Low budget 2nd Gen Lockable Bed pocket cover

After trolling TW and picking up a bunch of great tricks I decided to give a little back. It's nothing new, a low budget lockable bed pocket covers. IMO the materials used are ideal for this application and really cheap.

I started out with some black 1/4" marine grade poly in a textured finish. Think cutting board but better, UV won't discolor it. $11 bucks and there's enough to do both covers on 2 trucks.

$24 Polymersan Marine Board HDPE (High Density Polyethylene) Plastic Sheet 1/4in x 12in x 24in Black Color Textured

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06X9GBXJS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

4 pack of black (keyed alike) cam locks.

4/Pk 7/8" Double Bitted Black Cam Lock Keyed Alike 2 Keys Each 1-1/4" Offset Cam

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07F942S3X/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The poly is perfect for these covers, lightweight, easy to work with, sturdy and the finished product looks better then the OE covers. 1/4" sits flush with the frame. I covered it in masking tape, marked up the cover size a used a jigsaw with a fine tooth metal blade. Cutting was easy and quick. You have to round the edges for a nice fit, finish up with a some sanding, the poly cuts nice and smooth even using a jig saw and is easy to finish off.






I had some 1" wide alum that I cut up and drilled holes in. Added $4 of stainless hardware from Ace.



An "S" bend offset is needed to line up with the existing slots. They actually hold the cover into it's recess snugly, tight to the sealing surface of the cubby.



I used a dremel to cut the lock slot. If you're careful and put a slight tightening angle on the slot it's going to fit and hold there securely.

I put a small dab of red grease on the lock arm, inserted the cover fully into it's recess and used the grease to transfer the arm location to a piece of masking tape in the cubby.

I cut the lock slot using a dremel giving it a slight angle so the cover snugs down right as the key is reaching the locked position.



This is what the finished product looks like, took a couple hours to make the first one, I could make the second in about 40 min now that it's figured out.



I plan on putting a layer of tape inside the box covering the unused OEM holes, then pouring a little epoxy into the hole's recess from the backside with the tape acting as one side of a mold, remove the tape after the epoxy hardens for better sealing of the cubby. I will also add a drop of epoxy to the allen head slots in the screws holding on the brackets rendering the allen slot useless. It could still be pried off if some lowlife really wanted in there but I doubt that'll be an issue. Total cost $32 bucks and there's enough parts to do both doors on 2 trucks.

 

very cool, thanks for sharing.

 

Very nice.

 

nice work! I may give this a go, small DIY projects can be a lot of fun

 

Nice and clean i like

 

Thanks guys. I think the marine poly is a great material for this. Aside from that, the mod is nothing new.

 

I just saw yesterday that someone put some led lights in those pockets also. If you did some low profile ones and leave slack for the wire it could be daul purpose