Lets talk bed retractable covers.

[brooksb]

I know I want a metal slat version of the cover, and I do not want to lose my front tie-down hooks. It's hard to tell if ill lose them or not, looking online. Is there one out there that still allows access to the hooks? I also have the tie-down anchors from ford so they stick out a little bit from the bed.

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[0o7]

I've got the rollnlock m series xt and the box up front is pretty small. I've still got access to the the tie down cleats but depending on what you tie down you may have a tie down touching the box. It hasn't bothered me so far though.

 

[brooksb]

I've got the rollnlock m series xt and the box up front is pretty small. I've still got access to the the tie down cleats but depending on what you tie down you may have a tie down touching the box. It hasn't bothered me so far though.

https://realtruck.com/p/roll-n-lock-a-series-tonneau-cover/v/ford/f150/2024/

Im not a fan of the vinyl on top. Looks like they make one that doesnt block the tie down straps I have. Thanks.

 

[brooksb]

I also like the roll up ones. Do they make them that are not vinyl on top?

 

[Risky Bizness]

We have a RETRAX MX PRO on each of our F150's. Like them fine. You lose a little of your bed, but for our use it's O.K.

 

[PowerBoostSoCal]

I had the one that Ford resells from the dealer as dealer installed (not sure the brand, but is was expensive - $1400+ as I recall). It worked great until it didn't. It looked good and was easy to use and all - but the downside, it takes up about a 10 X 10 inch square from the top of your bed down. I used to get frustrated because I could not easily get a long ladder in, or any heavy items really close to the front of the truck for weight balance (think 12 X 100 pound batteries). The final straw, it jammed one time and would not open at all. After driving around a bit the next day I tried to open it and a hundred ball bearings came rolling out ... the thing was shot! It was 2 years old, the truck has 80K miles and I used it almost everyday - maybe I wore it out? Anyway, not a fan of the rollups - I have tried many types of covers and for the money a simple but well made tri-fold works best. I have a trifold Diamondback now ... super strong, well made and looks good to me. But the locking "handles" are a bit flimsy ... I am only one month in, but would consider it again if in the market for a replacement.

 

[SilverPigeon]

Retrax Pro XR (aluminium slats) here. Access is ok to both tie-down points at front bottom corners of bed. You lose 1/2 the box link cleats on each side front, but the cleat can still be used to anchor a tie backwards.

 

[Powerboost_Law]

I've got the rollnlock m series xt and the box up front is pretty small. I've still got access to the the tie down cleats but depending on what you tie down you may have a tie down touching the box. It hasn't bothered me so far though.

My Brother uses the Roll-n-lock M Series XT on every truck he gets. I personally like the Bakflip, as I can completely remove it when I load the quad, with that said I have also removed a few back windows for good measure. I had a soft tonneau cover on a Lariat I bought used, I went to Vegas in July, with the intense heat the tonneau cover got real soft so as i drove down the road that stupid soft cover would flop and bang around like a bongo drum simply because the material so loose from the ambient air temp.

 

[PaulGrun]

I know I want a metal slat version of the cover, and I do not want to lose my front tie-down hooks. It's hard to tell if ill lose them or not, looking online. Is there one out there that still allows access to the hooks? I also have the tie-down anchors from ford so they stick out a little bit from the bed.

When you say “front tie down hooks”, are you talking about the hooks in the front bottom corner of the bed, the box link tie down points, or the stake pockets?
I have the Retrax XR pro (aluminum slides, retractable, T-slot tracks) which has worked extremely well for me.
The hooks in the bottom lower front corners are accessible, but essentially unusable. The stake pockets are 100 % obscured, but the box link tie downs are very usable. I have a couple of Yakima style tie down loops that slide into the t-slots. That might work for you.
I put Yakima-style crossbars and a bike rack on top of the cover using the Retrax XR’s T-slots, so a tri-fold would quickly be converted to a tri-no fold, so that was a nonstarter for me.

 

[rawfuls]

Bakflip X4s all the way for me.
Doesn’t take up space in the bed, rolls up easily and has hard aluminum for protection. Can “stop” wherever you stop rolling it.

Can still haul dirt/street bikes, and can be removed with four thumb screws.

 

[kieefer]

I had a Gator fold up on my Ranger, but found I kept it folded more often than I I thought.
I wasn’t worried about water leaks but I never saw any.
I eventually sold it and got a Topper.

 

[jhelrey]

I had a power retractable bed cover. The canister eats up a lot of space. I sold it and went with a Lomax.

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