That is the biggest problem out there. Noone does any research for themselves and actually looks at the products and what would work best for their use all they do is see who spends the most money advertising (spray-ins) to tell you there product is the best.
I call these the Harley owner's all they care about is saying "I spent the most and got me a Harley," same people buy Westin stepbars which are zero better than the cheaper brands such as Raptor, UWS, Trail FX, Back Country etc. especially in the stainless ones.

 

What a thread....two dealers going at it.

Just agree to disagree or better yet point out the benefits of each and appear to be magnanimous.

(Disclaimer: I have Line-x and love it, other than a stain I can't get out)

Spray-ins:

Look better
Seals the bed
good overall protection

Drop-ins:
less expensive
better dent protection
removable

 

It's just whatever makes you happy.. I have, IMO, a very nice Supercrew. It's not a farm or work truck, daily driver that occasionaly gets tools, lumber, furniture, what have you, loaded up.. after a year and a half of this I started not liking the scratched up paint in the bed.
I decided I wanted a bedliner, considered a drop-in because I know they're plenty tough enough for anything I'd do, plus the lower cost. The reasons I chose a spray-in were that I've never seen a drop-in that has aged well. They fade (like most spray-ins), they warp, plus I didn't want any chance of having the scratches I already had through the paint eventually rusting through.

Started looking into spray-ins and what I read about Line-X Xtra color match made me go that route. The Line-X dealer I went to assured me that they could match my color, which they did, lifetime warranty (I plan on keeping this truck for many, many years), and I could afford to pay for it. The Xtra color match IS expensive. But how many bedliners make everyone who sees it say "Wow!" ?..
So far it's held up to everything I've tossed in the bed with no scratches, peeling, etc.
We've got a Texas summer coming up so it's gonna get baked every day and I'm as interested as anyone to see how the color holds up. If it fades at all I'll be the first to post in here saying it doesn't hold up.

Bottom line, just get what you can afford, any bedliner is better than none..

 

Great explaination Texedition! That helps someone make an informed decision.

Sorry Vader, just trying to prompt people to give complete answers - as you know, the value is in knowing the why... what is easy, why makes sense out of it.

 

Xtra is a pretty neat product and I'm very fortunate to be able to offer it. Right now, it's the best on the market. Of course things can and do change......

Here's my opinion regarding looks only. I'm not asking anyone to agree or disagree with me. Again, it's just my opinion regarding looks only and thank you for allowing me to voice my opinion on this forum.

I don't like the look of a drop in liner. I think they look like cheap plastic, which in reality, they are. Athough some look a little better than others, I don't think any of them look very good.

I think faded spray-on bedliners look nasty. Those that have turned gray and have stains in them look pretty bad. There are products available to prevent that from happening though. So, if you get a spray-on bedliner, get whatever product is available to prevent fading AND loss of gloss. If you already have a faded bedliner, there are products available that can partially restore the color and there are other products that can be applied to restore the color and keep it from fading.

Related to the above paragraph: I think spray-on bedliners that use color injection systems look bad after they lose their gloss. They look like opaque rubber that just doesn't belong in the truck and if it's a color match, they rarely actually match the truck's paint.

I think spray-ons that use urethane based paint as topcoats look very good. Typically, the metallics are present in the bedliner, colors don't fade, and they retain their gloss. If it's a color match, they usually do match pretty darn good. However, durability of the topcoat may not be good enough for a truck bed.

I think high pressure spray-ons look much better than low pressure spray-ons. The high pressure products dry faster and thus conform to the bed's contours and the final texture looks more finished. Low pressure products sink a bit before they dry and the texture typically looks gouped on.

I think rubber bed mats make the truck look junky, meaning the opposite of classy. They are not necessary nice to look at and certainly do not complement the truck's look.

EDIT: Forgot one...Bedrug. They look OK in some trucks, I think it depends on the color of the truck. Bedrug only comes in gray and gray just doesn't work with all colors. To me, Bedrug does take away from a truck's macho appeal.

