The tie downs as well as bed bolts have been been torx on the 150's for years... Only the bed bolts are torx on superduty and rangers, as the tie downs are 10mm bolts. I have no idea why Ford puts torx on the 150...

 

yeah, I had a cheapie set of L-shaped torx wrenches, but couldn't get enough leverage with them. bought a set of torx or "star" sockets. had plenty of leverage, but 1 screw on each cleat had rounded shoulders, the wrench just popped out. went back to Autozone & bought a set of tamper-resistant bits, & that got it done. (the truck is a leftover '05).

got to try out the dual-comp yesterday. the traction on the tail gate is better than on the drop-ins, & I like the rubber floor mat. my only complaint (so far) is that there are gaps where the truck's bed rail caps & the front & side pieces of the dual-comp are supposed to meet up. I also already scratched a piece of the tailgate which is not covered by the d-c. but as I said before, the fit is not hideous, it is ok, I was just hoping for better. I saw a couple of drop-ins in parking lots over the weekend, they were about the same as to fit 'n' finish. I also looked at a buddy's line-x; it was prettier, but not perfect either, & cost a good bit more.

 

As with any good company, we are constantly refining and improving our product - yesterday's perfect is never tomorrow's perfect.

Glad you are happy, I'll have to look at fine tuning those corners a little better. If you have a chance, drop me a couple pictures off-forum and I will send you a DualComp hat... or hopefully our flashlight/carabiners are in this week and I can send one of those.

 

Then it was never perfect to begin with.

 

It's all about continuous improvement. My Dad always said adequate is perfect... but then you want to take it to the next level.

I liken it to cars - the model T was the "perfect" car, but Ford doesn't sell them any more. Better things come along every day - be they machines or ideas. Never close your mind to better and you can always find improvements.

 

I agree! We keep improving things trying to reach perfection.

 

I'd call it part of the American dream!

 

The dual comp I previously ordered arrived last week. Ordered on Thurs the 5th, arrived on Wed the 11th. Prompt service and great customer relations when I called.

The kit for my SCab came in a single large box. The bedmat was rolled up, shrink wrapped, then nylon banded. The wall components were loose in the box. There was a single plastic bag with installation sheet, anti rust goop, and plastic anchors.

The front and sides fit in easily, but the sides were slightly warped near the top. Typical for large polyeth items, and since the top edge tucks in under the bed rail, behind the bed rail snap in anchors, it evens itself out once the tie down anchors are bolted back in. The holes for the front push in anchors took a little 'coercing', but that's to be expected with poly as I said. The sidewalls don't have the typical 'slots' that are molded into the wall to hold two-by lumber. I presume this is based on the idea that the bedmat prevents movement, so why need dividing barriers to prevent movement. This logic works fine, except I think many users would still like the option to put the dividers in place for loose cargo; often, I've had a face cord of firewood stacked in the front 3/4 of the bed, and the saws and gas cans behind the divider near the tailgate; without a divider, the loose wood could have crushed my beloved $tihl hardware...

The bedmat was not labeled as to which way was forward or up. With less logical common sense, it could be installed 'wrong' in a rush. Once you know how it is supposed to lay, you realize that it is rolled like a carpet; traffic surface to the outside. This is good because it puts the 'curl' of the mat so that it arches along the bed. If it was rolled the other way, the ends of the mat would curl up and lift off the floor. A minor point with the way it was rolled; the front edge of the mat is used to start the roll, imparting the tightest 'curl' to it. Since you must place the mat tightly against the front wall, (install sheet stresses this) it becomes a little harder to manhandle the tight memory curl of the mat to get it into place. If the tight arch curl was towards the back of the bed, it wouldn't matter as much. This is trivial, as once it's in place, it doesn't really matter, but a change in the way it's rolled would make installation easier. I examined the entire bedmat before installation, and overall molding quality was good. This mat is actually a dual layer mat; there is a slightly porous layer of rubber bonded to the denser, harder durometer working surface layer. I did see a couple of 1" diameter air bubbles embedded in the material near the middle of the mat, which upon poking, I wondered if a sharp edge from cargo could ever tear open; I will have to wait and see and hope that it holds up.

