truck bed sleeping platform design

[bio-smear]

If I bought a new truck today it would be the Tacoma Access Cab. I think the bed is still long enough to fit straight-on, and I hate hauling people, so I don't care about the 4-door.

Are you looking to haul some 40' yachts or Cat D8's or what?

[El Chupacabra]

Are you looking to haul some 40' yachts or Cat D8's or what?

If I'm going redneck with a pickup, I'm going HEAVY DUTY REDNECK.

Another way of putting it: pros & cons:

1) Toyota overall reliability vs. Cummins bulletproof diesel = wash
2) IFS vs. big f'n solid axles = advantage Dodge
3) price = wash
4) MPG = advantage Dodge

The only clear advantage I see to the Toyota is that it may be garageable at home, and it'll probably have fewer fiddly little things break over its lifespan.

[bio-smear]

You'll also make me feel better about driving too large of a vehicle. :P

[lemon boy]

El C- I'm 5'8" or so and have a 6.5' platform bed with 1.5' of free space after the end of the bed and don't hang over at all while sleeping.

And while I recognize that an 8' bed is sort of an anomoly anymore the back 1.5' is one of the most used spaces in my truck. An easy place for water, coolers, beer, backpacks etc…

If nothing else I would design a place specifically to slide a cooler into (it'd be easy to make the cooler lid part of the flat surface).

I'd also recommend getting a high rise topper (rises above the cab height) and I'd also recommend you stop being such a whiney pansy about parking in garages.

[El Chupacabra]

and I'd also recommend you stop being such a whiney pansy about parking in garages.

But I may not have a choice, if I end up switching jobs -- new place is in a downtown office building, the only parking available is in the garage.

So I have to whiiiiiiiiiine.

[lemon boy]

meh, you better check that even a sorry tacoma would fit in the new building.

I actually worked for a while where my truck would fit in the garage and otherwise, there's always outdoor lots.

Found pics of mine:

[TahoePowShredder]

why bother with all that jazz? just sleep behind the local 7-11 dumpster. the best part about that is all the free hot dogs they throw out.

[lemon boy]

Just a couple of other notes:

The heavy duty space blankets (not the mylar ones) make pretty good curtains. They reflect a lot of light and keep things relatively cool. They're also relatively dark.

If your cap is carpeted, velcro will usually stick to it making hanging the curtains pretty easy.

Powernaps RULE.

[dookeyXXX]

about to dive into this for my 2004 Taco.

out of curiosity, what are all y'all using in terms of shells?

i believe I'm going to go with SnugTop, but haven't begun looking at all the options.

coupla questions:

1. is there a particular model that's more suited to "camping" in terms of warmth, head room, etc.? or are they pretty much all the same give or take windows and locks, etc.

2. what about a lock for the tailgate? How easy/hard is it to have one installed (or do you merely just get a new lockable tailgate?

Thanks!

[Snow Dog]

re: camping
As a bonus they often leak if they're not on just right. Plus the windows don't have drip rails and gutters so they leak too.
If you're serious about camping build a slide-in box (a micro-camper). Insulated, waterproof, and easy to take on and off.

re: locking
The shell door usually overlaps the tailgate which provides a small amount of security. Shells that use a centre handle and steel rods are more secure than side handles with locking tabs (they're easy to bend). I've seem tailgate lock kits that replace the release handle with a locking version but I have no idea how secure they are.

[bio-smear]

I have a SnugTop Supersport on my Tundra. It's been invaluable for skiing and camping, as when combined with the sleeping deck, peepers can't see your skis-- hence nothing to sell for meth other than stinky capilene.

My SnugTop is currently back at the manufacturer for warranty work. This is the final thing on the SnugTop that makes me think I'll be looking at the other brands if and when I ever buy another shell. They cut the front hole in the fiberglass too large for the window frame, so once i moved to Portland it started leaking at the edge of the frame like a hormonal wet nurse. Prior to recently, it had never leaked at all, it was well sealed at the bed/shell interface, and I have camped in some serious precip with it.

My tundra came stock with a locking tailgate. The SnugTop hatch does not obscure the tailgate keylock though.

