Bed Mounted Ski Rack and Tools

I wanted to post my new ski rack because I have never seen one done like this. I just installed it and wanted to share my design. I had an idea to do this a long time ago and even had a first generation of this but it was not as clean an install. This was the slimmest and cleanest design I could think of. I had a bracket made to span the bed bolts and hold a ski rack. The skis are locked in the rack and also held under the bed tool box. Here is a view with the new ski rack and also new tool mounts for my shovel and ax. The quick fists are also mounted a little different than I have seen but nothing too unique.



Here is a closer view of the rack and how it is attached.





Here is a better view of the shovel and ax mounted on the wheel wells. They are sturdy and both fit under the tool box without any rub.

 

Interesting, but am I correct in thinking you cut through the box to attach to the frame?

 

The ski rack bracket is attached to the bed bolts. I backed out the bed bolts a little ways and the bracket slides around the bolt then tightened back down. Nothing new into the frame. The quick fist mounts are set right through the bed. Those have very small holes and only attach to the plastic of the bed also no frame.

 

Ahh I see, to me it looked like you cut through the box at first but now I see you only cut through the mat.

Definitely a cool mount!!!

 

How'd you mount the ski rack onto that bar?

 

Not bad

 

Two questions:

Do you have to leave your tailgate open when skis are in there?

With only one mount, what keeps the skis from flopping around side to side????

 

x2

 

Thanks for the comments, i like having the input. I wanted to answer some questions so i took a few more pictures of the ski rack. Here is how the rack is attached to the bracket. I bought the ski rack before i had the bracket made so i just had them make it to be held my the existing mounts. It is just metal tubing across the bracket.





My skis do fit in the bed without needing to open the tailgate. I have 186cm skis right now, larger skis might have to be cornered. The skis sliding around doesn't seem to be a problem. I loaded them in and drove around for a day and they stayed put. The rack keeps the skis held down firmly on the bed mat and there isn't much play. Also the grooves on the bed wall sort of help trap the ski tail. This is definitely not the solution for everyone but works for my needs. This project all started from a desire to have the ability to lock my skis in the bed when i needed to. I started with a different design that was a little bulky, this is my second version. As with all truck ideas, it turned into a project.

 

What about when you get snow? Seems it might be a pain to try and clean out snow to be able to put your skis in...

 

Snow hasnt been a huge issue, blows out during drives. The bed mat might get slick with snow/ice so they might slide around a little. I would just not use the rack if it was really buried. My ultimate goal was being able to lock my skis in the bed when im away from my truck.