NFR Who has a folding tonneau cover on their truck?

Non-fishing related
@Josh - I have an Access roll type tonneau cover on my 2016 Ram, the truck's bed is 5'7". When I bought this truck I decided to skip the canopy (cap, topper) and go with the roll type tonneau. No regrets. I use the truck to haul yard waste to the dump, a canopy doesn't work very well for this and I no longer have a utility trailer, the cover rolls up to the front of the bed, secures without blocking vision, and makes loading and unloading waste a breeze. The tonneau is not waterproof nor is it dust proof. Someone mentioned using totes when expecting rain, I do the same. Dust? I live in steppeshrub country, it's dusty.

The tailgate on my truck locks when the cab is locked which will slow down "honest" crooks trying to get into the bed of the truck. It won't stop a knife wielding thief. In the past I've had canopies with locking cap doors. Locking a canopy is at best, a deterent for those honest thieves. The rolltop tonneau provides better "out of sight" storage than a cap with glass, just not the volume of storage.

I'm somewhat intrigued by @Fourbtgait's "agri cover". Somewhat.

Huh, truck caps, tonneau covers: just like boats, none are perfect, one isn't enough?
 
I have a backflip for my 2000 f-350. Happy with it for all the reasons stated and would recommend them. Only downside is the weight. It's become a detractor for me in terms of installing and uninstalling it; I use this truck to haul my in-bed camper about 4/5 times a year. Mine is almost 10 years old. I should probably see what's available today. I've also thought about creating a simple block and tackle hoist for it in my shop.
 
I was perfectly happy with my canopy, but now you have me all thinking about tonneau covers. Y'know, for that one time a year I have to go to the landscape supply and get some mulch/soil.
 
Super fan of the BAKflip MX4. Super convenient, secure, dry, and I can climb on top of it on shallow boat launches where I have to back the trailer in extra far and want to keep my feet dry when loading back on the trailer.

I like the improved visibility compared to a canopy. And it’s easy to fold up out of the way for hauling.
 
I finally got rid of the canopy on my 2006 Silverado and bought a Retrax rolling / retractable hard tonneau. The canopy was great for camping but so limiting in other ways, I was glad to see it go. The truck also just looks better without the topper.

So far I love the Retrax, though it was spendy. I got the more expensive pro model that is heavy gauge aluminum and will lock at any position (instead of just at pre-set positions). And then I bought a lock mechanism for the tail gate latch, so I can lock it up completely. But like Buzzy says that will slow down, but not prevent, a determined burglar.

It seems pretty water tight though I do get a small leak at the aft, left side corner during heavy rain. I bought the Retrax gasket kit for the tail gate but haven't installed it yet, that may help with the leaking, but I think it's more that my truck doesn't slope downhill enough towards the front, which is how the rails are designed to drain (there's drain tubes at the front that direct water down through the drain holes in the bed and onto the ground).
 
I have this light aluminum canopy. I can get it off the truck in five minutes and reinstall it in about 10. I have someone help set it in place if they are around but can do it myself fairly easily. I take it off if moving furniture or something. Canopy stays on almost all the time and I can’t imagine how a truck could be more versatile. Good enough for some camping, can move things without much hassle. These light ones are not as solid/durable as a heavy fiberglass canopy but this one has been on my truck for 26 years and still has no more problems than the old truck.image.jpg
 
Last edited:
RichS said:
I have this light aluminum canopy. I can get it off the truck in five minutes and reinstall it in about 10. I have someone help set it in place if they are around but can do it myself fairly easily. I take it off if moving furniture or something. Canopy stays on almost all the time and I can’t imagine how a truck could be more versatile. Good enough for some camping, can move things without much hassle. These light ones are not as solid/durable as a heavy fiberglass canopy but this one has been one my truck for 26 years and still has no more problems than the old truck.View attachment 115095
Click to expand...
I can vouch for the versatility of this canopy. I have a soft trifold cover that needs replacing after 5 years. Rich and I fish together frequently and take turns driving. Our float tubes and backpacks and rest of the gear fits comfortably in his truck. With my truck, (Chevy Colorado) we have to de-gas the float tubes pretty much completely to get everything to fit easily under the cover. By myself, I inflate my tube fully before I leave the house.
 
RichS said:
I have this light aluminum canopy. I can get it off the truck in five minutes and reinstall it in about 10. I have someone help set it in place if they are around but can do it myself fairly easily. I take it off if moving furniture or something. Canopy stays on almost all the time and I can’t imagine how a truck could be more versatile. Good enough for some camping, can move things without much hassle. These light ones are not as solid/durable as a heavy fiberglass canopy but this one has been one my truck for 26 years and still has no more problems than the old truck.
Click to expand...
It's funny, I just got an earful the other day from a buddy about how he was DONE with fiberglass canopies because of their weight. He was looking for an aluminum one just like that.
 
