Flip or retract tonneau

[dav8or]

I have the utility track and want a tonneau cover for the bed. Security is a must so it has to lock. The other consideration is opening for tall loads. And finally price.

If you have a flip or retractable let's hear the good, bad and the ugly.

[Mr. B]

I have neither, but I do spend alot of time with my dad in his F150 that has a ReTrax roll-up....his last truck had a nice A.R.E. cover.....after spending plenty of time with both, I am of the opinon that the ReTrax is the cats' meow.....I'll never buy a hard cover....and as soon as I get off this "cheap skate" trip that I'm on right now, I'm gonna score me one of them ReTrax.

[TitanBlue]

I have the BakFlip and am very pleased with it overall. It does as expected. I'm improving it (other covers could use same improvement I don't doubt) by removing the clamps they give to hold its rails in place. I am replacing them (3 clamps per side) with 1/8" Stainless Steel Pop Rivets every foot. I can get the rails to hold tighter, seal better, especially the front section. I think this will be quite an improvement. Broke a couple bits so I still have to finish it in the front this weekend.

BakFlip fits inside the Bed, very low profile. I already had Nissan Bed Rails in place, no interference with BakFlip. Other major brand of Flip sectional cover fits on top. Won't fit. BakFlip unlatches from underneath, so it is effectively blocked when tailgate is up. Lock tailgate and you can't unlatch BakFlip. Simple. No extra keys.

My BakFlip was about $500 or 600 at autoanything.com, a site sponser. Very good company. Quick phone response on another item that I did not want to keep.

I don't have utilitrak (putting in bottom units though), I don't know if iot interferes with that top side and rail. "Search Utili Trak". Some flip the top rails over sometimes.

[John Harden]

I've never owned one of the flip type covers but I do have the Retrax on my Titan and really like it. There's another brand out there (sorry, can't remember the name) that is very similiar to the Retrax but is made of extruded aluminum. It is typically a lot more money, but lately I've heard of them going for about the same price as a Retrax. If they were both the same price, I'd recommend the aluminum one as it is a lot more sturdy.

Mine, though not 100% water tight, still keeps nearly all of the water and moisture out. I'd describe it as not being an environment where you'd lay a fine, oil painting down inside the bed, but we routinely put our baby stroller and other items back there. A tiny bit of moisture does creep in right at the end of the bed, but not even enough to pool. I keep tools and other things back there with no worries of rust or water damage.

Of course the big advantage of the Retrax or similiar, retractable unit is that you can transport large, bulky items with ease. Saw a guy at the lumber yard the other day removing his flip up tonneau cover so he could fit in long boards and other bulky items. Said he'd come back in about an hour to get it if no one stole it while it leaned up against the wall in the parking lot.

With Retrax or similiar, you don't ever have to worry about that. To me, this is very useful. Sure, you can remove your tonneau cover before leaving home if you know you're buying something bulky, but how often do you know when you'll need the bed space in advance? Even with that, it's a hassle to remove those heavy beasts that are prone to scratching. Ever see one get knocked over in the garage? My neighbors did the other day. Scratched the heck out of it.

Regards,

John

[TitanBlue]

Wow! I can't imagine having to remove my cover to carry something. It flips up and only covers about 4 or 6" at the front of the bed. Blocks rear window then, but that doesn't bother me for rare occaision. Retrax would not block window, but stick down into bed about 6 - 8" iinside its box, I think.

Retrax is certainly a very good choice. First cover that really impressed me.

IIRC, it was about 4 hundred more than BakFlip though; that put me to BakFlip, and I wasn't sure if water and ice would ever freeze the track in winter. Anybody have experience on that item?

[Hyperion]

I have a bakflip and I am really happy with it. Here are some things to consider:

Pics and review of Bakflip

Pics and review of Retrax

Price:
Bakflip between $500 and $600

Advance between $500 and $600

Retrax between $800 and $1000

Utilitrack -
Bakflip - requires flipping at least the forward section of side tracks. (flipping track will prevent using the sliding accessories on that section without some modification and can also be a pain in the @ss because the bolts holding utilitrack sections in place are covered in loctite)

Advance - uses utilitrack to mount. prevents moving sliding accessories from front to back without removing cover mounts so accessories are basically limited to a small section of track

Retrax - requires removal of front section, not sure how it effects use of the side tracks or sliding accessories (some have reported problems others say not an issue)

Access -
Bakflip - cover can be kept folded up against cab (blocks visibility), or 1, 2, or all 3 sections can be folded down. You must always access from the tailgate forward...there is no way to open the front section while the rear is closed. When folded up against the cab you might lose 4 in. of space at the top of the bed rails. Easily removes with 2 bolts. Must lower tailgate to open cover if fully closed, tailgate serves as the locking mechanism.

Advance - can open 2 rear sections or front section but cannot completely uncover bed without removal. Easy removal I believe similar to bakflip with only 2 bolts. You can access front of bed without uncovering rear. Has locks integrated into the cover which allows you to open it without opening the tailgate.

Retrax - Can lock at any position along its track but the canister takes up about a foot at the front of the bed. Removal is difficult (takes 2 people). I am pretty sure you can open it without opening the tailgate.

Appearance -
Bakflip/Advance - black plastic somewhat similar to bed rails
Retrax - shiny black lexan

Other -
Rollups can potentially freeze up in heavy snow/ice. I haven't heard any complaints about this with the retrax but my friends Pace Edwards does.

[John Harden]

Sorry for any confusion, but I want to clarify something. My recommendation against "flip top" covers was meant for the large, one piece fiberglass types that are typically painted to match the truck cover such as Snug-Top, etc.

I now realize that my language was a bit confusing and could lead one to believe I was discussing the soft type that actually folds up towards the cab. This was not what I was talking about as these are totally different.

I should have referred to them as tilting covers that hinge at up near the bed, but are one piece units.

Regards,

John