hitch questions (update)

Durb wrote:
Here is a possible low cost solution. Install rails and use your Patriot hitch. Buy a BedRug bed mat for around $200 and cut out openings for the rails. The mat is thick and will raise your bed to about the top of the rails. Things like lumber and large items slide right over the rails when pushed in. You get the added advantage of having a soft floor to crawl around on. I would also get the additional tailgate mat; a soft seat when you need one.

This is not a good solution if you want a clean bed to haul gravel, bark, or other loose items that need to be shoveled out. I have rails and a BedRug in my truck and I love it. It is 18 years old and still looks great, however I run a tonneau cover and my truck is pretty much a dedicated tow rig. When I need gravel, I have it delivered..

Thats a nice solution ,never been a fan of using the bed for hauling things like gravel ,sand etc . I don't believe I have ever used the bed for such a purpose . I have always had a utility trailer or access to one .

I have the adapter that fits the puck system , and either a conventional hitch ,and now the steel Andersen which fit the standard bed rail system or the adapter . At the time 2014 there were no hitches that fit the puck system directly , so like the OP wanting to use my existing hitch the adapter was actually the only choice , or bedrails which wouldn't have made sense having the puck system .

Having had standard bed rails , or the adapter in the bed of my truck I have no problem with either . If I was wanting to use the hitch the OP has I'd go bedrails . In all the years I have had either the adapter or bedrails they have never been an issue . .