The tailgate sheet, like the other parts, had the slight warping in it. The problem is that since it has nothing to tuck under, and relies on the bolts near the top of the tailgate and user drilled holes with push anchors for the bottom to sit 'flush' on the sheetmetal, a warp can remain after installation IF the anchor points don't hold the tailgate sheet tightly against the sheet metal.

And this was precisely the only real complaint I had; the plastic anchors use the 'push' style barbed teeth to hold the anchor down once pushed through a hole. The problem was that the combined thickness of the sheet and sheetmetal below was still less than the distance to the 'last deepest barb'. This means that after pushing in the anchor, there was still a tiny bit of play before the last barb would back up against the inside of the sheet metal inside the tailgate. This play allows my slightly warped tailgate sheet to lift on one corner; over time, it may rattle, trap debris, allow excessive movement/abrasion, or catch on cargo during unloading. If I get industrious, I'll pull these out, find oversize sheet metal bolts, and forcibly thread them into the sheet metal to properly anchor the tailgate sheet against the sheetmetal.

Since it's snowy around me here in PA, I placed 18 full size cinder blocks tightly packed together in the lightly snow covered bed this weekend. I did not have my cargo straps, so they sat like that all weekend while I drove around. I'm not a crazy driver, but I did take some turns at a moderate speed; NONE of the blocks moved around or froze to the bedmat as the snow melted off. The traction properties of the mat definitely are there, as is the drainage. (I've since gotten home and ratchet strapped the whole block group together, just for piece of mind)

For about the same price, it definitely beats a factory drop in liner in many regards, provided you want a NO SLIDE bed; If you are the type to slide your cargo into the bed, this is NOT the liner for you. For die hard Ford fans, having the large pronounced Dual-Comp logo on the front bulkhead might be a visual detractor.

E.

 

Glad to hear you like it overall. If you could, send me a picture of those bubbles when time permits (after snow?). I've never heard about anything like that before, and if they look like a problem I can send a replacement mat. Same holds true for the tailgate piece.

About the push pins, they are meant to allow a slight movement. Polyethylene expands in the sun, more rapidly than steel - a little movement allows the poly to "breathe" without flexing too much.

I'll look at the mold for the 2X slots, I know they're there in the Screw, but never looked that close at the Scab... sounds like I need to make a product improvement.

About the logo... working on a program for the future that may solve that one. Will let everyone know when it gets close to happening.

 

The weather is supposed to clear tomorrow, so provided I have enough daylight after work, I will pull the blocks out, sweep the mat, and take some pictures of the bubbles and the lifted tailgate sheet.

If you do decide to retool and remold, is it possible for me to purchase just the sidewalls?

E.

 

I'll make an arrangement for you. As you've seen already, we take customer care VERY seriously! Will let you know what's happening, I'll be with manufacturing all day tomorrow.

 

I've got the BedRug....it's great

 

Elmosaurus, could you take some pictures of the sidewall of your Dual Comp liner? I was just about to order one when I read your comment about not being able to use the bed divider slots. I need to see what you are talking about. I was told that the side panels were molded just like the bed sides and that the divider slots were there. Thanks.

 

There are no divider slots; but, some of the online DualComp sellers are mistakenly saying that in their ads.
For example:
" Dualcomp's custom fit retains the use of factory tie downs and load dividers..."
truckaddons.com

 

As Walc said, there are no divider slots. I'm sorry I couldn't get to take pictures this weekend, the one day I had a chance to take pics, I was working on my house, and didn't have enough daylight to pull the blocks back out.

It's snowing like mad today, so until it clears up, I won't be able to. Hopefully later this week, as I don't want to delay getting the images to Bryndon.

E.