HI,

I have a soft Accesscover on my truck and am a bit concern about it during winter time cuz i never have this experience...

Its my first time vehical P/U truck 04 Screw FX4.

what to do and what not to do??

Any advice?? how to take care of it ?

Should I adjust to make soft cover tight or loose up??

Thanks!
YOMAN!

 

it is my understanding that the cover will shrink in the winter, so you will need to loosen as neccessary. its just the reverse in the summer. also as the cover stretches with age you will need to adjust. that is what they told me when I bought mine.

mike

 

I've had my Access on for 5 months now. It's set up pretty tight (the final "snap" of the rear crossbar takes some effort). My truck is in temps. from 20-85 degrees; I leave it set up the same all the time, but like Mike says, it will probably need adjustment over time. It's real easy to adjust. I have a couple of aluminum pipes (same length as the Access cross-bars) ready in case I feel a heavy wet snowfall would stress the vinyl, but havn't used them yet. I've been spraying on some 303 vinyl protectant every few weeks, but I'm not sure it's needed. I've also trimmed the Access side rails and rear crossbar nylon latch blocks a bit to allow the use of the Ford-installed Bed Extender (which is normally too wide to swing out between the Access rails). Works like a charm.
Larry in SF, CA

 

I am not sure exactly what kind of tonneau that is. Is it a plain vinyl, over the rails cover? I have never done anything special for winter months with my various covers. I just have them set to full stretch (if snaps are reversible). Just try and keep snow off it for extended periods. Ive yet to have a cover fail. If you need to remove the cover during these cold winter months, you might just want to wait until the next warm sunny day (warm sun, not temperature). The heat just from the light should be enough to give you some play in the cover.

 

I had a factory snapless on my '99 F150 and took it off and on frequently in the winter time (in New England). The rear corners started to tear, and once they started, they didn't stop. It shrunk quite a bit. I never made any kind of adjustments to it because I assumed the snapless style would sort of adjust itself. I guess not. Lesson learned. I am now searching for a soft cover for my '04 FX4, but haven't decided on any yet. (any suggestions would be welcomed) I do know I'll be a little more cautious in the winter this time.

 

Larry,

Care to take a pic of that? I'm installing the Literider cover by Access and have the bed extender and need to do the same thing. Thanks!

-Travis

 

We get our fair share of snow and cold out in the Buffalo area and this is my third winter with my access cover. I don't change anything and mine has come through fine. I do brush it off with a broom if I get more than a few inches of snow on it so I can get it off if I need to.

 

I'll try to get a link to some pictures by Thursday afternoon. My bed extender was nearly 3/4 inch too wide (3/8" on each side) to fit between the Access side rails. The rails and nylon block are easy enough to trim. I used a cheap electric sabre saw with metal cutting blade for the rails, followed up by a metal file to smooth the metal edges, and a band saw to neatly trim the black nylon latch blocks. That part of the operation took only 1/2 hour or so..... (Access uses 2 different locking systems. One system is sliding "bolts" to secure the left and right corners. The other system, which my cover has, uses a center mounted spring latch **** that simultaneously releases both tabs (or bolts) at the same time.. With either version you have to extend the tabs/bolts outwards a bit, so that they will still get a good "bite" underneath the newly modified side rails. My version fairly simple to modify: cut the latch wire in mid span (it will need to be lengthened later). Drill new small pilot holes in the rear crossbar, and relocate each latch assembly 3/8" closer to the modified rails, where they will once again firmly snap into the locked position when the Access rear crossbar is closed. Lastly, use a piece of braided wire and wire crimpers (from fishing tackle shop) or 1/8" copper tubing from a hobby shop to lengthen the recently cut latch wire by approx. 3/4 inches. The longer wire will make the lock operable again. The pictures will hopefully make all this clear. The total project time is maybe 75-90 minutes, and can be done by anyone with moderate skills, and a few tools. The bed extender now swings just as before, even with the Access rails in place. These are great covers; I know you'll be happy with yours.
Larry in SF, CA

 

Here's a link to the pictures. I hope it makes some sense. The length of metal removed from the side rail was approx. 12 ", but you should check all measurements, as 1 truck may be different than the next. Good luck. Maybe I'll make another seperate thread for this. It may be handy for others.
Larry in SF, CA
Click on this: http://www.pbase.com/gslarry/access_modification