Couple quick questions

[pjtoledo]

velcro strips, lots of 'em

on the down side, you'll be amazed how much dirt 'n crap they collect.

cargo nets are handy, but you still need anchors for them.

 

[RobbieD]

You filed them under "S" for "Securing Cargo".

Thanks! They weren't in the "T", for tie down, pile.

Off, to the "S" pile!

The bed bolts have a permanently mounted nut part, am I right about that? In other words if I take them out I won't have a loose nut falling down?

>>> "Especially if the bed has never been off." <<<
You'll want to go from underneath and hit the bolt threads heavily with Kroil or PB Blaster well in advance. They may be tough, and you may break a clip-nut (I've broken clips AND a T-55 bit before on mine).

BUT, you're better off doing it now versus waiting till the fuel pump goes bad, or you have another NEED to pull the bed. New clip-nuts are available, and coat the threads with anti-seize before reinstalling. Now you're set for a while, if bed removal is needed.

Careful with the bolts, though; they're like gold. Bed bolts were like $18 apiece at the dealership 20 years ago. Stock bolts are probably hell to find these days.

 

[Lefty]

I put an oak bed in mine. Wood dowels stabilize smaller loads.

 

[Curious Hound]

I put an oak bed in mine. Wood dowels stabilize smaller loads.
View attachment 100305

That's too nice to drive outside in the weather.

 

[Lefty]

That's too nice to drive outside in the weather.

I run a charity. Most of my cargo is cardboard boxes. A clean bed is important to me.

This summer I've also hauled tons of gravel (in bags), bricks, field stones, gardening soil, and mulch. I put down a couple sheets of cardboard when I haul stone and brick.

Generally I leave the tonneau rolled up, covering the bed only on rainy days. BUT still it has been caught in the rain on many occasions. I started with 3 coats of nautical grade polyurethane. It's waterproof, no different than a wooden boat. It's been scratched a couple times. A little more poly fixes that fast.

Picking up and delivering is a typical "business day" for this Ranger: I don't haul sod. I'm not a contractor. A wood finish assures a cleaner bed.

 

[Ranger850]

Packrat's Precious Piles of Plunder Paradise.

Is that near @Rick W's Shed of Miricles?

 

[RobbieD]

Is that near @Rick W's Shed of Miricles?

Oh, within 100 miles near.

But @Rick W 's Shed of Miracles is MUCH better organized then my beloved piles of crap.

 

[Rick W]

1. '97 doesn't have the rear doors which the '99 does, they are pretty nice as long as the latches and seals are good. So when I get something out of the back, every darn time when I sit down the seat is in the wrong place forward/back and/or it is at the wrong tilt. Am I doing something wrong? Is there a way I can make it go back the same? That's a pet peeve of mine and sure wish I had the rear doors on the '97 (I don't have many complaints about the truck! But that's one.)
2. Lots of times I just want a few little things in the bed and I don't like stuff floating around loose, light stuff could potentially fly out, plus, if stuff moves around and makes a clunk, right away I am asking myself what is that noise, is something breaking/hitting etc. The tie downs are too high, I just want to strap or bungee stuff down to the bed so it doesn't move. So far the only thing I came up with is you'd have to install L-track on the bottom of the bed, 2, or maybe 3 parallel strips down its length. You could do a few short strips in the parts where the fenders aren't, but it wouldn't give you the versatility. What I don't like about the idea is I'd have to drill into the bed and put some bolts through or screws or something and you want it mounted pretty ruggedlyAnyway, I'm open to ideas. I guess if it's something truly useful I don't mind making it permanent but I want to think through the downsides of doing it. I guess I'd have to make holes through the mat, and I wouldn't be able to take it out to dry the bed if it gets wet under it. Those mats are cheap so no biggie to replace, but if you wanted to go back stock you have a bunch of holes in the bed, yuck. So the idea is kind of half baked as of yet. All I know is what I'm doing now aint working. There are configurations where I can fit things to fill the bed so things don't move around but normally I don't need but a few things and I need a way to quickly and easily take stuff in and out and have it secure without it being a big deal and the jury rig crap I was doing doesn't cut it, I need tie-down spots down low where it'll pin stuff to the bed.
This is what I was looking at but maybe there are better ideas. L-Track System | L-Track Tie Downs | Airline Track & Straps | USCC (uscargocontrol.com)

Ok, I’m just catching up on this….

1. when you flip the seat forward, you can’t remember and or you can’t figure out how to put it back in the same place.

2. You hear noises when you put stuff in your bed. And a wide variety of tiedown methods are all too high to low too complicated, require holes or require tools, etc.

You carry an ax and an adz, and the whole rest of the things in your little toolbox, but your primary concern is weight. And you figured out how to put 15 pounds of water underneath the corners of your toolbox.

