On Oct 30, 9:42 am, Ignoramus1285
wrote:
Larry, I googled "harbor freight" "truck crane" and there is a
consensus that the crane would completely mangle the bed.

Some some reinforcement is needed.

I am thinking about finding something like a 3/8", 16x16 steel square
that I could bolt to the bed, and then I would mount the crane on
that.
i

If I did it again I'd use 1-1/2" square steel tubing for both cross
members. I made the front one out of 1/2" x 2" steel bar which matches
the thickness of the plywood liner but a thicker, stronger support
would be better than a flat surface since the load can be lifted over
the bar. The rear tube is reinforced with 1" square stock from the
crane base to a little past the nearest bed bolt and it is very solid
but the 1/2" bar isn't really stiff enough.