 

My Line-X was $375 in Columbus, OH. Been on 2 years and looks and functions great!

 

I've done some research on this too, line-x seems to be the top stuff around here. It's also just under $600......
I've never seen a plastic bedliner rust a bed though, so....cheap is cheap.

 

What do you guys think of this situation.


I have a 07 FX2 Sport and the only thing I will be putting in the bed of my truck is my sportbike or ATV every once in a blue moon. I need a liner. So far im not a fan of the sprays if my bed paint has to be touched. I was looking at the dual liner and I like what I see so far. For my situation does this sound good? My only problem with the dual liner (hopefully the can help me with this) is the fact that it does come pre-cut for my bed extender. If you have this item can you please comment on it or post up some really close pics of it. 1 other question. Does the Dual Liner come pre-cut for the tie-down hooks?

 

The Dual Liner retains the tie-down hooks.

It does not come pre-cut for the bed extender, but it does have locating marks (dimples) on the back side to show you where to drill holes to accomodate the bed extender. The dimple for the center hole where the extender pivots was dead on, but the dimples for the upper & lower locking holes on my Dual Liner were off . I had to hog out my perfectly round holes with a dremel tool and now they're oval instead of round.

If you need a bed liner that provides great dent protection with a non-skid mat, then this is a product to consider. It's nice to put things on the mat and not worry about them skidding around. It also works nicely with the Undercover Tonneau cover.


Edit: If anyone is looking to buy a Bed Rug in very good shape for a 97 - 03 supercab, my wife just pulled it out from one of our other trucks and will be selling it. There are no rips, tears, or stains in the bed portion. The only issue from what I recall is on the tailgate piece where the plastic binding on the outer edge has come apart in a couple places. We already sold our other bed rugs from other trucks which were heavily used for work, but this one was used rarely and *very* lightly (a pleasure truck). In fact, we kept a Komfort Kit in this truck on the bed rug. The Komfort kit is a modular truck bed interior consisting of a sofa bed and seperate arm rests with built drink holders. It's also in excellent shape and for sale too, but only for local pickup (North O/C SoCal). Send me a PM if interested.

 

Drop me a line off forum and we can discuss your needs on the bed extender. I'm the friendly neighborhood DualLiner man and will see what we can do to help you out.

Bryndon

 

In the last 15 years I have had 3 spray in liners and then went with the drop in liner on my current F150. If you use your truck I would get the drop in liner. I use my truck for hauling fire wood, weekend projects, hauling lawn equipement to my parents and in-laws. I don't have to baby the the stuff into the truck in fear of denting my truck bed. It is easier to slid things into the truck. I use the cargo restraining system (slots provided for a 2X6 to wedge in between the wheels to stop stuff from sliding). My buddy had a spray in liner and the truck was wrecked on the passenger side of the truck. The liner had to be re-sprayed on the side the the panel was replaced (it looked terrible).

 

Silverfish, I agree that spray ins don't do much for protect against hard use (I'll put my flame suit on, someone always argues). The DualLiner takes protection one step further. Hard sidewalls with a rubber floor - the rubber not only absorbs impacts, but keeps your stuff where you put it. New product making big in-roads.

The drop in market has been softening for about 10 years now (depending who you believe, it is 10 to 20% of what it was 10 years ago), people don't like the way they rub the paint and how slippery they are. I know several people who would never do anything but a drop in, but they like things to slide.

 

I got more information out of this post than the entire rest of the thread combined.

 

pmason-

I didn't like the thought of my bed being scuffed up to do the Line-X either, but once it's in there I knew it didn't hurt anything and it looked awesome!

It would be a lot more painful to slide something in your bed and watch it scratch your perfect paintjob.

It will look good and you won't have to worry about putting scratches in your new bed. You won't regret it after it's all said and done.

Good luck with your decision

 

http://www.bedlinerfacts.com/home.html

It's interesting what you find on the internet... I stumbled across this. Obviously it's for a drop in liner company, but it is always interesting to see another point of view.