DIY Bed Divider?

[pa-outdoorsman]

Multi-use

That is genius! I was planning to get recovery tracks myself. What brand/model did you go with? And you just used some bolts and fender washers to connect them like that?

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[Dave_in_Denaud]

I am thinking of going with two 2x4s and taking them to Linex and having them spray the 2x4s as well when I have the spray-in bedliner done. I saw in the forum that I should have the 2x4s cut to 54.25 inches. Three questions:

1. Do you think is a good idea to have the 2x4s sprayed?
2. Do you think the length is correct?
3. Do you think 2x4s are better than one 2x6 or 2x8. I am thinking the 2x4 would be easier to remove or move but will being separate make them more prone to shake and make noise?

Thanks

Here's my suggestion, which I just finished yesterday...I used #2 Southern Yellow Pine lumber, super strong and water won't bother it at all. Using one 2x8, I ripped it to 6 7/8" - more on this later. I have a spray in bedliner and cut the longest piece to 54 3/16". It could be 54 1/8", but 54 1/4" makes it a bit tight, and, unless you are very careful putting it in, you may have trouble. I cut a rounded notch at the bottom of each end so that the board rests on the bed and not on the bottom of the side slot. I cut the remaining piece into two pieces, the shorter of which is 14". I then notched, using a jig saw to make the cuts and a chisel to cut out the waste. This notch MUST BE just over half the width of the board so that the boards can "interlock" as shown in the attached photo. The 14" piece serves as a divider in the rear section if required. But here's main idea: when carrying nominal 4x8 sheets of plywood, drywall, etc., with the tailgate in the partial closed position, there is no support between the wheel wells. The both of the pieces parallel to the length of the bed provide support near the center of the sheets of material. There is no need to paint this wood. In fact, I discourage it, since, eventually, that paint will wind up on the cargo you are carrying. I'm going to add UHMW tape to the top edge of each piece because I don't want the sheets of material, especially hardwood plywood, scraped or scratched as it is slid into the bed. Just make sure that you have the material securely tied back to the tie down points at the front of the bed so that it doesn't slide out as you race the Prius next to you off the light. Unless you're carrying sheet goods, you don't need either of the two shorter support pieces.

 

[KSC Grey Ghost]

This is what I did with Maverick Bed cost ,e about $ 15.00. Indoor outdoor carpet and 2X6 .

 

[Dave_in_Denaud]

I failed to mention that I arrived at the 6 7/8" rip dimension by actually putting a short length of plywood onto the wheel wells to see exactly how high off the bed surface it was.

 

[lavaspill]

That is genius! I was planning to get recovery tracks myself. What brand/model did you go with? And you just used some bolts and fender washers to connect them like that?

Cheap ones off Amazon (https://a.co/d/33gVGyt). Yes just bolts and wingnuts.

 

[pa-outdoorsman]

Cheap ones off Amazon (https://a.co/d/33gVGyt). Yes just bolts and wingnuts.

Sweet! Just ordered some. Will post a pic once I get it set up in my truck. Thanks!

 

[kenlusaka]

Thanks. The duct tape sounds interesting. Can you post a pick when you get a chance. Also, did you duct tape the ends too? Do that change you cut from 54.25 in.?

Here are the pics you requested:

As to the cut length, I wasn't following other threads so I measured and cut it to 54 inch. It seems to be a good fit.

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Here are the pics you requested:

As to the cut length, I wasn't following other threads so I measured and cut it to 54 inch. It seems to be a good fit.

That's great, Ken! So glad you're enjoying your Maverick!

 

[Dave_in_Denaud]

Here's my suggestion, which I just finished yesterday...I used #2 Southern Yellow Pine lumber, super strong and water won't bother it at all. Using one 2x8, I ripped it to 6 7/8" - more on this later. I have a spray in bedliner and cut the longest piece to 54 3/16". It could be 54 1/8", but 54 1/4" makes it a bit tight, and, unless you are very careful putting it in, you may have trouble. I cut a rounded notch at the bottom of each end so that the board rests on the bed and not on the bottom of the side slot. I cut the remaining piece into two pieces, the shorter of which is 14". I then notched, using a jig saw to make the cuts and a chisel to cut out the waste. This notch MUST BE just over half the width of the board so that the boards can "interlock" as shown in the attached photo. The 14" piece serves as a divider in the rear section if required. But here's main idea: when carrying nominal 4x8 sheets of plywood, drywall, etc., with the tailgate in the partial closed position, there is no support between the wheel wells. The both of the pieces parallel to the length of the bed provide support near the center of the sheets of material. There is no need to paint this wood. In fact, I discourage it, since, eventually, that paint will wind up on the cargo you are carrying. I'm going to add UHMW tape to the top edge of each piece because I don't want the sheets of material, especially hardwood plywood, scraped or scratched as it is slid into the bed. Just make sure that you have the material securely tied back to the tie down points at the front of the bed so that it doesn't slide out as you race the Prius next to you off the light. Unless you're carrying sheet goods, you don't need either of the two shorter support pieces.

Update. Since my right elbow is killing me, I decided to make an improvement to reduce the weight of these southern yellow pine pieces. Negligible loss of strength.

 

[Hot Runr Guy]

35 degrees, really? So I had a scrap of 2x6 left over, and decided to make a forward support for sheet use. At first I assumed the ends would need to be cut at 45 degrees, but noooooo, they need to be 35 degrees (from vertical). Measure twice, cut twice,,,,,,

HRG

 

[Ron A]

 

[SubtlySeismic]

Haven't seen a divider like what I did, so I'll post it here. Similar to Dave_in_Denaud, I wanted a ticker divider without the weight, so bought 2x8 dry kiln board and cut out over sized hand holds on the sides and center. It dropped the weight of the divider from 10 lbs to 7.5 lbs. Very easy to manipulate now.

I'll eventually seal it with a stain since it's not treated wood.

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

Subtlyseismic,
I like the look and the lightness of your divider. It looks nicer than mine.
What did you use to get the nice holes?
I tried a 2x6 hinged.
I wanted MORE room than is provided by using the 2 x 6's.
I also wanted something that would easily slide out onto the tailgate,
so I would not have to lean over the tailgate. If I need to use the whole bed. I can pull out the brackets and it folds flat.
This is what I came up with.

 

[SubtlySeismic]

Nice solution to add depth, Glen Baker LLC. How well does it slide? Is there anything you added to the bottom to protect the liner?

 

[Glen Baker LLC]

Nice solution to add depth, Glen Baker LLC. How well does it slide? Is there anything you added to the bottom to protect the liner?

Thank You
It slides pretty good. I use 2 carpet strips that I stapled to the bottom. Because I use my truck as a truck. I wasn't concerned about the spray-in bed liner being scuffed they're pretty tough. One change I made was going from 1 pull strap to 2 straps.
I used pull straps versus handle's so I wouldn't scrape my knuckles. In order to keep the area flat the handles would have had to go on the end of the wood. The chance of scraped knuckles or fingernails would have been more likely.
I keep the blue box in there for the stuff I want to keep dry.
One of my biggest concerns was also pulling stuff over the bed to tailgate Gap and it getting caught.

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