Truck bed cap " which One? "

[Ray Z]

Gave up my '04 Tahoe about a month ago. It was an old friend but it had 172k miles on it and it was starting to really go past the nickle and dime to death point. This is my first pickup [15 Silverado}

 

Now I'm looking to cover the bed with something and I can't make up my mind what. Hard cover, soft cover, which one, yada, yada, yada.

[polecat]

I have used these guys for years on all my pickups. A.R.E. I have had both aluminum and fiberglass and they make both. I prefer the fiberglass.

http://www.4are.com/

Edited October 26, 2015 by polecat

[Ray Z]

Thanks, The next time I get up to Knoxville I'll check it out.

[monkeylizard]

D3vo has a bakflip on his F-150. I like it. So does he. I don't recall which exact model he has.

 

http://www.bakfliptonneaucover.com/

[tennesseetiger]

I'm looking at one of these for my new truck as we speak...just haven't pulled the trigger yet. I love the way it tucks away without taking up a bunch of space.

https://www.peragon.com/

[peejman]

Either a camper shell type or a snap-on/fold-up type cover.  The one-piece flat bed covers are for people that never use the bed. 

[tennesseetiger]

Either a camper shell type or a snap-on/fold-up type cover.  The one-piece flat bed covers are for people that never use the bed. 

I agree...I haul stuff around on a fairly regular basis and I don't want to have to take off a flat fiberglass shell every time I do lol fold up is the only way I can go personally.

[Hozzie]

I'm looking at one of these for my new truck as we speak...just haven't pulled the trigger yet. I love the way it tucks away without taking up a bunch of space.

https://www.peragon.com/

 

That looks pretty nice, similar to a Roll-n-Lock.  I debated forever on getting a hard top/vs soft top, etc and finally went with a soft top.  I have had hard tops in the past and find that I just carry to many odd sized items that end up being too tall.  The security is nice, but the flexibility of use wasn't great on a hard top.

 

I think the first question you should ask yourself is what do you normally haul?  You can certainly take a hard top off when needed, but it is a pain.  The other issue with even some of the other tops such as the Roll-n-Lock is that while they don't take up a lot of room, they do take up at least 12-16 inches.  Depending on your bed, that can mean getting a 4 wheeler in it or not.  I usually just haul mine on a trailer, but sometimes it's nice not to haul a trailer as well.

 

In the end, I went with a Tonno Pro tri-fold.  The main reason was I could take it on and off by myself in less than 3 minutes when needed.  I have had it for 5 years and it is still in great shape.  It keeps water out very well, and a nice bonus was that it was less than $300.   While I really wanted a Leer Topper, it was just too restrictive for my use.  

 

There are a lot of options out there.  Determine your primary need and consider even your occasional needs.  If you have a way to work around you occasional needs, then get whichever one you like the best. 

Edited October 26, 2015 by Hozzie

[A.J. Holst]

Either a camper shell type or a snap-on/fold-up type cover. The one-piece flat bed covers are for people that never use the bed.

A camper shell will increase your blind spot. I had a Ram 1500 long bed with a contractor cap. With only for and aft windows I should have added towing mirrors...on the flip side, the amount of stuff I could haul / secure in all weather conditions made me a better driver.

[WindHawk]

+1 on Bak Flip.  I have a G2 on a F150 crew cab and I'm very pleased with it overall.  I like the way it folds back and secures to open the bed. All but about 4-5" of you bed is completely open for loading larger things; can't do that with a fiberglass unit.  Yeah, you block the rear window but you have side mirrors.  I don't think any cover is really 100% watertight but this one is very close.  Just a few drops of water, if any,after a trip through the car wash or heavy storms.  The cover is aluminum; expect any hail storms that ding your truck to leave some on the cover.

[Ray Z]

+1 on Bak Flip.  I have a G2 on a F150 crew cab and I'm very pleased with it overall.  I like the way it folds back and secures to open the bed. All but about 4-5" of you bed is completely open for loading larger things; can't do that with a fiberglass unit.  Yeah, you block the rear window but you have side mirrors.  I don't think any cover is really 100% watertight but this one is very close.  Just a few drops of water, if any,after a trip through the car wash or heavy storms.  The cover is aluminum; expect any hail storms that ding your truck to leave some on the cover.

I checked out their website. It seems to be a bit of a high dollar item, but so far it's at the top of my list.

[WindHawk]

Agreed.  They aren't at the low end of pricing; not at the top either. I looked at many covers that had prices with 4 numbers left of the decimal. I've been guilty of "saving money" just to replace my bargain buy before I expected.  I've also over bought on things and gotten more that I really needed.  I try to keep it in the "Buy once; Cry once" range on most things. 

[Hozzie]

I had a BakFlip on a ford. It was a quality cover. I didn't like the back window being completely blocked, but I agree it gives the most room in the bed. If I remember right, the other thing I didn't like was you couldn't partially open it. It had to be all or nothing.