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The previous owner put fiber glass wheel hubs in the bed of the truck. They are warping and look bad he also cut holes in the side panels. I don't know why there is plenty of clearance for the rear wheels with it not being cut. My question if I just wanted to replace both side panels are they just bolt on? There is no welding?
I am no authority on beds especially since I don't know the year of your truck, and the availability of new bed sides. But what I can say is that on my early 50 F1 I replaced the front bed panel and it was all rivets, which I drilled out and replaced with S/S bolts with lock nuts. Are you against replacing the fiberglass tubs with steel ones? Sorry that's all I have to offer, but this thread fell was falling off the front page so I thought Id give you what I had, and will give other more experienced members a chance to chime in. Best of luck.
To answer the original question; the original bedsides are riveted to the front panel. If yours have been replaced they may have been riveted, bolted, or (rarely) welded at the front.
In the rear they were held to the cross-member by the tailgate hinge bolts. If they've been replaced, they may simply have the tailgate hinge bolts holding them, or again they may be welded. A lot of folks weld them at the rear for more lateral strength.
I know that's not the answer, but if you inspect those two areas you will see it.
Actually, at the rear crossmember there are many spot weld between the crossmember and stake pocket to help hold the bedside vertical. Because of the stresses involved with doing that job, over time those welds break down, which causes the sides to fall over and have owners using creative and alternative methods of bracing to hold them up again. Swapping out a bedside is not a bolt on job.
Actually, at the rear crossmember there are many spot weld between the crossmember and stake pocket to help hold the bedside vertical. Because of the stresses involved with doing that job, over time those welds break down, which causes the sides to fall over and have owners using creative and alternative methods of bracing to hold them up again. Swapping out a bedside is not a bolt on job.
Ah, okay. I guess both of mine had the spot welds broken. Thanks for the info.
That brings up another question though. How do people paint the bedsides then assemble the bed? I've known of two people that have done it that way, and saw it once on TV. Do they have to spot weld then touch up the paint? The guy painting my truck want's the bed assembled prior to finish paint. (Minus the wood)
Ah, okay. I guess both of mine had the spot welds broken. Thanks for the info.
That brings up another question though. How do people paint the bedsides then assemble the bed? I've known of two people that have done it that way, and saw it once on TV. Do they have to spot weld then touch up the paint? The guy painting my truck want's the bed assembled prior to finish paint. (Minus the wood)
This is strictly my opinion, but I would say in the above cases, especially on TV, the bed was never assembled with the correct welding done, just bolted together. Not saying it can't be done or won't work that way, but that is definitely not the way they were engineered.
