Im planning to have my bed sprayed by LineX soon. I was planning to get the "standard" liner since a bed cover will be the next upgrade. Reading into it more, it sounds like there are additional benefits to the "premium" liner besides just the UV resistance, like stain resistance and easier cleaning. I have no personal experience with either so Im still unsure if its worth spending the extra $165+. Appreciate some opinions on that.

This is the most expensive purchase Ive made (the truck), besides my house, and Im super nervous to even hand the truck over. Wondering if I should remove the tailgate myself or just trust that they do this all the time on trucks just like this. I haven't asked the applicator yet what they do or don't remove. I assume its standard to remove tie downs and box link plates but what about the LED lights and button? I also see photos showing the bed bolts sprayed over and others that have not. Curious how many of you that have your bed LineX'ed had the bolts sprayed over.

 

I had.them do all.the prep. They removed the bed lights, box link and 5th wheel hookup. I had them spray over the hold downs and bolts. I went with the normal linex. Had it for 10 years on my 2500hd with zero issues.

 

I have had my truck Line X'ed and they removed my bed bolts, box link brackets, and tie-down hooks. Factory liners, they don't remove anything. They spray over bed bolts and mask off around the box link brackets. They have done a nice job and I am very pleased. I got the LineX premium. It does have a tougher application and has UV protection. Well worth the money. You will not be dissapointed. Please don't attempt to do this yourself. Plus LineX has a lifetime warranty nationwide so if you're out of town and have an issue, you can take it to any facility to fix your issue no questions asked. Here are my pics.

 

I was only considering doing some prep, such as removal of tailgate, tiedowns, box link. That's just from being paranoid.

Did you ask them to remove bed bolts or was that just standard procedure for that location? I would worry about bed movement. Theres only one location to chose from within an hour of me, I only asked about the LEDs and was told they might tape them off. I'll have to ask about the other stuff too. It seems like it depends on the location as far as what they do or don't do.

But, in your opinion, the premium is worth the upcharge at $700.

 

My truck is coming in next week. I called my local Linex. Nice people. They told me they would remove all the lights and tie downs. But the bed bolts were a risk. Because the bolts can fall down and be trapped. I suppose on the fuel tank. They prefer to spray over them. But they would remove them on request. However.... if a bolt drops and gets trapped you would pay the cost to retrieve them. Sounded to me like my bolts will be sprayed. Ive seen their work. Very professional. They are franchise owners. So different locations could have different quality of outcome. I was also told I could make a Saturday appointment and stay and wait while it was done. Thats not to say they will allow me to hang in the shop. My intent is to go for the premium product. Bed cover or not.

 

The only thing that they taped off are the LED lights. Everything else like i mentioned gets removed. I did not prep anything. They did it all. Including removing the tailgate. Its standard procedure at my local location. If you are not sure, feel free to call and ask them.

 

[QUOTE=ForCal;18643023]Im planning to have my bed sprayed by LineX soon. I was planning to get the "standard" liner since a bed cover will be the next upgrade. Reading into it more, it sounds like there are additional benefits to the "premium" liner besides just the UV resistance, like stain resistance and easier cleaning. I have no personal experience with either so Im still unsure if its worth spending the extra $165+. Appreciate some opinions on that.

This is the most expensive purchase Ive made (the truck), besides my house, and Im super nervous to even hand the truck over. Wondering if I should remove the tailgate myself or just trust that they do this all the time on trucks just like this. I haven't asked the applicator yet what they do or don't remove. I assume its standard to remove tie downs and box link plates but what about the LED lights and button? I also see photos showing the bed bolts sprayed over and others that have not. Curious how many of you that have your bed LineX'ed had the bolts sprayed over.[/QUOTE


Been exactly where you are at. Read up on the bed bolts and you’ll find Ford says they are a one time use bolt. You will need new ones if you have them removed.
I got the standard lineX and they did a very nice job. Better than I expected. Life time guarantee, can’t go

wrong.

 

I had them spray down to the lip of the tailgate also. Some shops stop at the edge.

 

Have them do the inside of your fender wells while they are at it.

 

They may say they are one use bolts, but many people (myself included) have had our Line-X dealers remove and reinstall them with no problems. There was a thread on here a while back discussing them, and I think what Ford uses is a "blank" nut, and the bed bolts cut the threads in them when installed.

OP. Don't worry about it too much. They (Line-X dealer) do this all day long, every day. They know what they are doing. You can talk to them when you make the appointment and ask questions or make requests.

 

Only downside to having them remove the bolts and reinstall is that they'll never stay as tight as they were when they cut their own threads. I've had to tighten mine down again twice since I bought the truck a year and a half ago, and each time I'm able to turn them between 1/2 and a full turn. When they start to loosen up, the bed creaks slightly when the truck flexes. It's documented on here, that's why I thought to check them. If I could do it again I'd have them spray over everything - bolts, tie downs, etc.

 

I got the premium on mine. IMO it actually feels cooler to the touch, I can kneel/sit in the bed in the middle of the day if I had to.
Also, from a cleaning perspective, I think it is easier to hose it down vs the standard. The UV coating gives it a slightly slicker feel.

My bed bolts got sprayed over. Not too worried about it. If I ever have an issue with the bed, the bolt removal will be the last of my worries.

 

I originally had them spray over my bolts, but as soon as I left the shop, I had the bed creak. I ended up removing the liner on the bolts in an attempt to crank the bolts down. Still have the creak. Gonna go back and have them remove the bolts and spray under the bolts/washers to repair the bedliner integrity that I impeached when I cleaned off the bolts.

Finally, I'm not sold on all the "extras" above and beyond the base liner. I believe it's mostly gimmick as I have had the base LineX offerings in my trucks going back to Y2K and NEVER had an issue. YMMV.

 

So I went the Rhino Liner path via the dealership when I bought the truck. They did exactly what 2019RRSDLARIAT's pictures show as a standard practice. I do not know however, if the dealer gave them replacement bed bolts AND I've noticed a squeak back there recently. I'm wondering now if they reinstalled the bolts, and they've loosened up.

The other thing to consider is that I've had issues with the box link brackets. They were removed and the liner was applied underneath (as opposed to spraying around the brackets). The problem is that things don't fit in there anymore. I had to shave a bit of the plastic down, or use a literal sledgehammer to get thingamabobs into the bracket.

If I were to do it again, I'd spray over the bed liner bolts, and go around the box link brackets.
my 2 cents

 

I had the standard LineX sprayed on 2 trucks and I’ve hauled rock, dirt, dyed mulch, greasy engines, you name it without any issues. After I pressure wash the bed it looks brand new. On my 17 they reused the bolts and I have had no problems but it makes some people nervous. As others have stated Ford uses these bolts because they form the thread when installed which saves time and money on the assembly line.