Top bed covers

[Hemimania]

I have an Extang Tuff Tonno soft trifecta bed cover. Love it and have loved the company as when I've had issues, as they have a lifetime warranty, they have replaced it. My last 5 trucks have had them. However, I bring this up because my friend says that "they don't make one of the top 10 covers and if they were good, they wouldn't need to be replaced". My last 3 trucks have all needed the bed cover replaced after roughly 5 yrs (this one now too has a small rip). I said "they don't last forever". What do u guys think? Should I look into a new company? Do they all have lifetime warranties?

Tonino

 

[stevenP]

I never keep a vehicle that long. But a friend of mine, once he buys a truck he never gets rid of it. And yes, he has had to replace his tonneau cover several times due to the UV and weather damage. They just got brittle and started to rip in spots.

 

[JayLeonard]

I had a Lund tri-fold on my 05 from 2008 thru 2019 and it was still serviceable but starting to show wear. Truck spent the vast majority in CT outside 100% of the time.

 

[madtrucker2016]

Bak-Flip MX-4 is a good cover I have a 6,4 bed looks good and one thing I like is the third brake light above the cab is visible when driving with the top in up position. Most tops just totally cover the top brake light. I got mine on Auto anything.com

 

[62Blazer]

A lot has to do with how it gets used and how much exposure to the elements. Forget the brand but my dad has a soft tri-fold on his '09 since almost new and it still looks good.......of course the truck is always garaged and has under 100k miles on it. The sun is one of the worst things for these.

 

[Farmer17]

I had a Roll N Lock on my Nissan Titan and it worked great for 10 years. It looked a tiny bit faded but some black vinyl dye probably would have made it look great. I bought a Recoil Gator for my 2018 Ram and its not very heavy duty and got a dent in the housing and is difficult to open. I drilled some screws into it and attached a chain and tried to pull the dent out with my four wheeler winch and it pulled the whole housing loose. I knocked the housing cover back in place and the rolling top works better but still drags the last couple of feet.

 

[Cableman]

Just checked out a friends peragon cover, that thing looked great and he said its one of the ones they use that dont leak.

 

[MRFREEZE57]

I like my Truxedo Truxport, keeps everything dry even in downpours.

 

[BruceMorgan]

My experience with trifold covers is that they leak. That’s not good in the Seattle area. That’s why on my last truck and my current Ram I have an Undercover one piece hard cover. No leaks. My camping gear etc is always dry.

 

[MileHighRam11]

Go fiberglass. Leer is the best out there. Looks good too. Got a Leer 700 cover on mine and love it.

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

Many factors come in to play with this like where the vehicle is stored, how its used, how often its used, etc...Another large factor is what you are starting with, is the product a quality constructed product from the start. Most of the cheap soft covers wont last as long as a hard cover due to their construction. We sell TONS of covers and I have personally seen many and the way they are built. There are leak free long lasting covers out there. The Lomax is a great example of that as well as some other options for trifolds. Then there is the hard retractable that are great like the Retrax and Roll N lock.

Anyone interested in a bed cover please feel free to contact me. We offer most brands with GREAT pricing. We can help pick a cover that fits your needs and budget!

 

[62Blazer]

I just put a Tonno Pro hard tri-fold on mine. It has a light aluminum shell that is covered with the traditional vinyl cover. Looks pretty good but I think the clamping mechanisms are a little cheesy. Not a daily driver so haven't been in a hard rain yet. It was new in the box but came from one of those seconds online auctions so really cheap. Like the idea of the aluminum as it adds a little more security for things in the bed when combined with the locking tailgate. Know a couple guys who have had stuff stolen out of the bed of their trucks with a normal soft cover and only it took was a knife and about 10 seconds to slice it.

On a previous truck I had a full hard fiberglass bed cover that was paint matched. Looked good and kept the stuff dry and secure in the back but found it in the way several times when trying to haul something in the bed. Those really limit hauling larger items and kinda' a pain to take off and store....basically need to plan ahead and have two people available to take it off at home. At least with the soft roll or fold type you can quickly get all or most of the bed space free.

