Another tonneau bites the dust...
#1
07-05-2016, 10:34 PM
Another tonneau bites the dust...
My tonneau cover has started to self destruct after 3 short years...AGAIN.
Short history:
First Tonneau was a Pace Edwards Roll-N-Lock. It was OK in the summer (until the vinyl covering started cracking mid way through the third year), but in the winter I might have well just not had a truck because it was HORRIBLE about freezing up and would refuse to function below freezing. I swear it would draw moisture from the atmosphere to freeze up rock solid at any time below 35 degrees. This is not insignificant in Illinois. Once the vinyl let go, it was worthless. I tried holding it togeather with gorilla tape, but that was useless too. The other problem is the tracks on either side seemed like they were made from aluminum foil and the cassette cover up front was only there for show and to collect debris.
Next I got an Extang Solid Fold, thinking that I was done with vinyl and retractable tracks freezing shut. Never has there been a more worthless attempt at covering a truck bed. First you can forget about the advertisements showing things sitting on top of the cover, the items must have been cleverly painted Styrofoam AND they likely still did damage. That stupid thing would dent with a mean look. A 90 lb Asian girl that I was dating at the time put a dent in it with just thumb pressure. That same 90lb girl was able to lift the cover up on the side enough to be able to stick her arm in and release the latch. Granted she had skinny arms, but so do many delinquent teenagers... The whole cover was held on the truck by 2 wimpy plastic thumbscrews (both of which bent immediately upon installation with only finger pressure) and to VERY weak spring loaded catches. As a result it would slide from side to side, shifting almost 2 inches from something as mundane as a highway on ramp. Last it leaked like a sieve across all three joints, and in the sides. I am stupider for having purchased that POS.
Most recently I picked up a Bak industries Roll-X cover. It too has the very fragile rails and a flimsy aluminum release mechanism on either back corner. It does not, however have any type of lock to freeze up in the winter, and was actually water resistant enough to be openable most of the winter. Push the snow off with a broom and the latch would release and you could open it. A couple of times it was frozen stiff enough that it would not roll up very well, but it never locked me out of my truck bed. I am not happy with how much of the bed is visually obstructed with the cover rolled up ( you can't see the bed at all), but that is more acceptable than losing a foot of bed space to the fragile cassette.
The problem comes in when the felt-ish strips that are glued to the bottom of the cover come unglued. Apparently they are what holds the whole mess togeather, and they come unglued and fall into the bed, gluing stickey felt to whatever you are carrying. There apparently is not a glue on the planet that will work to repair these. I tried spray glue, super blue gorilla glue, 3 different epoxies, nothing worked. This is significant because when you roll the cover up, these things not being stuck allow the slats to bend to far and come apart. That combined with the vinyl cracking and the weatherstrip that comes unstuck, flaps in the wind and tears offreally makes this thing seem like it is self destructing. I also have a couple of broken track guides (the plastic jobbies that actually sit in the tracks when it is closed) which means rolling it out is an adventure in frustration unless you have an 85" wingspan.
So, my #1 concern for a tonneau is security. It has to work with my power tailgate lock (that is also currently busticated) to keep casual thieves out of my truck bed, AND as a very close second, keep that stuff fairly dry. It also should stow as small as possible for when I need to use the truck bed as a truck bed, but that is a distant third.
What I am soliciting in this thread is opinions on tonneau's that you own or have owned and how well or poorly they have worked. If you like it tell me why, if you don't REALLY tell me why.
Short history:
First Tonneau was a Pace Edwards Roll-N-Lock. It was OK in the summer (until the vinyl covering started cracking mid way through the third year), but in the winter I might have well just not had a truck because it was HORRIBLE about freezing up and would refuse to function below freezing. I swear it would draw moisture from the atmosphere to freeze up rock solid at any time below 35 degrees. This is not insignificant in Illinois. Once the vinyl let go, it was worthless. I tried holding it togeather with gorilla tape, but that was useless too. The other problem is the tracks on either side seemed like they were made from aluminum foil and the cassette cover up front was only there for show and to collect debris.
Next I got an Extang Solid Fold, thinking that I was done with vinyl and retractable tracks freezing shut. Never has there been a more worthless attempt at covering a truck bed. First you can forget about the advertisements showing things sitting on top of the cover, the items must have been cleverly painted Styrofoam AND they likely still did damage. That stupid thing would dent with a mean look. A 90 lb Asian girl that I was dating at the time put a dent in it with just thumb pressure. That same 90lb girl was able to lift the cover up on the side enough to be able to stick her arm in and release the latch. Granted she had skinny arms, but so do many delinquent teenagers... The whole cover was held on the truck by 2 wimpy plastic thumbscrews (both of which bent immediately upon installation with only finger pressure) and to VERY weak spring loaded catches. As a result it would slide from side to side, shifting almost 2 inches from something as mundane as a highway on ramp. Last it leaked like a sieve across all three joints, and in the sides. I am stupider for having purchased that POS.
Most recently I picked up a Bak industries Roll-X cover. It too has the very fragile rails and a flimsy aluminum release mechanism on either back corner. It does not, however have any type of lock to freeze up in the winter, and was actually water resistant enough to be openable most of the winter. Push the snow off with a broom and the latch would release and you could open it. A couple of times it was frozen stiff enough that it would not roll up very well, but it never locked me out of my truck bed. I am not happy with how much of the bed is visually obstructed with the cover rolled up ( you can't see the bed at all), but that is more acceptable than losing a foot of bed space to the fragile cassette.
