Why is a lining the bed with diamond plate so rare? It must be a dumb question cause nearly nobody does it. If the bed is restored to beautiful wood and rails and the bed is to be used for actual hauling, wouldn't diamond plate be a good for protection and appearance?

 

Was wondering the same thing.

 

I imagine there's 2 or 3 answers to that question. First, almost all of us prefer an original style bed with the wood and metal strips. And they're tougher than you think. A lot of us have a wooden bed that is not finely finished hardwood. I haul things with mine quite often in the summertime. Secondly, diamond plat COULD give the impression that you might be hiding something underneath. And, thirdly, it's quite modern looking, and that is a turnoff sometimes with the vintage truck crowd, whether we're talking about a trailer queen or a daily driver that still gets used as a truck.

 

A sheet of rubber works great for protecting a finished bed floor and it much easier to handle than diamond plate.

 

Also 5' wide diamond plate is quite a bit more expensive.

 

I'll give my two cents too. I don't think it fits the look. For me, it looks like an easy way out or "redneck" solution. I personally like the look of a finished wood bed but have been contemplating hauling more in the bed as well. I have seen good results taking a modern sheetmetal bed floor from a larger truck and cutting out the center to fit then doing a color-matched bedliner.

 

I'm going with a diamond/floor plate steel sheet for the floor of my box. And then I'm going to coat the whole interior of my box with bedliner. But I'm also not building a show truck. I'm building a daily driver/work truck.

I haul a lot of used car parts, along with a little bit of everything. I want to be able to haul greasy old engines and transmissions, etc. without having to worry about damaging a fancy wood bed floor.

 

Because they are UGLY, IMO!

 

I don't think they're that bad, except for being chevy's.

 

i just looked: 5x10' 1/8" polished aluminum diamond plate 410.00 plus shipping.
1/8" would need to be laid over a support substrate, you'd need 1/4" if unsupported at about 700.00 per sheet +ship

 

After building a car hauler, general purpose trailer with a diamond plate deck, I would not want another diamond plate deck.

 

I would use a marine grade plywood instead of diamond plate myself . Cheaper , holds up well . Been a few years , but worked for me .

 

A little bit of saw dust or straw on a diamond plate floor and they get pretty slick. Stuff tends to move around on them more if it is not tied down. I've built and used diamond plate flatbeds, but if I was planning on hauling anything I would want a wood floor.
Mark

 

I'm not really a fan of diamond plate....but I really like this one!

Holehawg's F-1....

 

I think bottom line is, it's your truck do what you want. There will always be lovers & haters.