Shells weigh a good amount too, negating the need to have sandbags or extra weight in the back if you're crusing on snow.

[flip]

If I'm going redneck with a pickup, I'm going HEAVY DUTY REDNECK.

Another way of putting it: pros & cons:

1) Toyota overall reliability vs. Cummins bulletproof diesel = wash
2) IFS vs. big f'n solid axles = advantage Dodge
3) price = wash
4) MPG = advantage Dodge

The only clear advantage I see to the Toyota is that it may be garageable at home, and it'll probably have fewer fiddly little things break over its lifespan.

1) Dodge/Chrysler transmissions have a nasty habit of falling off, especially when attached to large torquey diesels.
2) The solid front axle isn't an advantage in any way. If you were rock-crawling, yes. For road, and most off-roading, no. For reliability, no. For fewer parts and cheaper parts, yes, but the toyota stuff should never wear out. The IFS on my 4runner is 20 years old with 200k miles, a fair bit of off-road abuse, and the only thing ever replaced were CVs and shocks. Maybe if you plan to mount a plow up front, but even then the Tundra can handle it.
3) See resale value. A 3 year old Dodge is worthless.
4) Agreed. Too bad Toyota diesels aren't imported. Maybe in the near future.

[El Chupacabra]

1) Dodge/Chrysler transmissions have a nasty habit of falling off, especially when attached to large torquey diesels.
2) The solid front axle isn't an advantage in any way. If you were rock-crawling, yes. For road, and most off-roading, no. For reliability, no. For fewer parts and cheaper parts, yes, but the toyota stuff should never wear out. The IFS on my 4runner is 20 years old with 200k miles, a fair bit of off-road abuse, and the only thing ever replaced were CVs and shocks. Maybe if you plan to mount a plow up front, but even then the Tundra can handle it.
3) See resale value. A 3 year old Dodge is worthless.
4) Agreed. Too bad Toyota diesels aren't imported. Maybe in the near future.

1) Unfortunately somewhat true. Recent Chrysler-built automatics don't have the best reputation for longevity. Apparently the new 6-spd auto (48RE?) is solid, but it's also a little new to tell. The manual transmissions are fine though.

2) I disagree. Solid axles are far superior to independent suspension for strength, reliability, and offroad use (traction, articulation, etc). If Toyota had the sense to keep the solid front end in the Landcruiser, then that would be a lot more attractive vehicle to me, even with the bad MPG (16ish? even on the new ones.)

3) If you can find me a 3-yr old diesel Dodge 4WD for "worthless" cheap pricing, let me know. I'll buy it now.

All diesels from all the big 3 American manufacturers seem to hold their value quite well.

[Garrett]

Recent Chrysler-built automatics don't have the best reputation for longevity.

When were Chrysler slushboxes ever noted for their longevity? Just after the war?

2) I disagree. Solid axles are far superior to independent suspension for strength, reliability, and offroad use (traction, articulation, etc).

Plenty of OEM solid axle setups blow in all of those categories stock, in some cases worse than some IFS setups. I think the biggest common advantage of a solid axle for a near-stock truck is that any local redneck knows how they work/how to make them work better. My experience breaking and replacing parts on near stock trucks doesn't suggest one or the other is any less of a pain in the ass. Solid axle shit is easier to jury rig on the trail with your MacGyver skills, but then again taking a big 25/35 truck out on a lot of trails is just asking to break shit. For driving to your parking garage or most sane shit you do off road with a full size I'm not sure what the problem with IFS is.

If trucks were actually sold to people planning to use them for something other than their commute, no one would have spent the development bucks on this IFS shit, or all the other dumb bullshit trucks come with like electronic transfer cases.

/real trucks have vinyl seats, drain holes (make yer own, bud), and gearboxes you shift with man sized levers.
//I use a '76 GMC to get chores done around the summer place. That fucker is on its third set of floorboards, but it still starts like a charm after you throw a $19 dollar starter at it every couple years. You can stand comfortably in the engine bay when you want to pull a valve cover or whatever, nothing there to get in your way.

