Advice on a Tonneau Cover

[tryn2lrn]

I am thinking about a bed cover but have never had one before. I am looking for one with the least destructive mounting system. I was considering a tilt one but that seems as if it would be a pain when hauling tall items. How do these new covers attach and how well do they seal front and back. I also have a spray on over the rail bed liner, will this be an issue? Thanks for the advice.

[03GMCinBC]

I can vouch for the fact that the solid ones dont give you many options for stuff taller than your bedrail. It is a pain.

 

I have seen a few trucks around with the folding system. They look alright but in my opinion dont flow with the look of the truck.

 

I use mine all the time here since we get rain quite a bit and i can haul stuff around (short stuff) and dont have to worry about emptying the back and I dont have to shove it in the cab.

 

good luck, I think it really depends on how you are going to use the truck and how often you will have to remove it to know what your needs actually are.

 

[HarryK]

If you can get the GM Accessories one then do it. It is unbelievable quality for a soft cover, aluminum rails, perfect fit for my crew cab 1500. Get it at dealer cost or a little over at one of the internet GM parts places...After you find the part number for your bed length, got to GMpartsdirect.com or partszoneoneline.com or NewGMparts.com..just keep an eye on the handling and shipping.

 

Harry K.

[budhayes3]

I have the Pace Edward's Jack Rabbit roll top cover myself. Nicest thing about it is that it's flush and doesn't really mess with the lines of the truck. Other than that, it's very heavy, takes up alot of bed space and isn't water-tight. If you plan on using your bed I do not recommend this cover. It's good for me because now I have an excuse as to why I can't haul other people's sh*t around, as that's not what I ever intended to use my truck for.

 

I have friends who have various soft tonneau's from different manufacturers, and as far as utility goes, they seem to be the tops. Lightweight, clamp on frames, most are water tight, and the whole thing gets out of your way quickly and easily when you need to put stuff in the bed. From what I have seen, the snap ones seem to work better than the velcro ones.

 

The spray-in/roll-in bed liner shouldn't be a problem all either.

[igbig]

here some advice from a guy who has had 4 different tonneau covers on his truck in about a years time...ME!!!

 

heres what i learned, back in 1992 or so i had a 89 chevy excab pick up ,i bought a Extang Saber (peel and seal) and LOVED IT! IT ALWAYS KEPT MY BED BONE DRY EVEN IN SUPER HEAVY DOWN POURS that we sometimes get here in Houston.

 

fast foward to Y2k. I bought my current truck 2000 Z71 and immedatly installed another extang saber on it. it never gave me any problems. kept water out of the bed,clamped on without drilling, rolls up when you need to carry something laarge ,so you have complete use of the bed.

 

well i mountain bike alot and it was gettingto be a pain to take all the bows off every time and roll the tonneau up so i sold it and got a ADVANCE foldable cover,it folds in 3 pieces and is made well (you have to drill holes to install) but when folded open for hauling large items it stiil takes up about a little less then a third of the front of the bed,but thats not the main reason i got rid of it! when it rained my bed always got wet! always! and since i keep tools and tool bags in my bed keeping the bed dry is important to me. so i siold it and got the new Extang R/t.

 

i was like ok cool it rolls up like the saber did but the ebows stay attached so its easier to roll up with one person AND you dont have to find a place to put the bows or worry about losing one or smashing it. and according to theliterature it keeps the bed dry! WRONG!!!! everything else was tru, it was very low profile ,which i liked (the saber is not) and it rolled up very easy , but DID NOT KEEP WATER OUT!! so i sold it and guess what i got??? ANOTHER SABER! well actually i got the TuFF Tonneau III which is almost exactly the same as the saber except the tail rail stays attached when you roll it up making it easier (like the R/T somewhat) to roll up with one person. and it also makes it easier to close in cold weather since the tonneau shrinks when cold.

 

so ther you have it if you ant water tight go with the extang saber or tuff toneau or I imagine any other peel and seal like it would keep water out also. if water tightness doesnt matter the advance was nice ,since you could lock it and lock your tailgate handle and you had a huge trunk. any way several hundred dollars later im bcak to what i had fr5om the begining. live and learn!

[hvac1000]

FOLD-A COVER. This is all you will ever need!!!

[tryn2lrn]

Thanks for the advice I have been leaning towards the extang fulltilt ot tuff tonno. I kind of like the fulltilt since you can tilt it or roll it up but I doubt it will seal as well as the tuff tonno. I believe I have talked myself out of the one piece plastic type. Nice that they are fairly light, lockable, maintenance free and seal well but don't make a surprise haul possible(which might be nice to keep people from buggin me to haul their stuff). It is a difficult decision when you can't see any of these either. It would be great to try each one or at least to see the materials. I think the velcro is the way to go over snaps in my area as we see a wide range of temperatures. I am hoping to avoid the $$$ and aggrevation you must have went through with 4 in less than a year.

