Bedliner: Drop-in or Spray-in?

[Jimdee]

Hi folks. I'm new to the forum. My wife, Dee, and I plan to buy a LM Pinehurst this summer and go fulltiming in early 2010. I recently purchased a 2007 GMC 3500 Dually with the Duramax/Allison, so I should be set as far as a tow vehicle. My question has to do with the bedliner. It currently has a drop-in liner. I've been thinking of replacing it with a Rhino spray-in liner. I'd really appreciate some opinions on whether or not it's worth it to do this. Also, when I have the fifth wheel hitch installed, what effect would each kind of bedliner have on the installation? As an RV newbie, I'm really looking forward to getting lots of good information from the Heartland family. Thanks very much. Jim

 

[jimtoo]

I went with a Turbo-Liner. It has same chemical makeup as the Line-X and is usually a lot less expensive and has same warranty. Also I had hitch installed previous to having Turbo-Liner sprayed in, so my bed rails were coated also. Mine is going on 4 years old and is holding up good.

Jim M

 

[jnbhobe]

Jim's right about the installation, do the liner first. All thou I drilled The hitch holes first so the edges of the holes are coated when the spraying is done.I have Rhino lining in my 03 and LineX in my 07. They are about the same the Rhino may be more plyable.Any of them are better than the slide in liners,you won't have stuff stuck between the liner and the bed. JON

 

[terdebb]

I would say spray in I have had the spray in in my last two trucks and would never go back to drop in.
Terry B

 

[SmokeyBare]

Jim,

The spray in liner should NOT be the rubber type... meaning it should be hard surface type and not a material that would allow movement when you install the rails for the fifth wheel hitch.

Marv

 

[TXBobcat]

I had a B&W Companion 5th wheel hitch in my truck. The B&W hitch is in two parts and can be lifted out and give the truck bed a clean smooth bed. Before I had the hitch installed, I had the holes drilled in the bed, then had a Line-X Spray in bed liner installed.

The Rino bed liner is good also but is thicker plyable. Line-X is thinner and rigid.

 

[rjr6150]

We have the Line X spray in. Would definitely go that way over the slide in liners

 

[truknutt]

Hi folks. I'm new to the forum. I recently purchased a 2007 GMC 3500 Dually with the Duramax/Allison, so I should be set as far as a tow vehicle. My question has to do with the bedliner. It currently has a drop-in liner. ... Jim

JimDee,

If you are installing any type of fifth wheel hitch in your TV the drop-in liner will have to be either cut or drilled. Hitch rails (Reese, Draw-Tite, Curt, Valley, Pull-Rite) are not to be installed OVER the plastic liner. Hitches like the Reese Signature series mount under the bed but still need to have holes drilled for hitch attachment.

These cuts & holes allows more dirt and moisture to get in between the liner and your truck bed. When you pull your liner out now, I betcha your truck bed is already scratched up.

IMO, Go with a spray in; some offer color choices, some offer increased texture applications for traction. I have the Line-X..don't spill diesel on it without pressure washing it really well 'cause it is slippery!!!

Research the brands online. Check out their websites; Line-X used to have a discount coupon hidden on their site. Most, if not all are franchises, so it pays to shop around. Ask about their discount programs, also.

Line-X link
Rhino Linings link
Speedliner link
GatorHyde link
Armor Linings link
Arma Coatings link

Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

The 'Nutt

 

[beardedone]

My 3 three reasons for never having a drop in liner
1. They can be slippery and you don't what to land on your hitch
2. They foster rust in the truck bed because of trapped water
3. You cannot put a hitch over a liner. It is illegal is some areas such as B.C. and also unsafe unless you cut holes in the liner.

 

[goldenbetty]

Rhino vs Line-X

We have had both. IMO, Line-X is holding up better. Rhino faded alot quicker, and I fine that the Line-X is thicker.

Good luck.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

Jim, we have a spray-in Superliner which is supposed to be the same as Speedliner. We had it applied after the rails were bolted in and I masked off the area around the points where the hitch legs sit. For what it's worth, I liked the Superliner over the Rhino because the material doesn't fade over the years. Rhino will fade within a year. I had the same liner in my last truck. Does not fade.

 

[PacMan4x4]

I have Line-X in my current truck and had Permatec in my last one--Both do outstanding jobs hoding up against the rigors of truck usage. Like others have said....I will never own another plastic drop-in liner again. Definitely cannot go wrong with a spray in liner. FWIW.

 

[Jimdee]

Thanks for all the replies. Great information! I'm thinking I should probably take out the current liner and then wait until I have the hitch installed to have the spray-in liner done. Does anyone have any experience with how to remove a drop-in liner? How are they attached? Again, thanks. Jim

 

[jimtoo]

Take everything out of bed.. open tailgate.. drive down freeway at 90 or so and it will probably blow out. Have seen a lot of them along the freeways.

No,,, really,, they are usually kept in place with some simple push in plastic retainers or maybe some molly-bolt type things in the openings on the bed rails.

Jim M

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

I like Jim's idea! I don't know what or if any changes have been done to the new style GM's but make sure your liner is not part of the bed rail covers if you have them. The rail protectors on the dually's cover a split in the bed rail on my 04. I've not looked at the newer ones so???

 

[beardedone]

I think that most users and dealers will tell you to have the spray in liner installed first and then put in the hitch. If you can be present when the holes are drilled have the bare metal painted. Maybe check with whoever is doing the liner for you.

 

[truknutt]

My Line-X dealer actually suggested the hitch mounting holes be drilled first. I removed the 4 rail mounting bolts, shims & rails. They inserted these large golf tee looking plugs into the hitch mounting holes.

I was going to check the torque settings on all the hitch mounting hardware anyway so it wasn't a big deal for me.

 

[Ray LeTourneau]

I think that most users and dealers will tell you to have the spray in liner installed first and then put in the hitch. If you can be present when the holes are drilled have the bare metal painted. Maybe check with whoever is doing the liner for you.

It's just my opinion but I would guess that the main reason for this would be if you ever decided to remove the rails and stop using the truck to tow a fifth wheel, you would only have holes remaining (easy to plug) and not an un-coated section of truck bed after removing the rails.

 

[beardedone]

I think the bigger reason to spray first in addition to avoiding bare spots, is that if you install the hitch first you will get water trapped between the box floor and the underside of the hitch. I think that would accelerate rusting and deterioration even more than not spraying at all. I do like the idea of having the holes drilled, spraying and then installing the hitch.

 

[jolar3329]

I would go with the spray in. I have a drop in that came with the truck. I then had it cut to install the fifth wheel hitch. Two years later I added a 50 gal fuel tank, which is on top of the drop in liner.