[El Chupacabra]

Plenty of OEM solid axle setups blow in all of those categories stock, in some cases worse than some IFS setups. I think the biggest common advantage of a solid axle for a near-stock truck is that any local redneck knows how they work/how to make them work better. My experience breaking and replacing parts on near stock trucks doesn't suggest one or the other is any less of a pain in the ass. Solid axle shit is easier to jury rig on the trail with your MacGyver skills, but then again taking a big 25/35 truck out on a lot of trails is just asking to break shit. For driving to your parking garage or most sane shit you do off road with a full size I'm not sure what the problem with IFS is.

You believe what you like, I'll believe what I like.

[Snow Dog]

For driving to your parking garage or most sane shit you do off road with a full size I'm not sure what the problem with IFS is.

IFS makes for a smoother ride on pavement and that's how it's set up in full size trucks but...
-- really bad articulation
-- expensive to lift (especially if you just want a small lift)
-- poor ground clearance when loaded

Up here there's no end of forest rec sites and even a few Provincial Parks that are high clearance 4WD access only.

[lynndessens]

any design that you thing suits you best are always appreciated. you can check this one so you could have preferences. congrats on that! =)
platform beds

[ShoNuff]

^^^^awesome!

[gnarlycharlie]

[brannen]

haha, that one is awesome. should use a black dead body bag for a sleeping bag though.

drawing up my plans for my new one now. . . . .good ideas in here

[F.D.V.]

If I bought a new truck today it would be the Tacoma Access Cab. I think the bed is still long enough to fit straight-on, and I hate hauling people, so I don't care about the 4-door.

Are you looking to haul some 40' yachts or Cat D8's or what?

Never have kids...I loved my access cab until we had little F.D.V.

[ghosthop]

Bump.

I'm about to build a sleeping platform for a ranger (standard bed, its about 5' x 6') and want to be able to keep my bike inside the bed, including overnight.

My plan was to build a platform that has removable panels over the wheel wells to be able to store the bike on one of the sides. Short term I will probably just bungee the bike in place but ideally would like to have a strap for the rear wheel and a fork mount. Not planning on any over engineered ExPo designs, I will probably do something similar to what Snow Dog posted.

Just curious if anyone had any better ideas or have seen any examples of platforms that allow for a bike to be comfortably inside the bed.

[Tryingtostaywarm]

Bump.

I'm about to build a sleeping platform for a ranger (standard bed, its about 5' x 6') and want to be able to keep my bike inside the bed, including overnight.

My plan was to build a platform that has removable panels over the wheel wells to be able to store the bike on one of the sides. Short term I will probably just bungee the bike in place but ideally would like to have a strap for the rear wheel and a fork mount. Not planning on any over engineered ExPo designs, I will probably do something similar to what Snow Dog posted.

Just curious if anyone had any better ideas or have seen any examples of platforms that allow for a bike to be comfortably inside the bed.

You could do a 3/4 width platform, leaving some space on either side for a Bike+ other goodies open storage. Or, do you what you already mentioned and do the removal panel thinga-ma-bobber. Or, if you feel like getting wild, depending on how tall your shell is...You could build a strap/rack system that attaches to the roof of your shell on the inside. Even if yours is fiberglass, it has probably 2x braces in the middle sections that you could build something off of in the form of hangars/straps/combo ...that would permit a bike that weighs 15-20 pounds or whatever to hang from. Biggest hindrance I would foresee would be handlebar width in the hanging might push the bike too far towards the center since you aren't rocking a full-size truck. Who knows? Just thoughts.

[oldirty]

Id love to buy this....NICE

M

I'm gonna crawl out form my rock here. What make/model is that? Looks like a cool truck.

[El Chupacabra]

Funny how my car choices changed from 2007 to now.

Early 2008 - bought new 4Runner. Drove it awhile, sold in early 2015. Extremely well built, but uncomfortable to drive for long road trips.
Mid 2011 - bought 2000 GMC 3/4-ton gasser longbed, put popup camper on it. Still have the setup today. Don't really have much use for giant truck other than camper hauling, and occasional utility trailer hauling (for which we could also use Mrs. C.'s Xterra).

Never did go with a diesel in any form, despite being tempted. Glad I passed on the 2008ish Dodge, now that some time has passed, and Chrysler's transmissions continue to be not-that-reliable.