At the Helm Bedside Reinforcements – 2013 Tacoma Installation

A bedside reinforcement, or a “stiffener”, is ultimately designed for one purpose: to prevent the aft portion of the bedsides from flexing and eventually falling out of square. The Toyota Tacoma – specifically the 2nd and 3rd generations from 2005-2017 as the Bedside Reinforcements are designed – have composite beds that can flex under heavy off-roading. Additionally, adding weight to the inside of the bed in the form of a Hi-Lift jack or other tools can exacerbate the problem. The idea behind the bedside reinforcement is a simple one: an L-shaped hunk of steel bolted to the side and floor of the bed will prevent it from flexing. At the Helm Fabrication takes the concept a little further by adding in plenty of tie-down points and a flat tab on top with a hole that’s perfect for an antenna, flag mast, or work light. And finally, no Tacoma-based bolt-on should be complete without a bottle opener; ATH has sneakily integrated one in each Bedside Reinforcement to make your rig the center of the off-road party.


In this installation, I’ll be mounting the ATH Fabrication Bedside Reinforcements on my outfitted 2013 Toyota Tacoma DCLB. Let’s take a look at how they come from ATH and what’s included.



The ATH Bedside Reinforcements come neatly packaged in stretch wrap, with a sealed bag of fasteners inside. Both pieces are bolted together to prevent movement.



Each bedside comes with five tie-down points; the top plate has a mounting hole for an antenna or auxiliary light for illuminating the bed. Additionally, there’s a functional bottle opener on each mount.



Check out those welds! The proverbial stock of dimes comes to mind here. Each part is CNC laser cut, welded cleanly, and ready for use.



Here’s a look at what’s included with the ATH Bedside Reinforcement package: a complete pack of grade-8 zinc-coated fasteners, east to follow instructions for installation and an ATH decal to proudly display.



The first step during installation is to remove the taillight housing on each side. Use a 10mm socket and remove the two bolts located on the bedside where the tailgate closes. With both bolts removed, gently pry the housing out. With the taillight housing out of the way, we will have access to drill our holes and tighten down the fasteners.






Next, remove the D-ring bolt and bed bolt on each side. The D-ring bolt uses a T-40 socket and the bed bolt uses a T-55 socket. All four bolts took some persuasion to loosen, thanks for numerous salty Northeastern winters. I sprayed each bolt with PB-Blaster from the bottom and freed them from their rusty grips with a breaker bar. The D-ring can be reused if you remove the bolt and use the included hardware; I opted not to use it as there are plenty of attachment points on the Bedside Reinforcements.



Now it’s time to mark our holes for the 3/8” bolts. Test fit each Bedside Stiffener and snug them down with the T-55 bolt and 7/16” bolt that replaces the D-ring. Mark the three hole locations with a permanent marker or center punch, remove the stiffeners, then drill them out with a 3/8” bit. Make sure to paint those freshly drilled holes with some rust-preventing spray on both sides.


All that’s left to do in this installation is bolt down the ATH Bedside Stiffeners; install the T-55 and 7/16” bolts on the floor, leaving them loose as we snug down all six 3/8” bolts. Once they are secured, tighten the floor bolts, reinstall the taillights, and take a step back to admire your quick installation!







The ATF Bedside Reinforcements have a low-profile design that doesn’t interfere with mounted accessories in your Tacoma’s bed. I was able to keep my Dometic fridge slider in its original location even after bolting them in place.




The bed stiffener is a functional hunk of bent and welded metal that keeps the Toyota Tacoma’s bedsides true while off-roading. ATH Fabrication has taken the stiffener to the next level by incorporating a multitude of tie-down points, accessory mounts, and a bottle opener into the design. So secure that payload, head out on the trail, and enjoy a frosty beverage at the end of the day!


ATH Fabrication Bedside Reinforcements for 05 -17 Tacoma.

 

Thanks for the review!

 

Great job OP and ATH.

 

Hey nice trax mounts!

 

I’ve seen others stiffeners and like the looks of these. But are they a necessity with the shell on? Just trying to educate myself. TIA

 

Good question. My top is canvas, so there's literally zero structural support to the bed sides. A fiberglass top is probably better than nothing, but it's relatively thin fiberglass and probably wont prevent movement of the bed sides.

 

Like the looks of these.

 

Me too. Theres a lot of different versions to choose from; I popped a beer on them the other day and thought "I'm glad I went with ath!"