Hey yall, just bought this 2002 f250 with the v10, Lariat editon, runs like a top but has some rust... would you guys recommend replacing the bed entirely or trying to patch it?

 

Heres another picture, as you can see, theres like no dents at all, just wheel well rust and the front

 

Were mine i would look for a different box on CL. I see guys selling take offs. But you could patch it up.

 

That's the rust you can see. Add in the rust you can't see and the answer IMO is: New bed.

 

the under bed rails maybe be in much worse shape.. they are the first to go.

 

If it were just the rails I would vote fix. All that body work is going to be big $. Replace it.

 

Looks bad. I would replace it.

 

replace it. you're not even looking at the bed rails, and they come pre-rusted right off the assembly line.

 

That's how it was with mine too. No rust anywhere else on the truck after 17 years, but the bed rails were rusted pretty bad by about a year or two. I would replace the entire bed on the OP truck. You will spend more in body work than just buying another bed.

 

Replace, mine did same thing and I spent a lot of "shade tree" time and materias fixing it, ended up putting a rust free bed on this year.

 

I know down here in NC there are a lot of new take off beds at the service bed dealers. I only got $600 for the new bed off my 2016 F350 last year.From What i understand, guys from up north come down here and buy them in bulk.

 

New take off box is my vote. Much easier. You will chase the rust forever or until the rest of it crumbles. Apply the Krown or Corrosion free rust proof process after you get it back together. And do so the the new truck after this one rots beyond repair.

 

New box for sure. Even if you patch it, it will be back. A lot of body shops up here in the great white north don't even attempt to fix rust anymore. They just replace parts because they know the new paint will be bubbling in 6 months. Also I would love to find a bed up here for $600!! New take offs from truck equipment installers go for $3,000 for a long bed up here.

 

Yes, then they list the beds on CL and EBay anywhere from $1200 - $3000+.
It's really hard to find a good price anymore.

 

Secondly...before you install the new box flip it over and look at the rear inside side of the inner fender wells. You will notice some lovely sponge-like foam Ford thought was such a great idea to put between the inner and outer quarters from 1999 till at least 2016. Why not it sells trucks right...This is the root cause of why your wheel well lips have rotted in that rearward spot. Scrape it out with a plastic or wood scraper. Then have the truck rust proofed with Krown or Corrosion Free. Tell the technician to salve up that spot good, annually. Though if he's been around for a while he's well versed with this "problem area" with Fords F-series...18 years and running? Not sure on the 2017 Super Duty 150...err 250-350s I meant...I think.
Also, you can purchase plastic rear wheel well liners. I know they are available for 2011-2016. They are a Ford part, think Huskey makes a version too. I went with the OEM Fords. They do a decent job of keeping a lot of crud out of the underside of the bed. Grease the screws before you fasten the liner to the quarters. It will help prevent rust from where the screw threads break into the paint. The Krown will further enhance this.
Keep the garden hose out of that area.