Truck bed extenders

[Mike Cutler]

I am looking for a truck bed extender. The type that goes into the hitch receiver and forms a "T" for hauling lumber and other stuff that is too long for the bed of my truck. I have a Sierra Denali with the 5'8" bed. With the tail gate down it is 7'10" to the edge of the tailgate.
I would like as heavy duty as I can get. I have a need coming up to haul 12'-16' 2x10's. And some cherry that is equally as long and thick, but 12"-18" wide.
I've looked at a few, and have been pretty unimpressed.
If someone has one , and is using it to primarily haul lumber, not kayaks, and you are happy with it. Let me know the make and model. I'm not looking for cheap. I want it to work. I may end up having one made, if I can't find one.

Thank you
Mike

[Roger Nair]

The safe method is to buy, rent or borrow a trailer. I would not be able to talk myself into using something as sketchy as a bed extender when clearly leverage is against the square tube that connects to the receiver, making a severe hazard.

[Mike Cutler]

The safe method is to buy, rent or borrow a trailer. I would not be able to talk myself into using something as sketchy as a bed extender when clearly leverage is against the square tube that connects to the receiver, making a severe hazard.

Roger
The trailer option has been a strong consideration.
I only have to go a 3-5 miles for all of the construction type of material. The cherry is a 150 mile round trip.

[Jim Becker]

I had one of those for the Tundra I owned years ago...'bought it at Harbor Freight. AFAIK, a friend of mine still uses it with his truck!

That said, I bought a 5x8 flat utility trailer a number of years ago and it's paid for itself multiple times over. Because it's flat and without rails, I can easily carry material up to 16' long if I keep the longer stock in the middle so it can extend back toward my vehicle centered over the hitch line.

[Lon Crosby]

The first thing to check is the maximum tongue weight for the hitch you have on the truck. Then you can calculate the weight (i.e., vertical load) that you are planning on putting on the hitch by using the bed extender. Big differences between classes and brands.

[Bill Dufour]

I have a bed slide in my ranger PU. FYI: It is not supposed to be driven extended. Only fully rolled forward.
Bil lD

[Rick Moyer]

Get some metal banding and haul them upright!;) Seriously though, a truck with a 5'8" bed isn't made for hauling 16' long material, it's made for comfortably hauling four people around. Jim's suggestion about a trailer is a good one. I have an older Suburban that I can get 10' boards inside, but I often still use the trailer instead.

[Jerome Stanek]

Is it even legal to haul that much sticking out the back with out lights on it like they do with electric poles.

[Mike Cutler]

The truck is definitely more for comfort than hauling long material. It has a full-sized double cab, hence the short bed.
The Sierra Denali is an AWD truck. It has 408hp and 420 ft/bs of torque. It comes standard with a towing package and has a class III hitch. Tongue weight is 600/1000lbs. dead weight/weight distribution hitch. It is rated for max 9,600lbs of towing weight. I actually bought it to haul a horse trailer.

I think I'll look more at trailer rentals.

[Jim Becker]

Mike, you should be able to get a very nice flat utility trailer for not a lot of money, especially if you keep track of the used market. You'll find having one helpful for the farm/horse side of things, too. My 5x8 Loadrite, purchased new, was under a grand if I recall clearly.

[Mike Cutler]

Jim

I don't have to do it often, haul long pieces of material. I'll probably just rent a long trailer for the longer trip.
It would be nice to have something quick for those trips to the 'Borg. It's only three miles from the house. Maybe I'll still get the receiver hitch extender for the 'borg trips, and a trailer for the longer trips.
I'm hesitant to buy another trailer. I had our Brenderup, Baron TC, in the yard for few years and never really liked how much room it took it up. Luckily, it's now at the current boarding facility we're at.
Buying another trailer would put me back in the same position. Although it would be a lot easier to maneuver an open trailer around the back of the garage to hide it, than a Baron TC. I totally suck wind backing up that horse trailer.

It's sounding more and more like a trailer is the way to go.

[Ronald Blue]

How long is your horse trailer? I would think a 4 horse trailer would easily haul 16' material. I have the Chevrolet equivalent to your Sierra Denali. It's a High Country 4 door with the same 5'8" bed. I do have a 6x12 single axle utility trailer that works great for the long stuff.

[Jim Becker]

Ronald, his Brenderup (a EURO horse trailer) is just a little longer than a horse and a good bit of it is fiberglas. It's not the best format for carrying hard material. and you can't run it with the rear open.

[Keith Outten]

My Dad and I built a truck bed extender years ago. They work well providing you pay attention to the limits of your hitch as has been discussed above. I called the Virginia State Police to ask about how far a load could extend from the back of my truck, the answer was that there isn't any limit. As long as the load doesn't touch the road and you have a red flag attached to the rear of the load during daylight hours.

I recently gave my truck bed extender to my neighbor because I have a van now and don't ever anticipate purchasing another pickup truck.

[Adam Herman]

I used to haul a 16 ft canoe on my pickup by putting one end on the tailgate and the other over the cab with straps wrapped around it and a block of foam to protect the roof/cab corner. this worked quite well. I think it would be worthwile to look into a removable ladder rack or headache rack for hauling long material. you could even build one out of wood or uni-strut to go in the stake pockets. easy to hang on a wall to store and then put in the truck when needed. this way the angle is not too severe and it will hang over the cab and out the back a bit.

[Peter Christensen]

I made a 2x6 frame that sat behind the cab and was clamped to the top edges of the box and was just higher than the cab roof. So basically half a roof rack. I carried a lot of long stuff balanced between the rack and the top of the closed tailgate and held with lots of ratchet straps, some was 26 feet long. 12' to 16' feet was a breeze. A 16' load would only have about 5' overhanging the tailgate and 12' would have 3'. Kept a staple gun and a couple red shirts or towels for flags. You need to be aware of how high things are above the front of the truck when you get home and have to go under branches or low roofs etc, but there was never any issues with overpasses and the like. You need to also keep in mind the centre of gravity may be higher and further back than empty so no hard cornering. That was on a 1990 Nissan back in the days when they were still small trucks. ;)

[Harry Hagan]

This reminds me of how a friend hauled pipe too long for his 4x4. He tied it under the truck to the front and back receivers with the load protruding at both ends!

[andrew whicker]

I could make you one, but shipping would be expensive : )

[Tom Bender]

You must know someone with a better horse trailer. If you volunteer to fix something on it (always there is something) you should have use of it free.

[Jim Becker]

You must know someone with a better horse trailer. If you volunteer to fix something on it (always there is something) you should have use of it free.

I'd not about "better" relative to the horse trailer...what he has will carry 7-8' material just fine. But horse trailers generally cannot be left open at the back, at least the lower portion which includes his Brenderup Euro trailer. Many, if not most 2 horse trailers have ramps that must be folded up for travel. Larger horse trailers (more than 2 horse) are generally goosenecks and unless his truck is setup for that, borrowing larger is a non-starter.

[Mike Cutler]

You must know someone with a better horse trailer. If you volunteer to fix something on it (always there is something) you should have use of it free.

As a matter of fact, now that you mention it, I do. He has a car carrier that he uses to haul hay. I think I see where you're going here. ;)

My Horse trailer is a two horse, bumper pull, Brenderup ,trailer. It has a ramp in back, so it can't be down while towing. It has about 11' of open space across the floor, so long material won't fit in it very well. I've hauled lumber, two rough cut walnut flitches, in it and it kind of sucks. It would be great for sheet rock and 2x4's.