can be fixed with some wax (I never waxed it).

What yr is ur truck? I got an 06 and thought i had a 6.5' bed.

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[Cthulhu]

What yr is ur truck? I got an 06 and thought i had a 6.5' bed.

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According to the site, he's got a '13... They got shorter beds with the crew cab.. so short, I don't think you can fit a bed in the bed..

 

[65Bowtie]

Yep, its a '13 Crew Cab with a rediculously small 5'7" bed. Cant fit a bed in the bed, or a sheet of plywood or yada yada yada. I would have rather had a longer bed, like my old 6'2" bed, which I thought was short but liveable. But thats what my trailer is for.

 

[Rollincoal420]

Damn. Had no clue. That kinda sucks

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[Williamw454]

If your still looking for a retractable cover check out the pace edwards jack rabbit. I have one and love it. My gf has one on her chevy 2500 8ft bed and it works just as well.

 

[PX8]

Thought I'd bring up an old thread. I currently have the retrax pro sitting in the garage waiting on me to install it. I've got the 13 crew cab, but I traded in a crew cab frontier for my Dodge, so the bed looks huge to me on the Dodge. I'm hoping I don't regret the retrax once I get it installed, but I know the canister doesn't go all the way to the bottom of the bed so maybe a suit case or two can go under that. Plus, you can't beat the room inside the Dodge coming from the Frontier. If you want the same gas mileage with 130 less horsepower, people refusing to ride in the backseats of your truck, smaller bed, and less towing abilty, then the Frontier is for you.

Still not sure I'll stand on it eventhough the pro says 500 pounds. I'm 205 on a good day.

A friend of mine has an 02 F-150 with a retrax the same age with no problems other than the mentioned small leak at the tailgate.

 

[Stage4]

It's probably not the Retrax that's leaking at the tailgate. It's the tailgate that's leaking at the tailgate (from the open area between the tailgate and the bed).

 

[Cthulhu]

There is no positive seal at the top of the tailgate, only a strip of rubber.. if you have a spoiler on your tailgate it keeps most of the water out.. I don't on my 3500 and it lets a bit of water in.. If you don't want water coming up from the bottom of your tailgate, LMC sells a gasket you can install to seal that part of the tailgate up.

 

[katokahn99]

UPDATE: I ordered the RetraxPRO and it was a cinch to install. It took about 20 minutes with my brothers helping. It seals pretty well. No leaks during heavy rains or on the road; however, there was a little water in the bed after a good strong power washing.
I installed a gasket in the tailgate and there was almost no dust after driving through Arizona.
Thanks for the responses guys!

Here's a pic of the cover:

 

[LovMyRam]

Looks really nice. Any toolbox ideas in the future?

 

[RAMAlaska]

I have considered a cover for a bit now. I have a couple of opinion seeking questions.

1. Is the MPG savings noticeable? I know that Mythbusters dispelled the tailgate down theory, but does a cover pay for itself in a reasonable amount of time.

2. I live in Alaska. It snows here, kind of a lot. Despite the appeal of the prospect of "shoveling my cover," I don't want that added hassle. Anyone from a similar climate have an opinion?

 

[Cthulhu]

I have considered a cover for a bit now. I have a couple of opinion seeking questions.

1. Is the MPG savings noticeable? I know that Mythbusters dispelled the tailgate down theory, but does a cover pay for itself in a reasonable amount of time.

2. I live in Alaska. It snows here, kind of a lot. Despite the appeal of the prospect of "shoveling my cover," I don't want that added hassle. Anyone from a similar climate have an opinion?

I think that considering it adds weight to the truck, I'm not surprised that I haven't noticed a MPG improvement.

It is nice in the winter, I lived in Fort McMurray Alberta for 7 years and the cover worked well. The only issue I had with it was it does tend to freeze closed if you are in a freeze/thaw climate. There's rubber at the front to seal water out of the canister but it tends to freeze to the cover. Not a big deal if you're not carrying anything tall as you cab just open your tailgate and slide it in. I wouldn't be shoveling it, you'd probably damage the surface. I just let the snow blow off. I used my plastic shovel to scoop it off a couple times that I needed open bed access a couple times but it wasn't a daily challenge.

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[PX8]

yeah not real sure about the gas mileage thing, but Nascar puts covers on their trucks. Maybe we will pick up some high speed high banks handling!!!