2002 dakota quad cab 5.5 box. Bed has never been protected and is currently scratched, dinged, chipped and even some small spots where the paint was chipped that has surface rust. Actually I'm really impressed how the bed has held up. I'm thinking about putting a bed liner in the truck. My first instinct is to go with a spray in. I was wondering if putting in a plastic drop in liner would be safe or will it be a moisture trap and speed up the rust process for the existing scratches and surface rust?

 

go with the spray in or roll in
i did a duplicolor bedliner in my truck took a long time but well worth it
i like doin projects like that tho, i think i have pics of it on my profile
i would recomend prolly finding a diff brand maybe herculiner, the duplicolor aint really that durable, dont know if they came out with better ones yet

 

oops no pics on account here they are

 

herculiner isnt any better with fading, go teh full route and get the spray in, worth the $$ imo

there is a brand called raptor sprays through a paint gun (big nozzle) works great looks good too

 

Another vote for a spray-in. As for what brand, I prefer Line-X. I've had it sprayed in 3 trucks over the past 10 years and have been very happy. I parked next to a co-worker once that had Rhino and we compared. The Rhino is more sticky v. the Line-X. The Rhino also looked like black cottage cheese v. the very crisp finish around all the corners of the Line-X. With my older Dak, I went over the bed rails to cover the years of use. I also had them spray the body pinch wells underneath from behind the front wheels to the back of the truck.

Since each store is an independent franchise, talk to folks that have had work done there to see how happy they are.

If you want to go the DIY route, just make sure you keep it off your hootus...

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/...threadid=18595

 

just get anything but drop in. thats what came with my truck when i bought it. and when i bought it was in perfect condition. but after i started hauling stuff around and using the truck as a truck that craps about to fly out any day now.

 

I have a drop in and I'm getting rid of it sometime in the next month, I was driving behind a buddy of mine and his muffler fell off, I put the hot muffler in the back and it warped the bed liner...now if I go over 60 the friggin liner flies up over the bed rails...it's gonna fall off on the highway anytime soon. The plastic cover on the tailgate already fell off. Don't go with the drop in it sucks.