[Firetiger(MN)]

Access Cover

[blue2kzr2]

I have an Extang Full-Tilt. It's water-tight unless you aim a hose at the bottom of the rail. It's a tilting cover. You have several options for tall items. Roll the cover up and remove the bows (rear stays screwed in and sides stay down with the latch handle) or pop the bottom of the strut off its mount and remove the frame and tarp together. This leaves the rail along the front of the bed and a small 'u' frame inside the rails on either side, only about 1/2-3/4 of the way down the rail.

 

4 clamps and a couple allen screws on the base frame (the one that stays attached to the bed) and that's done. Then you assemble the tarp frame, on the bed, adjust a couple corner braces and it's done. Just install the bows and snap the tarp on.

 

This cover also has 2 different bow heights and 2 different snap heights. Adjusting the snaps pulls the cover tighter in the summer (snaps down) or makes it easier to snap in the winter (snaps up). I didn't adjust mine for the summer. Putting the bows in the lower position keeps the cover on a lower profile, but it's still fairly low.

 

Edit: I see you replied to a previous post. Mine seals well against rain. Direct high-pressure water spray is another issue. It also works just fine with my Line-X spray in over-the-rails...

 

Here's a pic of mine with the cover installed.

 

 

OK, here's pic of it with the truck CLEAN

 

[tryn2lrn]

I see the full tilt is now available with either snaps or velcro. d**n more decisions to make . I am leaning towards the fulltilt with snapless attachment. But I am feeling sleepy and should probably sleep on it a day or two. Thanks, this is why I love this place

[5088]

I have the GM accessory cover on my GMC, I got it about 2 months ago. Quality is very good and it seals well. My only complaint is that it can be difficult to roll up at times, but I got it pretty cheap and it does the job, so I can't be too upset. I had a Rally hard cover on my '96 Sierra, for a hard cover it was excellent quality and looked great, never leaked either. I went with the soft cover on the new truck so I could haul larger/heavier objects (snowmobile for one), but I'd recommend the Rally to anyone looking for a hard cover.

[tryn2lrn]

The more I think about it how difficult is it to roll one of these things up with only one person? The velcro ones must be tough, the snap ones must be easier but the vinyl must sag and fall into the bed when the snaps are off. The tuff tonno III keeps the tail rail attached so that must make things substantially easier. Do you have to jump up into the bed to roll these up? What I think i want is the tuff tonno frame set up for fulltilt oh well decisions

[igbig]

Tryn, couple more things i forgot to add. The Extang R/t sealed with velcro just like the Access, a s amatter of fact the R/T is a copy cat of the Access, althought it may be more waterproof since it is not as low profile as the R/T. The R/T 's tonneau is pretty much level with the top of the bed making iteasier for water to get in. the access is more on top of the bed and is sloped at the edges. I never liked the idea of velcro ,but extang warrants there products very well and their cusomer service is pretty good too.

 

The Saber and the Tuff Tonneu III dont actually use Velcro, but a plastic type sealing device almost like a Zip lock bag(sorta) so I think thats why it keeps water out so good. Plus I do not like the look of the snaps that some covers have it reminds me of the 1970's trucks. the plastic peel and seal is smooth. oh and also, you are correct about folding the tonneau without the tail rail connected . You have to starty on one side and roll ,while the other side falls into the bed,then you go to the other side and roll it up,but it always comes out messy and uneven. the only way to fold those types is with two people!

 

one last thing, I bought mine from truckxpressions.com they were the cheapest around, with free shipping. When you buy something from them they give you a 10% off coupon for your future purhases that never expires! and you can let friends use the discount too! let me know if you decide to get it from there and i'll send you the link for the discount. my email: [email protected]

 

sorry about the second long post,but just trying to help you think of everything b4 you buy! good luck!

[tryn2lrn]

igbig, please do not apologize for the long post as I am very greatful for all the info I can get(as I can not see the product before buying). I have now flip flopped and am leaing towards the tuff tonno III. I like the ability to roll and unroll with the tail rail by yourself. That is what you do correct? The tail rail comes off and you roll up the cover around it? The tilt ones just don't appear to be as robust a design as the standard type. The hard tops while being indestructable limit your flexibility and have storage concerns. Are the mounting rails black or slver for the TTIII? Thanks again for the input and I will start checking prices and may contact you about the discount.

[Whopper809]

Take a look at Roll N Lock covers, they don't make many holes for mounting and are constructed like a roll up garage door with a black leather that makes it look attractive. It's a one person job to open and close the cover as well and can be locked for security.