How do you transport sheet goods?

[Eric DeSilva]

Looking for ideas... a better way of transporting sheet goods. I've got a full size truck (RAM 2500), but it is only a 6' long bed, and the wheel wells interfere with the "floorspace." To date, I've been throwing some long 2x4s in the back and stacking sheet goods on them--one end of the 2x4 at the front end of the bed, other side resting on top of the tail gate, maybe 3 to 4 across. That has the benefit of being easy, but wondering if there is perhaps a more elegant solution someone's pioneered. I'm also about to transport some 4x10 sheets of drywall, and kind of wonder about the strength of my solution.

Anyone built a better rig? I was sort of thinking along the lines of a tilted over "L" where the edges would rest along the short leg and the flat sides on the long leg... Maybe 3 or four structures like that, all carriage bolted to 4x4s that ran the length of the bed and cantilevered out the back end of the truck? (So, if you were looking at the back of the truck, the short sides of the sheets would diagonal going from high to low left to right (or right to left).

Alternatively, maybe I should build something like what I've got, only flatter and designed to just clear the wheel wells. (So, if you were looking at the side of the truck, the long side of the sheets would diagonal high to low from the back of the bed to the front).

Ideas? Suggestions?

[Jeff Duncan]

I'm confused by your post, you say you have a full size truck but can't fit a 4 x 8 sheet in the bed? Something seems wrong there, I've driven mostly Ford and GMC trucks and the bed, even with a liner, always fits 50" between the wheelwells. Is there something else going on with your bed that won't allow you to fit them?
JeffD

[Jim Becker]

To use the truck bed with longer materials, a receiver hitch "extender" can be helpful. And if you indeed cannot fit between the wheel wells (unusual for a full sized truck even on a short bed), there are usually slots on the side that you can insert some 2x material to "raise the bed up above the wells for carrying materials. I had the receiver hitch extender (one from HFT, actually) when I had my Tundra. Now that I drive a Highlander Hybrid, I have a utility trailer that I use for carrying sheet goods and other oversize materials that cannot be safely carried inside the vehicle.

[Matt Meiser]

My Colorado has a nifty feature to hold the sheets level by moving the tailgate cables and a couple 2x4's between the bed sides as Jim describes. But if I have a lot to carry, I use my trailer.

[Doug Jones from Oregon]

40' curtain van. Makes unloading with the forklift from the side a breeze!

Doug

[Ben Cadotte]

I have a 1500 quad cab short bed, and do the same thing you do. For me it works just fine. Less chance of the sheets sliding out. When I worked at the lumber yard in college. I can't tell you how many people that loaded stuff in the back with the gate down. And then later hear they lost a couple sheets when it slide out. Especially OSB. That stuff is slicker than you know what. Had one guy with a duraliner in his truck, loaded a bunch of boards and sheet goods. He didn't even make it out of our parking lot before he lost it all. He even tied the stuff down.

[sullivan mcgriff]

doesn't the Dodge have pockets in the side of the bed that takes 2x4 or 2x6's to form a shelf so you can carry sheet goods and still have room below for other bits ?

[Dave Falkenstein]

I have a Chevvy Silverado with a short bed. If I have just a few sheets to carry, I do it the way you described. If I have a bigger load, I stack them on the floor of the bed with the tailgate left open. I run two pieces of rope across the ends of the material to keep it from sliding.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

1990 Toyota Pick 'em-up. It's the best wheelbarrow I ever had.
I stack sheet goods so they over lap the tail gate.

Every year I tell myself that I'm going to get me an F250 diesel 4wd put a locker in the rear, chip it, inject it with propane and nitrous and run a 6" SST exhaust.
(Woo Hoo)

And every damn year that Toyota refuses to break. It's been about 130-Thousand miles since it was new. It's had only one tune up, one set of new ball joints, one used rear end from the salvage yard (I smacked it in the ice) and maybe three oil changes.

Some day it has to break. Till then I stack the sheet stock so it over hangs the tailgate.

[Norman Pyles]

Eric, it sounds like you already have it figgered out. To me, simple is better.

[Eric DeSilva]

Dang... Jeff D. may have it right. I've always assumed a 4' wide sheet wouldn't fit in the back, but maybe I have bad parallax vision or something... Just googled specs on the truck and they say 51" wheel to wheel... If that is the case, it makes it kind of a no-brainer. Guess I can lay some 2x6s down to support the overhanging 4' of sheetrock and just make sure I run cam-locked webbing tie downs to keep it from sliding out the back.

No wonder my joints don't match up cleanly... I apparently can't eyeball anything worth a damn.

[Lance Norris]

doesn't the Dodge have pockets in the side of the bed that takes 2x4 or 2x6's to form a shelf so you can carry sheet goods and still have room below for other bits ?

I have a first year Dakota(1987) and it has pockets built into the sides of the bed just as described. Its made for 2x6s and then sheets of plywood lay above the wheelwells. Ive done this many times and it works great. I have a 6-1/2' bed and with the tailgate down, the total length is 8'. I just tie a rope to the front corner inside the bed and out over the end of the sheets and back to the other front corner, and then you can go 100 mph and nothing will fall out. I wish my bed was 8', then I could close the gate, but this works great. I always shake my head when I see an S-10 or Ranger, because I wonder if you can haul sheet goods like that with one of those trucks...?

[Bob Knodel]

I have a 1500 Chevy Silverado and I use a hitch extender for the longer stuff. You can pick one up at Harbor Freight for way less than you could make one for. Basically it inserts like a hitch stinger into your receiver and is the shape of an "L". The long end goes into the receiver and the short end goes up. There is another horizontol piece that slides over the short piece and is adjustible up and down and is what your stock lies on. I have used it maybe a hundred times and everybody asks me where I got it when I start to load up at Lowes. One thing to consider is that it makes it very easy to overload your truck and give it that "I'm competing in a tractor pull" look. I have also installed rear air bags in the truck so this has allevieated that for the most part. I'm at work so I dont have it with me but I will take photos when I get home.

Bob

[Mike Heidrick]

2006 Nissan Titan

Has enough space between the wheel wells for plywood sheet and I also have the sliding tailgate extender.

[Greg Hines, MD]

I drive an Avalanche. It holds a full sheet of plywood in the bed, when you drop the midgate, so that it is enclosed by the tailgate.

Doc