Flat deck

[gdhillon]

I've been throwing the idea around in my head pretty much since ive owned the truck. Ive always enjoyed the look of a reg cab with a flat deck....although a dually would be cooler lol. I myself have no experience welding and wouldn't now what to do first...other than how to read the schematic for the welder haha. But fortunately for me one of my buddies is a b pressure welder working in kitimat right now. And he said for beer he'd teach me how to weld and build me a deck, so ofcourse I jumped on the opportunity. Any1 have 'plans' saved on there computer we could use?...I can't haul much weight b/c unfortunately for me I have a light duty seumifloating rear end. Most I would haul would be my quad or sled anyway and possibly firewood.

I haven't looked at how the beds mounted but i would assume its bolted on the frame rails?

 

[osokusmc]

Write up a detailed bill of materials and price it all out. Around here, I can get a nice steel flatbed with headache rack, gooseneck ball, all lights, mudflaps etc., installed for around two thousand dollars. I tried to save some money and build my own car hauler years ago. I was at the price of a new one before I had paint, lights, or wiring done, plus the cost of my labor. The game is in the purchasing the materials, factories that buy their steel by the rail car or semi load get much better prices than those of us paying by the pound or foot.

I love flatbeds, though, they are way more durable than those things that pass for pickup boxes anymore.

 

[soggybottom]

I built this for around 400$. No plans, but it's a pretty simple design. I used the same mounting holes the stock bed used.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[79jasper]

Al built his from all wood, IIRC.
Mines a J&L mfg bought for $500.

 

[riotwarrior]

Al built his from all wood, IIRC.
Mines a J&L mfg bought for $500.

Yes yes I did build it all from wood really simple to do to. Also If you want you can add a nice steel edging for a lot less than a full on steel frame deck.

Just enough Angle Iron to go around the whole edge and what ever you want to do for a headache rack.

It was super easy to build too btw.

 

[gdhillon]

This is the list my buddy gave me, 45 feet of 1/8 wall 1 1/2 x 3 hss 25 feet of 1/8 wall 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 hss 10 feet of 1/4 x 1 1/2 flat bar and 2 1/8 4foot by 8foot sheets of checker plate. Soggy I really like the look of that, actually I want mine to look exactly like that...minus the wood, woods for burning imo lol. Does my list sound like what you used for yours?

 

[riotwarrior]

Gavin, something to consider and I strongly suggest you consider this...

Metal decks frost up and are extremely slippery even placing anything on them it won't sit still it will slide, they can be extremely hot in summer etc however a good rough cut wooden deck grips much better lets water pour off allows items to safely be loaded and not shift as easy. DON"T ASK me how I know this.

All I can say is I will ONLY have a WOOD deck for light duty truck like ours...plus if a board gets mashed it's easy to replace...get a nasty ding in yer deck..guess what...stuck with it!

Also you have wood to burn in case of emergency! Stuck out in bush etc...

JM2CW

 

[soggybottom]

The frame and bumper of mine is 2x3 1/8" wall tubing. The bracing for the deck is 1/4" thick angle iron. The bed frame is welded to some heavy c channel that is bolted to the frame.

The length of the bed is 8.5', and I made it match the width of the cab. I decided to go with wood because its less slippery, cheaper, and easy to replace. It's also handy to lag tie downs to if need be.

If you want more pictures of the construction let me know.

 

[dgr]

Apitong and some used motor oil and you'll have a deck that will outlast your pickup.

 

[FORDF250HDXLT]

ideas....................

 

[gdhillon]

Very good points, i think I will go wood decking then. How wide is yours f250?

Thanks for the specs soggy, is yoiurs 6.5 wide then?

 

[FORDF250HDXLT]

mines 9' L x 8' W.

 

[gdhillon]

dgr, apitongs a type of wood?

 

[dgr]

Yes. Apitong is what is used on big trucks. Heavy, dense and durable.