And I realize you’re not short spoken like me, but there were many other things. And I noticed, in your profile, that you were going to change your 235/75/15 tires to either (A), 265/75/15 tires, a.k.a., bicycle, wheels, or (B), 31 x 10.5 a.k.a. tractor tires.

Here’s my question before I’d suggest something. In your normal routine, when you start writing down all these thoughts, do you also get the munchies around the same time?

 

[Rick W]

If the “in bed” options don’t seem to be working out, have you thought of removing the bed and adding an axle and building a trailer that might have more places to tie down? I know a guy who did that to a red 97 extended cab 4.0 XLT

 

[Rick W]

No, scratch that. Here’s a couple ideas.

One. I grabbed one of the small stretchy nets out of a Ranger extended cab in the salvage yard and put a couple S hooks on the corners, little ones. Sometimes I clip it to the inside of the tailgate, top and bottom, close the gate, and I can put all kinds of smaller crap in there.

Two. Think of the same concept, but lift up your toolbox, and make a couple of rope loops under the bolts that hold it down. Then you can use bungee cords in front of the toolbox (actually behind the toolbox) for whatever.

Three. I think I got it at Harbor freight, but I basically bought a net that’s about 3‘ x 5‘ stretched that’s made out of bungee cord rope, that has four or five or six hooks on it. I don’t use it a lot, but when I need it, it’s invaluable. It would work great with @RobbieD ’s bed eyes.

four. I also keep one or two milk crates/vegetable crates in the back of the ‘87 Missing Linc, sometimes tied down, sometimes not. I can put a whole bunch of smaller things in there and even if the crate slides a little bit, it doesn’t make a racket or damage anything.

Five. When I first got my 97, the 87 had an aluminum cap on it, and almost the full side glass opened on both sides. It also had a lightweight ladder rack on the front and back frames. You can pick them up for 250 bucks and paint them with $10 worth of Rustoleum and they look like new. I’ll never use mine again, and it’s sitting in the yard if you want it.

Six. I saw this at the 40th. A guy just had a piece of heavy indoor outdoor type of carpet in his bed. He used fender washers and screwed through the carpet into two by twos across the bed. He could roll it up and put it under the toolbox, but when he rolled it out, it would hold everything in place.

Seven. If you have a sliding back window, you could get a cute chick to come with you, and when you buy something, she could hang out the window and hold it, so it doesn’t slide around. Also makes for a nice view in the rearview mirror.

Seven amendment. Scratch number seven.

Seven replacement. A long time ago I got four or six plastic dock cleats, real little ones. I cut a small piece of oak and drilled through the overhang of the bed side to hold them in place behind the bed lip. Then I screwed the cleats on them hanging upside down. Actually, the reverse order. The only make a few tiny holes, and they will hold the titanic, and you don’t see them, and you can take them out when you don’t want them.

It’s not real practical, and it can be very expensive. (especially if you’re married.) but I think the original number seven is my favorite.

Hope it helps, hope you got a sense of humor…

 

[Rick W]

And I’m not going to comment on @Lefty ’s stuff about cardboard boxes in the bed, and getting wood, etc. Everyone should be allowed to do what they want in the confines of their own property, but they should use discretion in a public forum…

 

[Rick W]

Afterthought. This just came to me after I took my Ambien and trazodone…

Number eight. It wouldn’t be too hard to take a little scrap piece of aluminum sheet metal and fold it so it could hook underneath the lid of your toolbox hanging out the back, and drill a hole in the bottom of it and fold it up or out. That would give you another place to put a bungee cord around something.

I think I’m going to do that on mine…

 

[Curious Hound]

No, scratch that. Here’s a couple ideas.

One. I grabbed one of the small stretchy nets out of a Ranger extended cab in the salvage yard and put a couple S hooks on the corners, little ones. Sometimes I clip it to the inside of the tailgate, top and bottom, close the gate, and I can put all kinds of smaller crap in there.

Two. Think of the same concept, but lift up your toolbox, and make a couple of rope loops under the bolts that hold it down. Then you can use bungee cords in front of the toolbox (actually behind the toolbox) for whatever.

Three. I think I got it at Harbor freight, but I basically bought a net that’s about 3‘ x 5‘ stretched that’s made out of bungee cord rope, that has four or five or six hooks on it. I don’t use it a lot, but when I need it, it’s invaluable. It would work great with @RobbieD ’s bed eyes.

four. I also keep one or two milk crates/vegetable crates in the back of the ‘87 Missing Linc, sometimes tied down, sometimes not. I can put a whole bunch of smaller things in there and even if the crate slides a little bit, it doesn’t make a racket or damage anything.

Five. When I first got my 97, the 87 had an aluminum cap on it, and almost the full side glass opened on both sides. It also had a lightweight ladder rack on the front and back frames. You can pick them up for 250 bucks and paint them with $10 worth of Rustoleum and they look like new. I’ll never use mine again, and it’s sitting in the yard if you want it.

