Question About Sled Decks

[nast70]

New owned one. Never used one. Never looked closely at them, never had a use for one.
How are they anchored to the truck?
This is just my own curiosity.

 

[TylerG]

New owned one. Never used one. Never looked closely at them, never had a use for one.
How are they anchored to the truck?
This is just my own curiosity.

I personally have mine bolted down thru the box of the truck.....

 

[Stg2Suby]

I've bolted them in which I believe is better. But more recently I've just used turnbuckles and chains to the 4 D rings. Never had an issue with the turnbuckles but I made sure to keep them tight. I have seen guys snap turnbuckles/chains on rough roads.

 

[Beels]

I personally have mine bolted down thru the box of the truck.....

Same here. Just posted in another thread on this, but the reason I bolt it in, is my insurance company (SGI) considers it part of the truck when bolted in. If strapped or turnbuckled, they don't. In a wreck the package policy on the truck covers the deck when bolted, doesn't if it isn't and requires its own insurance. Takes me the same amount of time to bolt it in once the holes are there as using turnbuckles or straps and you never have to worry about them breaking or coming loose.

 

[Bnorth]

Most I've seen that get bolted through the legs sway badly and eventually fatigue and break the legs. Best practice IMO is to bolt the legs and then support with tie downs or turnbuckles from the higher mounting points to reduce swaying.

 

[2010m8]

Depends on the deck. My truck boss is clamped to the bed rails in 8 places and it has 4 legs bolted through the box.

 

[Panzerdog]

I use heavy duty turnbuckles to my d rings my friend bolted his to the box and started wrecking the box floor cracking and tearing it. He seen the way my is and switched. I can also have my deck on and off my truck in about 10 minutes by myself

 

[ABMax24]

Bolted and turnbuckled on every corner for mine. But as has already been said use huge washers or better yet steel plates under the box to avoid tearing it.

It's one thing to have a sled come loose and another to have the deck and 2 sleds come through the back window if you hit the brakes hard because it wasn't secured well enough.

 

[nast70]

That's good info.

 

[tex78]

I have the 4 corners with turn buckles into the box side hold downs

And because my deck has a square frame it sits on, I have my 5th wheel plates sandwiched down over top the frame with longer bolts at 4 sides, deck has not moved at all this year, and it would before, used it the first part of the year and last part now with lots of driving up and down

 

[Beels]

Most I've seen that get bolted through the legs sway badly and eventually fatigue and break the legs. Best practice IMO is to bolt the legs and then support with tie downs or turnbuckles from the higher mounting points to reduce swaying.

Depends on the deck. I have a Full Lotus and it's built well enough I haven't had any issue with that.

I have 10" X 10", 3/4" plywood under each foot on the floor and flat bar under the box across 2 bed ribs for support.

 

[Bnorth]

Depends on the deck. I have a Full Lotus and it's built well enough I haven't had any issue with that.

I have 10" X 10", 3/4" plywood under each foot on the floor and flat bar under the box across 2 bed ribs for support.

I do too, when I said legs I meant like the old marathons or denalis etc. The full lotus doesn't really have legs as much as frame.

 

[drew562]

Marathon truck boss. Mounts to the box tops and 4 legs. I bought one of the first truck boss styles. It's on its 3rd truck now. Still looks new and has never given me a problem. Tons of logging road miles on mine and I'm usually driving fast on the rough roads. I don't have the patients to go slow on the bumps.

 

[Big A]

Cross track deck bolted through box and 3/4" plywood box liner in 4 corners with 4" square aluminum plates under neath the box as well as turnbuckles in all 4 corners, that bioch doesn't move.

 

[09 arctic cat m8]

Always have my Stf chained and turn buckled down, that being said I prefer my two place sled trailer over my sled deck, it's less of a pain to me, and my box of my truck is still open,but for a one truck no trailer set up it works decent,

 

[nast70]

So to clairify, you guys are drilling new holes through the box and bolting them that way? Or are you removing the bolts that hold the box on, and using longer bolts?
The reason is I have a home made deck here at the shop one of our welders built several years ago that's labeled for the scrapyard. I figured I might be able to convert it to fit my truck to hold 2 quads to go into Lakeland PP with the boat on a trailer behind the truck. I have a DSP 5th wheel hitch and rails. Thinking I can build a 'stand' that will slide and lock into the hitch rails, then bolt the deck to the stand, maybe 6 grade 11 bolts and away I go. The current deck is rigged to sit on the box rails of an 8' box, 2 quads fit sideways. My box is a 6'-6", so I would just rotate it 90 to hold 2 bikes like a normal deck.
Any thoughts on that plan?

 

[neilsleder]

So to clairify, you guys are drilling new holes through the box and bolting them that way? Or are you removing the bolts that hold the box on, and using longer bolts?
The reason is I have a home made deck here at the shop one of our welders built several years ago that's labeled for the scrapyard. I figured I might be able to convert it to fit my truck to hold 2 quads to go into Lakeland PP with the boat on a trailer behind the truck. I have a DSP 5th wheel hitch and rails. Thinking I can build a 'stand' that will slide and lock into the hitch rails, then bolt the deck to the stand, maybe 6 grade 11 bolts and away I go. The current deck is rigged to sit on the box rails of an 8' box, 2 quads fit sideways. My box is a 6'-6", so I would just rotate it 90 to hold 2 bikes like a normal deck.
Any thoughts on that plan?

I was always going to build a deck and make it pin into the 5th wheel rails. Has to be tough enough. Just might still have to ratchet strap or turn buckle it down. I would think there would be a fare amount of slop like that.

 

[norona]

After using and working with Marlon Decks for the last few years I would only EVER bolt the deck to the pick up box using a very strong and thick backing plate, like they do. I have seen guys who have used the truck factory clamps that have pulled through. Again this probably won't happen if your just rocking your deck from home to a flat parking lot with only a smooth dirt road, but if your like me and many sledders who huff their truck up a 4x4 dirt road with 2 sleds or two quads or a uTV then there is a lot of torque on the deck, so bolting it in the the best way. I don't but backing it up to the truck factory clamps is a good idea too!

 

[snochuk]

After using and working with Marlon Decks for the last few years I would only EVER bolt the deck to the pick up box using a very strong and thick backing plate, like they do. I have seen guys who have used the truck factory clamps that have pulled through. Again this probably won't happen if your just rocking your deck from home to a flat parking lot with only a smooth dirt road, but if your like me and many sledders who huff their truck up a 4x4 dirt road with 2 sleds or two quads or a uTV then there is a lot of torque on the deck, so bolting it in the the best way. I don't but backing it up to the truck factory clamps is a good idea too!

On my last truck i had clips welded to the cross members to bolt the deck to.
Bounce the truck on spring log roads or offroad with quads loaded and just a through box bed bolt will crack the box bed in short order.
And as Norona says using corner box factory clips is a good secondary backup plan.

 

[800HMX]

I had Square tubing Welded between the front legs of my deck. I also had pads welded to the bottom of each leg and I bolt through the pads and use a large washer on the underside of the box. No twisting and no problems.