Truck bed & slide in question?

[70GTO]

I recently purchases a 2013 Chevy dually pickup & it came with a 5th wheel hitch installed. I pulled all of the pins & removed the upper portion of the hitch & now the only remaining part in the truck bed are the 2 rails that are bolted thru the bed into the frame. I can now haul full sheets of plywood. My question is; do I need to remove the rest of the assembly, before I can put a slide in camper in it? I can put several 2x4's width ways & they will sit just a bit higher than the hitch rails and this will make an even surface for the TC to rest on. If anyone has any experience with a set-up like this, please share your knowledge with me.

Thank You, Bruce

[Reddog1]

I left the rails, and with the TC loaded, no one knows. As you posted, I used 2x4, side to side. I have used foam, made a wood frame with plywood on top, and back to the K.I.S.S. method, simply using 2x4s or 2x6s side to side. It has worked for me since 2004 and over 100,000 miles.

I find the extra height allows more use of the truck bed from the sides, and makes it easier to wash the top of the truck cab.

I have used the rubber horse mats, but they are only about 3/4" thick, which is not enough. I will also say they are pretty heavy, and more difficult to store when not in use.

Wayne

[70GTO]

Grit dog wrote:
Do you have a 5ver?
If not, remove the rails......
Seems simpler than cobbling up stuff to put the camper on.

That is the plan for down the road, but I was mainly wondering if it was alright to do just incase I would happen to buy a TC & need to take possession of it before I could get the rails out "We are going to look at a couple of used units this weekend".


Thanks for the advice, Bruce

[Grit_dog]

Do you have a 5ver?
If not, remove the rails......
Seems simpler than cobbling up stuff to put the camper on.

[deltabravo]

Thick horse stall mats might also fill the gap well.

[pcoplin]

I did that same thing. Ran 2x4 slats with a 4x8 sheet of plywood on top of it. Although my bed was well used before I did this, I think it deformed the ribbing somewhat, and the camper slid around on the plywood. I pulled the brackets and install a rubber mat, no more movement.

[deltabravo]

Fill the space with plywood or foam board insulation. THis will fully support the bottom of the camper.

Using 2x lumber works, but campers are best supported across the entire floor. Why? Because it's anyone's guess where the frame work is in the belly of the camper. Trying to figure that out, and then line up the 2x lumber so it contacts the framing of the camper will be difficult.

[zb39]

You can sit the camper a little higher. Or pull the rails, unless you need them.