Six. I saw this at the 40th. A guy just had a piece of heavy indoor outdoor type of carpet in his bed. He used fender washers and screwed through the carpet into two by twos across the bed. He could roll it up and put it under the toolbox, but when he rolled it out, it would hold everything in place.

Seven. If you have a sliding back window, you could get a cute chick to come with you, and when you buy something, she could hang out the window and hold it, so it doesn’t slide around. Also makes for a nice view in the rearview mirror.

Seven amendment. Scratch number seven.

Seven replacement. A long time ago I got four or six plastic dock cleats, real little ones. I cut a small piece of oak and drilled through the overhang of the bed side to hold them in place behind the bed lip. Then I screwed the cleats on them hanging upside down. Actually, the reverse order. The only make a few tiny holes, and they will hold the titanic, and you don’t see them, and you can take them out when you don’t want them.

It’s not real practical, and it can be very expensive. (especially if you’re married.) but I think the original number seven is my favorite.

Hope it helps, hope you got a sense of humor…

I kinda like #7 (original version)

 

[James Morse]

1. when you flip the seat forward, you can’t remember and or you can’t figure out how to put it back in the same place.

lol it's one thing to be sitting in the seat and another to move it forward then try to get it back to the same spot visually, it's usually close, but there is basically one place where the tilt of the wheel, the position of the seat, and the recline angle are all just right (for me). The settings are fine enough that hitting that spot visually without sitting down is just about impossible.

2. You hear noises when you put stuff in your bed. And a wide variety of tiedown methods are all too high to low too complicated, require holes or require tools, etc.

You carry an ax and an adz, and the whole rest of the things in your little toolbox, but your primary concern is weight. And you figured out how to put 15 pounds of water underneath the corners of your toolbox.

And I realize you’re not short spoken like me, but there were many other things. And I noticed, in your profile, that you were going to change your 235/75/15 tires to either (A), 265/75/15 tires, a.k.a., bicycle, wheels, or (B), 31 x 10.5 a.k.a. tractor tires.

I don't hear noises because I don't leave things loose, but I want it easy to do not a big production. Yes I'm against drilling into things if I don't have to, but I'm open to any ideas (thanks for your suggestions about that). Let's say for instance all you want to carry is a couple aluminum lawn chairs. You have to have tie-downs low down, up high doesn't help at all.

I do carry a lot of stuff but if you add it all up it really doesn't amount to a hill of beans. I didn't mean to infer my -primary- concern is weight, I'm just saying why carry stuff you definitely don't need, for instance a 12V charger probably won't help me off road but jumper cables might (or might help somebody else). Shovel etc might let me fill in a pit and proceed, or dig for hidden treasure (metal detector). I carry stuff behind the seats in boxes that just exactly fit the size of that space and come level to the back of it so you don't even notice stuff is there and I have a lot of stuff there just for instance all my folding knives, fish filet knife, Leatherman, etc - this just doesn't add weight and they're in one place. It's a long list sometime I maybe put on here.

I have the 31x10.5-15 tires now (K02) and that's the oem tire size for that truck (265's but they're the same). It looks right, drives nice, and the K02's are a little more aggressive than a plain a/t tire, not noisy like a mud tire, they're very quiet. Open enough tread to shed mud if it's not horrible. Good in rain. Rated for snow, if we ever got any. So, good all around, I'm happy with the choice, but, pricey.

I do have ways of fitting a variety of rugged plastic boxes in the bed a get it so nothing moves around and nothing is above the top of the bed. But normally I just don't need all that much, so back to the basic problem how do you put just a few things and tie them down - the attach points have to be low like on the bed floor.

What I try to avoid is making a big loading operation for any excursion. In other words let's say I'm going out for an afternoon, stuff should be organized so loading is just a few items and add some fresh food, and go. Camping, if I ever actually did any (it's been probably 50 years since) just add tent and a box with stove, etc. Make things simple.

If the bed is full, tarp or cargo net works, you can put aircraft cable if you are gonna leave stuff in it and lock it.

I think it comes down to what's the best way to mount attach points on the bed floor and I have some good suggestions now for that and maybe more coming.
Nice thing about the trucks is it likely can be fit out to do the things one wants to do.

RonD had a suggestion about put bars across held by the bed bolts then attach points at their ends - this could work. What would be ideal is a flat load surface where there are L-tracks flush to the load surface, you'd lose a bit of height, but not much. Some thinking yet to do on it. Could also just screw in some little tie down points low down on the sides.

If I have to carry stuff from the hardware or etc etc etc I have the Mazda. Because the tool box loses length in the '97 but I wouldn't give it up without a fight.

 

[Roert42]

I had Astro turf in the bed of my f-150. That helped a ton with stuff sliding around.
4’x8’ roll was $20 at the Home Depot. Little bit of glue in the corners to keep it from flying out on the highway.