Buzzy said:
@Josh - I have an Access roll type tonneau cover on my 2016 Ram, the truck's bed is 5'7". When I bought this truck I decided to skip the canopy (cap, topper) and go with the roll type tonneau. No regrets. I use the truck to haul yard waste to the dump, a canopy doesn't work very well for this and I no longer have a utility trailer, the cover rolls up to the front of the bed, secures without blocking vision, and makes loading and unloading waste a breeze. The tonneau is not waterproof nor is it dust proof. Someone mentioned using totes when expecting rain, I do the same. Dust? I live in steppeshrub country, it's dusty.

The tailgate on my truck locks when the cab is locked which will slow down "honest" crooks trying to get into the bed of the truck. It won't stop a knife wielding thief. In the past I've had canopies with locking cap doors. Locking a canopy is at best, a deterent for those honest thieves. The rolltop tonneau provides better "out of sight" storage than a cap with glass, just not the volume of storage.

I'm somewhat intrigued by @Fourbtgait's "agri cover". Somewhat.

Huh, truck caps, tonneau covers: just like boats, none are perfect, one isn't enough?
Click to expand...
If I am not mistaken, my Agri cover is an Access cover. The company I bought through, Agri, carries those plus the truck racks. Mine is a roll up as well, fairly water/dust proof.
 
Upon further review as they say mine that came with the new truck is a ‘Rev’ brand, made by Bak as a customer brand for GM. I assume it identical to the Bak flip that @Divad noted above. Fit and finish are fine no leaks at all in 20K miles, some of which were monsoon like. I like the multiple locking sections. No complaints easy to use in any format. Headed west this starting this morning.
IMG_2464.jpegIMG_2465.jpegIMG_2467.jpegIMG_2468.jpegIMG_2471.jpegIMG_2472.jpeg
 
Evan B said:
But my truck looks so cool with the canopy and roof rack I never use.... decisions are hard
Click to expand...

I admit that I never used the roof rack that is on the Ranger's canopy.
 
I've had a Lomax trifold hard cover I purchased from Agri-Cover since 2018 and could not be happier with it. I choose it over a rolling/retractable cover due to its ease of removal and it does not limit bed space with a rollup housing. To date it's been waterproof and mostly dust proof. As mentioned, I don't believe it would keep a determined thief with a crowbar out though.
 
My personal 2007 F150 has a hard one piece tonneau cover and I love it. Had to replace the shocks a few years ago but other than that its been solid. It's not going to stop someone intent on getting in, but I feel safer leaving gear back there. Plus, I like the ability to stack a few inflated pontoons boats on it with all my stuff in the back underneath.

I also drive a work truck (2010 F150) with a trifold cover. While I like some of the advantages of the trifold discussed above, mine leaks badly and the framework is failing. Forgot to pull my golf clubs away on Friday after a twilight round. Sunday morning they were soaked. Personally I wouldn't get another one...

Either one comes off with the similar effort.
 
I have a an Extang Solid Fold 2.0 Hard Tonneau Cover (https://www.etrailer.com/Tonneau-Cover/Extang/EX83795.html). For the most part it has been fairly leak proof. I got my truck bed Line-X'd and the coating goes onto the top of the bed rails and is rough, so it does not make a perfect seal. It clamps in at top of bed and has spring loaded clamp for rear. So no drilling. The tonneau cover sits on top of the rails.

The only thing I do not like is that when I have it folded, it is just wide enough that it prevents me from seeing the back of the truck bed. I am still one of those guys that when backing up with trailer, I put the tailgate down to see.

A friend of mine has one that fits between bed rails on channels that are attached to the side of the rails. The channels drain water to a tube that is put through bottom of the bed.
 
So, in case anyone is interested...

I ended up going with the F150 version of the Gator SFX/ETX soft tri-fold cover that I used for my Ranger. I couldn't get myself to drop ~$1k for a hard cover and for under $300, it's a solid deal. They have an Amazon only version called the ETX that is virtually the same thing, but with slightly different closing "latches". Or you can get the SFX version from realtruck.com (owners of Gator). They seem to make them for all popular trucks across many years.

Screenshot 2024-05-30 at 10.52.35 AM.png

Takes a little fiddling to get it lined up properly. But it's still easily a one-man job. Had some rain overnight, so I'll go check my sealing job a little later. But assuming it's like the one I had on my Ranger, it should be find for most average weather. Removal takes like 2 minutes and the whole thing is easily listed/carried by one person. So if I do get around to buying a used canopy from somewhere, I can go back to the "canopy winter and tonneau summer" system I had with the Ranger.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top