DIY D-Ring Anchors installed on an XL

[phobiarg]

I wanted the bed tie down points from the XLT but the XL does not come with them. My truck is due to be bed lined by the dealership but I wanted to make sure they didn't cover the mounting holes for the anchor points. Here's a picture to reference.

I measured the distance between the centers of the holes and they were just over 1.75", almost exactly 45mm according to my calipers. I spent hours trying to find some anchors with a 1.75" or a 45mm hole to hole spread but they seem to either be 1.36" or 2" with nothing really in between. I ended up settling on some 1.36" 1/4"cheap D-Ring anchors from Amazon they were far too small hole to hole, but nothing a drill and a hammer couldn't fix. I bought several machine screws and tried a few sizes. The M6-1.00 were too small and fell into the hole so I ordered M8-1.25x18mm screws and tried to thread them in. They would not go in and upon closer inspection I saw that the holes were not threaded.

I ordered a metric tap kit and some cutting fluid. My shipment arrived today and I decided to start the project tonight. I threaded the holes in the bed with the M8-1.25 tap using a liberal amount of cutting fluid. It took more downward pressure than I was expecting to start the tap, then every 3-4 turns of the tap I would back it out and use a Q-Tip coated in cutting fluid to clean the shavings out the hole and clear the tap. Once the tap was in and turning freely I took it out, cleaned the threads really well one last time and I could finger tighten the M8 screws all the way in, SUCCESS!

Finally I had to get the D-Ring anchor to fit. I flattened the d-loop strap a bit, I basically just hit it with a hammer on the top to push down the center a few millimeters then bent the arms back in line. This lowered the clearance of the strap but widened the space between the mounting holes. This got them close but still not perfect. I used a 5/16" drill bit and drilled out the hole to fit the M8 screws, then hogged out the holes in line with each other to gain a bit more spacing. After some filing to clean up the burrs they fit, sort of. The strap is now too shallow to fit over the D-ring properly and when they're tightened down snug the d-ring binds hard and is very stiff to move.

The next purchase will be some rubber or nylon fender washers. These should give the clearance I need for the D-ring to move freely and also interfere with the D-ring so it doesn't rattle on the bed. Then I'll take them off, sand the straps and repaint them.

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[Firedon]

any advice trying to install it after spray in liner?

 

[Edge Haley]

Yesterday I had a major mess after getting a LineX spray-in bed liner. Told the LineX dealer not to fill up the bed rack pre-drilled holes. Picked up the truck and tried to install 1st 8MM bolt and just would not go in thru the bedliner....1/2 hr with no success. Went back to Linex dealer...and he told me an amateur drill would never get thru the liner and it needed a powerful drill to penetrate the LineX and a short socket for the bolt, or it would wobble. He offered to do the eight holes for me and also installed the D-rings. The Linex dealer admitted it was hard for him too.

Best solution is either insert your bolt or a golf tee into the bolt hole before getting sprayed. YOU DO NOT WANT TO DRILL OUT THE BEDLINER MATERIAL WITH A DRILL BIT SINCE YOU DON'T KNOWN WHAT IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BED, IE GASOLINE OR ELECTRICAL LINE. STRIPPING OUT A PRE-DRILLED HOLE WOULD BE JUST AS MESSY.

 

[ValenciaOrange]

Yesterday I had a major mess after getting a LineX spray-in bed liner. Told the LineX dealer not to fill up the bed rack pre-drilled holes. Picked up the truck and tried to install 1st 8MM bolt and just would not go in thru the bedliner....1/2 hr with no success. Went back to Linex dealer...and he told me an amateur drill would never get thru the liner and it needed a powerful drill to penetrate the LineX and a short socket for the bolt, or it would wobble. Offered to do the eight holes for me and also installed the D-rings. The Linex dealer admitted it was hard for him too.

Best solution is either insert your bolt or a golf tee into the bolt hole before getting sprayed. YOU DO NOT WANT TO DRILL OUT THE BEDLINER MATERIAL WITH A DRILL BIT SINCE YOU DON'T KNOWN WHAT IS ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE BED, IE GASOLINE OR ELECTRICAL LINE. STRIPPING OUT A PRE-DRILLED HOLE WOULD BE JUST AS MESSY.

Glad it got fixed. Have to say you are very lucky the LineX person was cooperative.

 

[ESY]

Thanks phobiarg for the info.
I went ahead and got 2 Husky D-rings from Home Depot (see second picture). However, the 2 holes on the D-ring were a little over 1.75 inches apart. Because of this, I had to drill one of the holes bigger. To make the threads in the anchor holes, I used the M8-1.25 tap as phobiarg posted. However, there is not enough room to rotate with the T-handle. I ended up buying a Lisle 70580 adapter from Amazon. This adapter allowed me to use my ratchet to rotate the tap (Amazon SKU: B002YKJWSU).

 

[ThisWas]

To make the threads in the anchor holes, I used the M8-1.25 tap as phobiarg posted. However, there is not enough room to rotate with the T-handle. I ended up buying a Lisle 70580 adapter from Amazon. This adapter allowed me to use my ratchet to rotate the tap (Amazon SKU: B002YKJWSU).

Interesting! I hadn't heard of a Lisle adapter before.

I used a 12-point socket to grip the square head of the M8-1.25 tap when I tapped my truck bed. The old mechanic who gave me that hint suggested I use a 1/4" socket but I found that a 7/32" socket fit better. (I prefer 6-point sockets for serious wrenching but you need a 12-point socket to fit a square head.)

 

[Sgthell]

Got my drop in modular bed liner today. Heading off to buy some 7mm & 8mm SHCS cause they don’t give you them in the kit. Have to tap a few holes in the floor and sides. Overall fits nice. On the back of the pieces they have marked all the alignment holes that correspond with the tapped and untapped bed hole locations. I’ll tackle this job tomorrow, followed by some fine bourbon.

 

[JBMcC]

The holes in my bed need to be tapped M-8. 5/16-18 is close, but the threads might not be deep enough to hold enough. I bought these on amazon. The holes seem to line up, but have not gotten around to installing them:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C5RME3C?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

Remember Tap Magic is your friend (and not a misnomer).

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