"Steve B" wrote in message
...
I have a '06 Dodge 2500 short bed. I need to make a mondo headache rack so
I can utilize my trips to Vegas to save about 33% over local steel prices.
Carry back 1,000# of steel.
My concerns over several truck racks that I have built is:
When I make them to mount on the rails, the rails or side pockets rip out.
I need to take it from the front end of the bed all the way to the front
bumper so I can get 20' sticks on there.
I want to make it so that it is removable without becoming a day long
deal.
I want to make a combination of rail supports, pocket stakes, and
verticals down to the bed, bolting onto any substantial crossmember rather
than just sheet metal bed flooring to handle the weight.
Any ideas, or cites to plans that will incorporate this for a rack that
will carry a heavy load of pipe/square tubing safely?
Gusseting, and do you do your gusseting rigid or gimbaled? That is, do
you just weld in solid braces, or weld them in with drilled bolts so they
will flex?
I also want to build gimbaled vertical supports down to the front bumper
pulling eyes so that the unit will flex when going over curbs and filling
station entries. Drilled gimbals will be at the top and bottom of the
vertical supports on the front of the rack. I made one of the first racks
in the Las Vegas valley to use this, and it was copied fast and furiously.
The distance from the front bumper to the back of the cab is +50% of the
whole rack, so needs front support.
Ideas on what you've built appreciated. e mail at
What the others said....
BUT.....
Do you have a roof rack? If you do, I'll pass along what I've done, for 20,
24 footers -- 04 Nissan Frontier, 6' bed, crew cab. But like the others
said, for mebbe a few hunnerd #, not 1,000.
Heh, and not exactly a pleasant ride, either......
You could carry a couple hunnerd pounds of 20-25 footers with a supported
roofrack, and have the rest cut to 8-10 ft, and fashion a "bed extender",
basically a rectangular box, chained or fastened to the bed, to keep these
pieces from sliding off.
You have to make sure the material is well-constrained, so there is no
possibility of **** rolling/slipping/flipping out.
10 feet on a 6.5' bed is 3.5' overhanging, which is doable, and would be
just one cut from 20 footers, ie, not too much of a cutting charge.
--
EA
..
Steve