Truck Bed Cover -- Too Many Choices!

[lowell holmes]

I have this cover on my F-150

https://www.carid.com/roll-n-lock/a-...BoCYOgQAvD_BwE

I am very happy with it.

[Carlos Alvarez]

I've tried a few different covers. For a variety of reasons, for my uses, I like the four-panel fold-up hard covers the best. In my last truck I had that with a rubber bed mat, and loved that combo. I don't like liners, and the spray-in stuff is ok but not great. The rubber mat prevented dents and noise from things in there, as well as keeping things from sliding. The hard cover was theft and weather protection. The folding style let me use the front to drop in small things, and I put a net in the bed to keep them in place. While I could still use the back for larger stuff. Or quickly remove it all for maximum space.

[Charlie Hinton]

I had a tonneau cover on my old truck, it was great for keeping RC model airplanes from flying out the bed.
Other than that it was mostly in the way.
Off and on I have thought about getting a cab high topper for the truck I have now, but the visibility would suffer so much I haven't done it.
Over the past few months having a secure mostly weather tight cover has once again bubbled to being desirable.
Those fold up bed covers look pretty appealing to me.
Thanks for posting that link.

[Curt Harms]

I've had a 4 panel fold up on a Ranger since probably 2003. The only problem I've had with it is that the rubber covers over the hinges deteriorated after a some years and the manufacturer does not sell replacements. The locks could be easily defeated but I seldom have anything of value to a thief in there. The cover I have folds 3 panels so one is always in place limiting bed accessibility. One manufacturer - don't recall which one - makes a 4 panel cover where all 4 panels fold vertical if you needed the full bed. I had caps previously and prefer the bed cover even though my cover is advertised as water resistant, not water tight. It was pretty good 'til the rubber covers deteriorated and still is way better than nothing.

[Jerome Stanek]

I have a fiber glass top on my F250 and I had a tonneau cover that had a frame that was hinged in the front or you could unsnap it and roll it up. I liked the feature where you could get in it without unsnapping it.

[Carlos Alvarez]

I've had a 4 panel fold up on a Ranger since probably 2003. The only problem I've had with it is that the rubber covers over the hinges deteriorated after a some years and the manufacturer does not sell replacements. The locks could be easily defeated but I seldom have anything of value to a thief in there. The cover I have folds 3 panels so one is always in place limiting bed accessibility. One manufacturer - don't recall which one - makes a 4 panel cover where all 4 panels fold vertical if you needed the full bed. I had caps previously and prefer the bed cover even though my cover is advertised as water resistant, not water tight. It was pretty good 'til the rubber covers deteriorated and still is way better than nothing.

That's interesting that they don't support the product. I wish I knew who made mine (no longer have the truck), because when they failed the manufacturer sent me new ones and said they are "lifetime" warrantied.

[Carlos Alvarez]

This is from my friend who uses his truck for field service and is in and out of the bed all day, as well as carrying valuable supplies and tools:

Rugged cover. I recommend it fully. Customer service is great. Walk on top of. If my truck were taller it might be tough to use.

[Mike Ontko]

John, thanks for posting this question. I'm interested in the feedback as well. I recently bought a 2014 F-150 SuperCrew and just had the bed sprayed with Line-X. My last vehicle was a Ford Expedition, which was like having an F-150 with a built in canopy. A canopy might make the most sense for me though, living in the Pacific Northwest. But it's not something I'd need...or want to have on all the time.

[John M Wilson]

Thanks everyone for the recommendations -- you're helping me hone in on what I want & what isn't necessarily important (to me).

I know that any $5 box knife defeats any cloth/vinyl top for a motivated thief, but I'm not worried about locking valuables in my bed. With that, most of the advantages of the hard, lockable top are lost on me, and the disadvantages of them take the day. I'm more concerned about keeping the elements off my occasional cargo than I am about keeping a load of valuable tools safe at a job site.

Given that I want a soft, foldable cover, now I've got to decide between the 3 or 4 panel units and the roll-up type. It seems that the roll-up type are more convenient, but not as sturdy. I don't anticipate using the top of the cover as a load-bearing surface, although my neighbor, who is a plumber, uses his that way all the time. It seems that these "structural" roll up tops are quite a bit more expensive (although very, very, nice) but I don't know that I will see enough of an advantage to ever get a pay back.

Any brand names I should look for or avoid? I'm figuring to buy it on-line and install it myself, as I sort of enjoy that process.

Thanks again for all the help!