feedback on flatbed design

Hi all, I am currently designing and planning on putting a welded steel flatbed on my gen2 (2007) dual cab Tacoma, and would love to hear your thoughts, feedback, ideas, and improvements. these pictures are my current rough draft of my design. the wheel position was guessed/assumed so that will change, and the supports that will connect with the chassis where also kind of guessed. I plan on looking into the exact locations more on later design drafts, and when I actually build it. the bumper will be lowered so that the hitch is at an appropriate height, and I plan on putting some sheet on top of the flatbed, if you have suggestions let me know. I tried to extend the bed by about a foot, to 85.5 inches, and it is raised by about 10 inches from chassis. Anyway, this is my current design, let me know if you have questions, and I would love some feedback or "I would"'s. I am also concerned about it being structurally sound/safe, specifically in the bumper, Thanks.

(feel free to recommend any features, or against any features. I am interested in also doing removable siding, but that is still just a thought.)


the small vertical 3x3's connect to the chassis

bumper closeup. I plan on lowering it more so that the hitch is about 16-17inches above the ground.

 

Small details but they matter, if you've given them some thought:

Where's the fuel filler neck going to go? This seems to be one that gets overlooked easily.
Anchor points for tie-downs?
maybe add some shackle points on the hitch bar uprights

That said, the design looks intriguing, and I look forward to seeing the progress.

 

How much will this weigh, and how much payload will be left for hauling? The slide out drawers may not be functional enough for the extra weight. Considering that we have a composite bed, and still a pretty light payload, and you are adding welded steel. Are there plans for rear suspension upgrades?

 

This is true. I knew about it but haven't put any research into it yet, but I definitely will. I have the bars on the side with 2x1 standoffs for some tie-down points, but I might also add some D-clips in the corners of the bed.

and not sure if this is what you mean, but I might add some shackle points that double as supports for the hitch and bumper.

and thanks for the input!

 

True. I did some loose research and a welded steel bed can weight about 600-700 pounds, and a gen2 carrying capacity is around 1400-1700 pounds. don't quote me on that. so id be left with around 700-1000 pounds of carry capacity, which is fine for the time being.

True again. I might try reducing the size and potentially making it out of wood, or thing gauge steel. It wouldn't carry anything crazy, just maybe tools n' such. And maybe I remove the drawer and just have a blank space under the bed for stuff.

There weren't, but there may be now .

Thanks for the input!

 

I am in the process of designing one too and that is going to be real heavy. I actually decided to go with c channel for a few reasons.

• For the comparable strength c channel can be slightly lighter with a thicker wall thickness(making welding easier)
• You can coat 100% of c channel easily for corrosion issues
• Its typically the way steel flatbeds/trailers are made in industry

24 FT of 3x3x11 ga is 114 lbs alone

 

If your bed is going to weigh close to 700 lbs you will be very close if not over your weight rating. If you want to be certain as to what you can load then go weigh your truck with a full tank of fuel,then look at your door jam for your weight rating. You have a bit of leeway because you’ll be swapping out your bed. Have you thought about making your deck out of aluminum?

 

According to the google 07 DCLB has a payload of 1350, but check your door sticker. My cut up short bed weighed 288 with my typical bed junk, taillights, and tailgate. You will also be taking off the stockbumper (33 lbs) and hitch (50 lbs).

You have lets say 380 lbs to spend before you start eating into your OEM payload.

 

@AllTacosFloat

 

Having a double cab will put you on the lower end. And I am finding 1100-1600 pounds. Should say on your door and in the owners manual. Then there should be a little yellow sticker on the door for any deductions from factory installed options, like skid plates or running boards, etc for the different trims. I think my yellow sticker is around 100lbs, as the TRD sport came with factory installed running boards. Don't forget the weight of any extras you have added.

 

that's fair. Ill probably put that into my next design draft.

 

I'm gonna be honest, I mainly want to use steel because it is easier to weld, and I don't currently want to put in the time to learn aluminum, so i'm really just lazy.

I could also make the argument that using steel would be easier to attach to the chassis, and it would be stronger.

But i defiantly need to put good consideration into the weight. like TacoTuesday603 said, I might use C channel.

 

My design is sitting at 300 lbs according to cad but that doenst include any boxes or anything. It does include the hitch and aluminum for the flatbed deck.

I would not build the hitch into the flatbed. Use the stock frame mounting points for a more direct load path.

 

do you mean connect the bumper directly as well, or have the hitch completely separate and connected across the chassis frame directly?

 

I dont have that quite planned yet but I am planning for my hitch and bumper to basically be the same thing. My flatbed will be much more rockcrawling focused though.

I just mean that your hitch shouldnt be hung from the flatbed, it makes alot more sense just to do it off the frame

 

okay yeah that makes sense. I was unsure of how to do the bumper/hitch, but this makes more sense, especially if I'm raising the height of the bed and want a traditional hitch height.

 

You might want to spend some time reading through this thread too, and seeing what else is on the market.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/flatbed-information-thread.558179/

 

Id take a look at your local regulation. Like NH has a max bumper height. Im basically planning no rear bumper.

 

Instead of no bumper, you could do something simple that's basically just a tow hitch/ties together the frame rails, similar to Nathan's build: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/2011-flatbed-build.342771/page-5

 

As payload comes up a lot in the Scout group on FB, there are DC taco's with payload below 1000 pounds. I wanna say around 965, and that was the sticker in the door jamb. @Berxtonfif you should take a look at that door sticker for max cargo capacity/payload. It's the only way to know what YOUR truck is rated for.

I obviously ignore that number, but it's still good to know what it says, lol.