Stupid Question, but still want to ask the TACO community

Keep the tail gate closed, tie the ladder down real well, and put a bright red flag on the end of the ladder. That way the end is sticking up in the air, not down low where someone will be more likely to ram the front of their car into it! If you leave the tail gate up, it will angle the ladder up and away from vehicles behind you.

 

Bingo

 

agreed.. I think I am going to see how it does with the tailgate extension on.. then ill see how it looks with the tailgate up and the ladder angled up and away from cars. at this point I need to go and physically measure it..
thanks for all the help

 

What this guy said

 

Seriously, what is point of buying a truck if you are afraid to use it as a truck. This is astounding. Buy a Prius and rent a truck for the one time a year you actually need one.

 

I think the point is he’s trying to use his truck safely and responsibly. Perhaps he wants to save his paint like I do too?

 

A good set of Ratchet straps make everything a whole lot easier . That being said what I like to do is ratchet the item down, move a little and give my brakes a some love and see if the cargo budges at all if not she's good to go.

 

I rented a 12 foot A frame ladder from home depot. I have a SB. Place it in with the feet of the ladder over the bed rail and ratcheted it down. Used moving blankets from harbor freight to protect everything.
No issues.

 

As someone else has said --I use something very similar to these quite often -- I have hauled a double 20 foot ladder several times -- USE red flags -- that is the law in our state.

$60 MaxxHaul 70231 Hitch Mount Pick Up Truck Bed Extender For Ladder, Rack, Canoe, Kayak, Long Pipes and Lumber) , Black , 37 x 19 x 3"es

https://www.amazon.com/MaxxHaul-70231-Extender-Ladder-Lumber/dp/B01D4CXIKY

 

5-foot bed? No problem!! And the best part is that you can lock this up inside the bed out of sight if you have a cap or Tonneau cover. I really like my HF folding ladder - 17 feet, folds down to 4.25 or so feet, $109 with this coupon (they will accept this image below):

 

I've transported a 12' extension ladder in my taco. Tie strap it down to the front of the bed with the remainder over top of your closed tailgate. It won't budge if you use a few ratchet straps.

 

I'd be inclined to spend the money on the folding ladder as well. Solves your dilemma this time, and sets you up for success for the next time.

You might even be able to return the ladder after using it if you keep it clean and scuff free.

 

Has truck, has to rent bigger truck to do truck stuff...smh. Strap it down, it'll be fine. I have one of the extension things linked above, I haul large frames to boats all the time. Comes in handy, highly recommended

 

Sorry for the late reply, I have the excess of the ladder hanging over the tailgate. Just regular ratchet straps, mine are nothing special but they're also not the dollar store brand either. just hooked it to the cleats in the bottom of the bed already and made sure it was tight so it wouldn't slide around and scratch the hell out of the plastic guard on the tailgate.

 

Blankets and ratchet straps

 

dont be a dick.. im just asking a question.

 

I went with a different method than everyone else here but it worked. I have a short bed. I kept the tailgate down and hung the ladder 1-2 feet out of the back, and rested the rest on top of the cab. I wrapped the two sides of the ladder that made contact with the truck in very thick towels and then laid that on a moving blanket. I ratchet strapped the ladder down around the midpoint of the rungs to the bed d-rings and it was completely solid and no scratches. I taped a red t-shirt to the end rung of the ladder on the back end for visibility.

 

thats one of the ways I was considering. but i was thinking i would keep the tailgate up...that way i am not worried about it sliding out the back....

 

honestly, with all of the discussion the past few days, i am kinda considering a HEADACHE RACK.. i don't really need the full CONTRACTORS lumber rack (like a rack it 1000) that is the full length of the truck and meant for huge loads of lumber and other construction materials. The headache rack seems like the way to go, but i would like to hear everyones thoughts. I am going to do more research and see what others trucks look like with this rack on.

 

Same as the little giant ladder at lowes. That is what I have. They are great.