do-it yourself bed liner

[drifter2027]

the spray on bed liners r way too expensive, the wife bought me one of those do-it yourself kits, anyone put one of these things on yet? i was just wondering if there r any tips to doing it. is it worth it? does it last? is it as good as the spray on? any help or feed back would be much apritiated

[99-2door]

the spray on bed liners r way too expensive, the wife bought me one of those do-it yourself kits, anyone put one of these things on yet? i was just wondering if there r any tips to doing it. is it worth it? does it last? is it as good as the spray on? any help or feed back would be much apritiated

If you can still take the kit back and get your money, do it. Even if you can't don't waste your time with the roll on stuff. It doesn't last and it's not very thick.

[jack1996]

My father in-law asked me to help him do his 2001 pick-up. He was set on it, so I helped out. Looked good when were finished however, two years later it started to peel. I really think that it is all in the prep! We did a crappy prep. We used some steel wool, but should have used some sand paper and wax remover.

[LogixRat]

I've never done it, but it sounds like a pain in the rear and something that definitely is TEMPORARY. I'm not sure the cost difference (as the stealer threw in a plastic liner in my deal) to go with the roll in vs. spray in, but I know all the spray in guys around here offer a LIFETIME warranty on their stuff.

 

That says alot to me, especially if you keep the truck long enough and the roll-on stuff begins to flake off, and you would have to re-roll it yourself. I wonder if you would have to strip it down again and recoat the whole thing, or just "touch it up".

 

Again, it just sounds like alot of work. Of course, I live on a limited budget too, so I can respect that. That's why I still have the drop-in plastic liner. I figure when I get some $$ saved up for a spray in, my drop-in will have served it's purpose.

[03 GMC]

This is the second truck that I have used a roll on liner and I have had no complaints. No peeling or chipping. You do have to prep the bed or it won't last. Some of the guys at work have the Rhino lining and the only difference is that my Herculiner has a sharper feel to it. For the money you can't go wrong.

[JimG]

Did a roll-on liner in my old truck. Prep is the MOST important step. I got a random-orbit sander, a 5-pk of 60 grit discs, a dust mask and spent an entire afternoon and evening sanding the gloss and paint off the bed. Prior to that, since the bed was filthy, I took a solution of water and bleach and cleaned the entire bed. The system I got was a three step application process. So I put on coat #1, let it dry 24 hrs, then coat #2, etc.

Was very impressed with it, and it was very simple to touch up. Never peeled in the 3 years I had the truck. Only required touch up after I seriously abused it, and within about an hour it would look brand new again.

 

Edit - Let me add I HATE drop-in liners. Especially those installed by people who don't know what a screw is. Twice I've either avoided them or run over them on a bridge. Real fun at 50 mph.

[tmoreau]

Here is my take on bedliners.

 

I have had two trucks with drop in liners... I hate them. They scratch the bed and then hold moisture under them, they are VERY SLIPPERY! Everything must always be tied down. I put my toolbox back there and it slid to the back, then when I hit the brakes it hit the front of the bed so hard I though I had been rear ended. Of course this punctured the bedliner further worsening the moisture problem. They also have a tendancy to bounce around and rattle, this noise is irritating (not all do this though).

 

I like line-x and rhino liner but couldnt afford them. The bedrug looks like a GREAT product but for the same moisture reasons I wouldnt want it on an unprotected bed.

 

So I bought a couple cans of herculiner and did it myself. Not that bad a project, it took one full day and then three weeks for the black mess to come off my body. Yes, I was wearing gloves (what a friggin mess!). I was very happy with it at first, and still am happy with it considering my options and the price. Nothing slides around in the bed, EVER! I have put a 5 gallon bucket in the middle of the bed with just a brick inside or something like that, it didnt go anywhere at all! The no-slip properties almost certainly exceed rhino and line-x, if you drag your arm across the tailgate it will rip your skin off. It faded or collected dirt a little but still looks pretty decent. I have managed to gouge/ scratch it off in a few places by sliding heavy ramps with sharp metal corners under my atv and the kickstand of a 600lb motorcycle gouged a big chunk out. I am thinking about patching all the scratched areas and then getting a bedrug since the herculiner will help protect me from rust. Oh yeah, prep is important for sure. Also do at least three coats on the floor of the bed, I did two and wish I had done another. Two coats is probably fine for the sides and such. I seriously doubt that it will ever flake or peel, thats just poor prep work. Mine has been in my truck for about 1.5 years.

 

If I were to do it all over again, I would definatly save up for a professional sprayed in liner. There is just no other option that compares. Although my herculiner/ bedrug combo should be darn good too.

[Tweeter400]

I have done the hurculiner in 3 different trucks. My old truck I rolled it on and it worked great, good heavy coat, but it was hard to keep an even coat. In my new truck I sprayed it on and it looks even better! The kicker is, when you spray it, you have to do several coats to get it nice and thick. I love mine and it was a heck of a lot cheaper! It looked and held up good enough that I just sprayed a hurculiner in my buddies new dodge truck. I will say that the professional ones do hold up alittle better. Just depends on what you want to spend. The key as everyone else has said is the prep. You have to do a good prep on the bed or you are wasting your time.