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CCR Bed Buddy Review

Discussion in '1st Gen. Tacomas (1995-2004)' started by SeekingZero, Nov 14, 2013.

  1. Nov 14, 2013 at 8:15 PM
    #1
    SeekingZero

    SeekingZero [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Sierra Mountains, CA
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    Hi everyone. I am an avid motorcyclist and I am constantly transporting two motorcycles around in the back of my truck. A month ago I finally broke down and bought a Bed Buddy from CCR Sport to see if it would improve my load times and the overall safety of the cargo.

    Since I looked all over and could not find a decent review of this product with a first gen Tacoma before I bought it, I thought I would share my thoughts with all of you. I have a 01 Tacoma XtraCab 4x4 - normal mid-size truck bed. So I ordered the 57" mid-size truck bed buddy. The bed buddy is advertised, and mainly used with, dirt bikes.

    Here's how it looks with two sport bikes stuffed in it.
    [​IMG]

    And the clearance from the wheel well. I was a bit worried about this but if you notice in the image above, both bikes have their back ends slightly angled toward the center of the truck. This eases my mind.
    [​IMG]

    The quality of the product is excellent, no issues there. The design isn't ideal for all truck beds though. For example, the bed buddy needs to mount flush to the bed to be effective. For the 1st Gen. Tacomas, there is only one way to mount it, at the top. The bed side indentation consumes the front bed side almost entirely.

    [​IMG]

    This position works just fine if you have dirtbikes with a larger diameter front wheel (21"), but with a small sport bike wheel it causes problems. The two best features of the bed buddy are the center mounting loop and the wheel chocks. However, they are designed to work together. Because the center loop is mounting to the top of the bed buddy, if there is no force exerting pressure on the bar, then the bar and the whole of the front bedside will torque. We saw this on a 9 hour drive last weekend with the bikes.

    If the front wheels vertically align in the center of the bed buddy and the bikes are secured using that center loop, then the pressure of the bike from the wheel is exerted in a way that keeps the bed buddy bar from torquing. The problem with sport bikes and this truck bed, is that the sport bike wheels are too short which means that they exert pressure on the lowerside of the bar which, when the center mounting loop on the top of the bar is used, allows the bar and bed to torque towards the back of the truck.

    It is a little difficult to tell, but in this picture the front wheels (18") are axle-level with the bottom edge of the bed buddy bar. You can also see where I have circled the result of the bed buddy torquing the bed. The solution to the problem is an easy fix and is shown in this image as well.

    [​IMG]

    An eye-bolt. We replaced the center allen head bolt that was provided to bring the mounting point down from the pre-welded loop to the center of the bar. This worked great, and allowed us to make the trip back home in confidence. Another fix would have been to flip the bed buddy so that the center loop is facing down so that the torque rotation would be reversed. This is how I would recommend installing it.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    Let me know if you have any questions. Other than that issue, its a great product and I do recommend it!
     
    ChadsPride likes this.
  2. Nov 14, 2013 at 8:25 PM
    #2
    tacotrd647

    tacotrd647 Resident "dude"

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    Nice review! If i didnt have my enclosed trailer this would be something i would consider. Thanks for sharing!
     
  3. Nov 14, 2013 at 8:26 PM
    #3
    SeekingZero

    SeekingZero [OP] Well-Known Member

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    Ben
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    01 Xtracab 4x4 SR5 TRD Supercharged
    Thanks! That's what I'm waiting to get! An enclosed trailer would make life so much better. All in due time though. :)
     
  4. Jun 25, 2014 at 11:56 PM
    #4
    TacomaTruckParts

    TacomaTruckParts Well-Known Member

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  5. Aug 29, 2014 at 6:42 PM
    #5
    SeekingZero

    SeekingZero [OP] Well-Known Member

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    You should make one for the first gen.
     
  6. Apr 19, 2015 at 12:45 AM
    #6
    evansb2

    evansb2 Well-Known Member

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    subbed
     
  7. Jul 21, 2016 at 10:36 PM
    #7
    mobgma

    mobgma Well-Known Member

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    Are these made for 2nd and 3rd gen Tacomas?
     
  8. Jul 22, 2016 at 4:30 PM
    #8
    SeekingZero

    SeekingZero [OP] Well-Known Member

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  9. Jul 22, 2016 at 6:07 PM
    #9
    mobgma

    mobgma Well-Known Member

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    Do you remove the stock rail or track or put it underneath?
     

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