Can you make in the stake be rails fit with the Pace Edwards or Re-Trax retractable Tonneau covers? My brother cheated the rail and cover to one side on this Furd to work but his bed rails seem a bit wider.

What kind of rails do you have?

With the retrax you can order it with the stake pockets cut out or you can cut it out youself. I have never had to cut them out for any type of box rail. I've always found a way to make them work.

I would stay away from the pace edwards. There is no comparison between the two.

at most with the retrax you may have to cut a small v-notch to allow proper mounting of the bed rails on some types of rails. But as MaxPower stated most will work without any modification. the stake pocket cut out option is really for people who have to have them open for whatever reason.

MaxPower,
What is your major problem with the Pace Edwards products ? There are so many who say that "The Pace Edwards tonneau covers are crap" Opinions are like a##holes everyone has one and they usually stink. I have one and have never had any problems with it.
Mark

I like my Retrax. Are you concerned about covering up your stake holes, is that the question?

MaxPower,
What is your major problem with the Pace Edwards products ? There are so many who say that "The Pace Edwards tonneau covers are crap" Opinions are like a##holes everyone has one and they usually stink. I have one and have never had any problems with it.
Mark1 - The pace Edwards uses aluminum slats riding on aluminum rails. The aluminum slats wear into the aluminum rails making the cover almost impossible to open or close. The rails have to be changed at the customer expense. I have changed about 8-9 sets of rails over the years.

2 - The cover rolls onto a spring loaded drum. This springs always fail with time. The cover will not open once the springs break. So you have to change the whole drum and the customer pays again.

3 - As I said above the cover rolls onto a drum and over top of itself. So the aluminum slats wear into the vinyl cover. This is permanent wear and you will always see it on the vinyl. The more you drive with the cover open the worse it is.

4 - The aluminum slats tend to separate so the vinyl is the only thing holding the cover together and will eventually split. You have to buy a whole new cover if this happens.

5 - Because the cover doesn't roll well and doesn't want to pull well from the sides you have to pull from the center. You either need to get in the cab and pull it from the center or use some kind of strap. This gets worse as the cover wears.

6 - The way the cover meets the tailgate it tends to leak water.

7 - All the water that gets on the cover runs down the rails and into the canister. Eventually the canister fills up with leaves and debris. This needs to be cleaned quite often depending on the conditions.

8 - In winter the Pace Edwards is too stiff and most of the time you can't open it. -30 forget it.


These are some of my experiences from the 2 pace Edwards covers I have owned and quite a few I have sold and serviced before I found the Retrax.

If you ask anyone who has owned both they can tell you their experiences.

I have not sold one single Pace Edwards since I started carrying the Retrax. If you were to compare the two side by side you would probably agree.

So while opinions are like a$$holes, my opinions are based on facts and personal experiences.

Opinions are like a##holes everyone has one and they usually stink.


Isn't that an opinion? :think:

I like my Retrax. Are you concerned about covering up your stake holes, is that the question?
I want to mount stainless bed rails and in some pictures the stake pockets are partially covered by both the Pace Edwards and the Retrax.

Yes, like Max Power said, you can get the Retrax with the stake hole cut outs. He really knows what He's talking about. Don't let the bag fool ya..):h ):h

DOH!#@$(*# I dont have the cutouts in mine and was thinking the same thing.. Wonder what the cost for that is.

99% of the rails out there you can find a way to install them without notching or cutting or drilling the rails. I have never had to cut, drill or notch a rail for box rails.

The only time I would get the stake pockets cut out is if you wanted a rack or something that completely uses the stake pocket.

I've also had retrax do special covers that the rails completely covered both stake pockets for people who don't plan on doing anything with their stake pockets. It looks a little better but costs a little extra.

Ah, I am thinking of putting some bars, then mounting a basket/rack onto it for when I do longer trips or to just tie things down.

By any chance do you know if they have redesigned the Gen III for LB's yet?

Sorry If I offended anyone !! It's just seems everybody gets on the bandwagon and starts bashing products they have had past experiences with. and warns everybody to stay from them. I guess which is a good thing.
Mark
:sorrysign

They have a dozen going out this week and will be in full production by The end of the month or early april.



Ah, I am thinking of putting some bars, then mounting a basket/rack onto it for when I do longer trips or to just tie things down.

By any chance do you know if they have redesigned the Gen III for LB's yet?

Max,
Thanks for the intel. Giving them a call now to see what can be done..

Not trying to hijack the thread, but do have a related Retrax question. Any idea of the diameter of the canister that the Retrax rolls into? Trying to get some idea of how much space you lose at the very front of the bed.

About 13" from the front of the box and about 9" space between the floor and the bottom of the canister.

I had a Roll N Lock on my flatbed powerstroke. Yes a flatbed, I called it that because half of its miles were on a flatbed tow truck. Anyway, I was not impressed with the roll n lock. The Retrax looks great, how much is it for a short bed '05?