I've also used a large cross-over toolbox for years, and a full ARE truck cap, along with the various bed covers. To be honest I have yet to find what I consider the perfect option. All options seem to have their drawbacks under certain circumstances.
- Bed cap - only got it for the purpose of sleeping in the back of the truck on camping trips. Worked good for that and beat setting up a tent in the rain at 11 p.m. when you got the campground. Only had a few issues fitting loads in the back, with biggest issue getting to stuff up towards the front of the cab. It did help that the cap have a full flip up side window on one side.
- Cross over tool box - had the deep one that was only about 3" from the bottom of the bed. Originally got it because of regular weekend trips with the family. You could easily fit all of our luggage in it, along with the regular supplies (tiedowns, jumper cables, hitches, etc...). Secure and water tight. Just took up a lot of space in the bed on a shortbed model, but only caused issues a few times. You could remove it pretty fast but required 2 people.
- Fiberglass bed cover - probably my least favorite option and would never get one again. Just in the way a lot and really didn't have any advantages over the hard folding styles IMO.
- Soft roll-ups - seen some that were pretty water tight and being able to roll them completely up kept them out of the way. Security is the biggest issue as a pocket knife will easily defeat them.
- Hard folds - More secure and you can get most of your bed space back.

One option I've looked at over the years is a cross over toolbox combined with a roll-up soft cover. Would get a cross over that wasn't as deep to allow bed space under the box. You could still put larger temporary items under the cover, the toolbox would be more secure and keep permanent items in it, and still have bed space.

 

[Ed F]

I’ve had a lot of tonneau covers over the last 50 years on my trucks and at best they’re a temporary solution. Finally spent the money for a Diamondback on my ‘17 Express. I know they’re not for everybody but it’s probably my last truck and I know I won’t wear it out.

 

[jlongjohn]

DiamondBack here, initially because they are owned locally by friends of ours and built by friends and family in my hometown, but hands down a top choice for versatility, security, and weather tightness. I like the black. I haul things on top and stand on it for various events or sit in chairs on it. I like knowing I can lock my bed and keep hunting gear or tools in there and you can’t just knife your way in.


2014 Ram 1500 5.7l CrewCab
Sent via Tapatalk

 

[tron67j]

On my newly purchased 2003 2500 I put a Pace Edwards roll top, loved it but carrying dirt was a pain due to box. It finally gave up in 2017 and bought a tri-fold hard top through Walmart for $350 to get me some time to purchase something better. Just transferred to my new 2018 I bought in October. It is awesome, zero leaks (I carry luggage a lot so confirm it is dry) unlike my PE, looks new still, and clamps go right on bed rail so zero time install, just set and clip. Not with truck to look at brand, but there are options on the site with good reviews for about same price. I figured if it only lasts a few years I can buy another new one and still pay less than many I see at truck shops. Good luck.

 

[turkeybird56]

Well, all depends on how/why/etc you use yer truck. For me, I have a full 1 piece paint matched fiberglass tonneau cover. If I was using truck as a work vehicle,l I would of bought a roll N lock.

 

[BWL]

I've had rollnlock on my last.3 trucks. As long as I greaes the latches before it gets cold in the winter I have no problems and there's nothing easier for frequent access to the whole bed. Opened and closed just fine in close to 40 below weather this year.

 

[skillzzs]

Many factors come in to play with this like where the vehicle is stored, how its used, how often its used, etc...Another large factor is what you are starting with, is the product a quality constructed product from the start. Most of the cheap soft covers wont last as long as a hard cover due to their construction. We sell TONS of covers and I have personally seen many and the way they are built. There are leak free long lasting covers out there. The Lomax is a great example of that as well as some other options for trifolds. Then there is the hard retractable that are great like the Retrax and Roll N lock.

Anyone interested in a bed cover please feel free to contact me. We offer most brands with GREAT pricing. We can help pick a cover that fits your needs and budget!

I’m looking for a Bak MX4...any forum deals to be had?

 

[Nick@GotExhaust]

I’m looking for a Bak MX4...any forum deals to be had?

ABSOLUTELY! I will message you now

 

[Ocelot]

I may be just lucky, but I installed a cheap American Tonneau Tri-Fold cover on my 2011 back in 2012 and it's still undamaged and working great. And that's in the North East with no garage and having had feet of snow on it. I never expected it to last more than a couple of years when it was something like $250 at the time, so I'm impressed.

On the other hand, before that I had a new 2006 Chevy Colorado that I put a a BakFlip hard trifold cover on from new and it was the worse piece of junk cover I ever had. Always leaked a lot and at just over one year, the panels started separating and the company wouldn't do a thing since it was a month out of warrantee even though this was a known defect at the time. They changed the design right after I bought mine due to the issue of separating panels, partly due to using gas struts to hold it in the fully uncovered position.