The problem comes in when the felt-ish strips that are glued to the bottom of the cover come unglued. Apparently they are what holds the whole mess togeather, and they come unglued and fall into the bed, gluing stickey felt to whatever you are carrying. There apparently is not a glue on the planet that will work to repair these. I tried spray glue, super blue gorilla glue, 3 different epoxies, nothing worked. This is significant because when you roll the cover up, these things not being stuck allow the slats to bend to far and come apart. That combined with the vinyl cracking and the weatherstrip that comes unstuck, flaps in the wind and tears offreally makes this thing seem like it is self destructing. I also have a couple of broken track guides (the plastic jobbies that actually sit in the tracks when it is closed) which means rolling it out is an adventure in frustration unless you have an 85" wingspan.
So, my #1 concern for a tonneau is security. It has to work with my power tailgate lock (that is also currently busticated) to keep casual thieves out of my truck bed, AND as a very close second, keep that stuff fairly dry. It also should stow as small as possible for when I need to use the truck bed as a truck bed, but that is a distant third.
What I am soliciting in this thread is opinions on tonneau's that you own or have owned and how well or poorly they have worked. If you like it tell me why, if you don't REALLY tell me why.
Last edited by barrysuperhawk; 07-05-2016 at 10:38 PM.
#2
07-06-2016, 10:53 AM
#3
07-06-2016, 07:14 PM
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I can relate to the covers story after several trucks & cover types. Vinyle OK 4 warm climates, hard covers best 4 cold climates. Flip-bak OK except when covered in snow or 40 below. Hard cover secure, works all year, even if covered in 1 in ice & 2ft snow! My Leer is lockable and struts been good 4 13 yrs. Going to put a backup camera on my Long Horn, ext cab, with a cab high hard cover with special air brush graphics. Got 12ft 5000lb trailer to haul anything. 77k on my 2010.
#4
07-06-2016, 09:57 PM
Two reasons I cant go with a fiberglass cover are:
First there are no two yellow items on the planet that match, and the one single fiberglass cover I have ever seen was several shades lighter than Dodge Detonator Yellow (think Ford pee-yellow). I could get black, but that seems like a lot of black, and then I would just have to get a carbon fiber hood to match, and then a rumble bee graphics kit and then... (it would be endless...)
The other reason is that I often find myself needing to load oversized or multiple items with no notice to remove the cover and leave it at home.
One of the linked threads below when I read the responses is this:
http://www.pace-edwards.com/full-metal-jackrabbit
It seems like the powdercoated instead of vinyl covered might be more durable, I wonder how weather resistant it is? Many of the negative reviews complain about leaks. I image it would have the same trouble with freezing up as the roll-n-lock, but with no vinyl, so you could theoretically stick a small heater in there and have it melted in short order...
First there are no two yellow items on the planet that match, and the one single fiberglass cover I have ever seen was several shades lighter than Dodge Detonator Yellow (think Ford pee-yellow). I could get black, but that seems like a lot of black, and then I would just have to get a carbon fiber hood to match, and then a rumble bee graphics kit and then... (it would be endless...)
The other reason is that I often find myself needing to load oversized or multiple items with no notice to remove the cover and leave it at home.
One of the linked threads below when I read the responses is this:
http://www.pace-edwards.com/full-metal-jackrabbit
It seems like the powdercoated instead of vinyl covered might be more durable, I wonder how weather resistant it is? Many of the negative reviews complain about leaks. I image it would have the same trouble with freezing up as the roll-n-lock, but with no vinyl, so you could theoretically stick a small heater in there and have it melted in short order...
Last edited by barrysuperhawk; 07-07-2016 at 08:20 AM. Reason: clarity
#5
07-07-2016, 08:46 AM
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I have had 2 hard covers painted by a high quality shop that were a perfect color match to my truck. If you regularly carry some things that won't fit, because of height, a cover might not be the right investment. My hard covers would open, sometimes with a little banging on sides to break ice. Neither ever leaked as they over-lapped the side rails and tailgate.
#6
07-07-2016, 09:55 PM
Well, I regularly carry computers, and often, as today in Illinois, in really bad weather. Much of the time I have too much to carry in the cab, so I use the bed with the tonneau protecting the cargo. I try to make sure that everything is at least in a Rubbermaid tub or similar if I know it's going to be wet, but that does not always work. I also get a lot of "Oh, Barry has a TRUCK, HE can haul it for us" about things that do not fit under the cover. A fiberglass cover presents the same problems as a camper top in that I would rarely know ahead of time to "leave it at home"
I think the concept of a retractable/rollable/foldable hard tonneau cover is the right choice for me, I am just struggling with the longevity vs function dilema
I think the concept of a retractable/rollable/foldable hard tonneau cover is the right choice for me, I am just struggling with the longevity vs function dilema
#7
07-08-2016, 12:08 PM
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#8
07-08-2016, 02:14 PM
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Bed cover
I can relate to carrying computers. Built 100+ desktops, rebuilt/upgraded many laptops. USMC aviation mainframe operator/maintainer/programmer for 12 yrs. on all aircraft. Flight systems test on many. Bought my F-150 Supercrew with hard cover off show room floor just to haul $7k to $12k worth of electronics inside cab and bed when doing DOD security upgrades as a contractor after USMC retirement. Have a tri-fold soft cover on my bed now. Cheap, works, light weight. Good luck.