Got an old (or new) truck with no bedliner? Can't afford $500 or $600 for a drop-in or spray on bedliner? Sounds like me and my situation. When I bought this '92 Toyota truck to replace the '89 that was murdered in front of my house late one night, one of the things I liked about it was the fresh paint. At first glance, the bed was pristine, so much so that I almost didn't want to put anything in the back for fear of scratching it. But hey, it's a truck! You're supposed to haul stuff in it so I started looking for a bedliner. I searched Craigslist and Ebay but every time I found one that was close and inexpensive it was gone before I could get there. So I started shopping around for a spray on bedliner. I looked at Rhinoliner and similar products. They are really a lot cooler than the plastic drop in styles but pretty expensive. If this were a brand new truck I'd have no problem ponying up $600 for a Rhinoliner but this is a 27 year old vehicle.....so I kept searching.
One weekend I was watching Power Block tv and the guys on Trucks showed a kit that allows you to roll on your own bedliner. Same as Rhinoliner but it isn't sprayed. And the price was equitable! Not only that, I had some of the stuff at home. A couple years ago Chris took his Mother's Land Cruiser 4-wheeling and virtually destroyed the coating on her running boards. I thought I'd get some of the roll on bedliner stuff to replace the plastic cover that Chris had gashed and slashed. Never got around to putting it on so I had a full quart. Now to the web to get some tips and tricks.
Research done, I decided today is the day so I grabbed the orbital sander and started working. Here is a step by step guide:
First thing is to prep the surface. Rinse it with a hose to get off all the loose stuff and let it dry. Once it's dry you can start sanding. Keep in mind, you don't have to get down to bare metal, only to rough up the painted surface to give it some "tooth." If you don't prep the surface the product will peel off easily once it's dried. That's bad. Anyway, it took about 30 minutes with my little sander to rough up the entire surface of the bed. Surprise, surprise...my grey truck was once red!
Next, clean the surface. Directions recommend using Acetone or some such liquid but I was able to run my shop vac over the surface and eliminate the dust and particulate matter. This is a crucial step. You can't roll paint over a dusty surface. Once the surface is clean you can start painting.
Start in the corners with a brush. Once that's all covered you can start rolling the sides and wheel wells. I found a 3" roller to be ideal for this purpose. The smaller roller allowed me to get the grooves between the slats. Per the directions on the can it's best to put down one thin coat to begin then once it's dry, apply a second, thicker coat.
I said earlier it was around $600 for a sprayed on bedliner. Well, the roll on version cost me about $50 for materials and roughly 3 hours of my time. Now that I CAN afford.
Finally, here are some tips and tricks I learned:
1. Mask off the surfaces that aren't supposed to be rolled. This stuff gets everywhere you don't want it to.
2. Be sure you have enough material. Read the coverage chart on the can or online to figure out how much stuff you need then multiply by 3 or 4. The first can of stuff I used was by DupliColor and it indicated I should be able to cover my whole truck bed with 1 quart. Wrong Answer! I got started rolling and ran out of stuff about 1/2 way into the job. (Top photo) So, off to Lowes for more bedliner paint. Ultimately I ended up using 2 1/2 quarts total and have a good, even coating.
3. Use a roller cover made for rough surfaces. It will give a little more texture to the finished product than a smoother roller. And don't get the idea you can clean the rollers and brushes when you're done. This is some nasty stuff!
4. After it's dried stand back and admire your work....then if it's a hot summer day like today, use some of the $550 you saved to go to Coldstone or Maggie Moo's for ice cream!
So there you have it. Don't be afraid...it's quick, it's easy, and you'll save a lot of money. And don't forget the sense of accomplishment you get when you tackle something like this and get 'er done.
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