rfeiller

i am in the process of designing the bed for my 5500. need to know how and where to attach body to frame.
need a lot of help

rfeiller

i failed to mention that i have downloaded and printed out the entire dodge bodybuilders manual.

rfeiller

been in hopes that someone out there has made their own truck body and can offer some info on types and frequency of connections from flat bed to frame. i have looked at looked at several 4500 and 5500 upfits and i do not see consistencies.
i see frame, wood or composit spacer, metal frame. some are clipped to frame some are clipped and welded to frame, some seem to rely on u-bolts plus a couple of what i would deem bolted shear bolts. most have 8-12 of built up materials before top of bed. i want bed to sit as close to frame as possible.

any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

C Pierce

Just my .02 but I would probably get some composite or thick rubber like 3/8 to place between the frame and bed and use U bolts you can usually have U bolts made custom to your application at any spring shop and the rubber should stop any metal to metal problems that could occur.

kpeterson

Hey i just finished a custom service bed for a 4500. I have access to the truck and can post some pics of the bed and how i attached the bed to the frame if you'd like. Give me a shout if it might be useful for you.

rfeiller

i would greatly appreciate it

thanks
rich

rfeiller

C.Pierce, i just realized my response to your post did not get posted, not sure where i sent it or it just dropped. Anyway i appreciate your response, i will probably use some type of weather proof composite.

i don't know how to calculate the frequency or size of the U-bolts. I believe the bodybuilders manual shows two shear bracket attachment locations on each side, also the frame has to be able to flex so not sure of the location and frequency of u-bolts.
thanks for your help

kpeterson

I'll post some pictures, but personally i would stay away from u-bolts as they tend to stretch, move and loosen up over time. All the beds i have made and mounted are directly bolted to the frame. I usually make and weld clips to the frame rails in the flatbed and drill holes. I have yet to have a bed crack or break due to the flexing in the frame.

dodgeguy71

On my flatbed it has 4" channel as runners that sit directly on the frame. All the guys I know around the house are pretty much the same way. Although my truck is not a 4500 so don't know how the frame is on that one. Mine sits even with the lines of the truck. For the crossmembers I think mine are either 3" or 4" channel, but thinking it's the 3". The more crossmembers the less the chances of your bed, after time, getting those droopy pockets from dropping stuff in them where the metal deforms.

As far as attaching the bed to the frame......welding on the frame....I thought about it and talked to several people, I'm not going for that, drill it sure. What I did was take some angle iron, cut out 8 pieces about 3" long. Use a 2-2.5" angle, about 1/4" is heavy but I think I have used 3/16", actually may be what's on my truck. The angle that will be mounted to the frame I drilled both sides at the approximate center and you find a open already drilled hole towards the front of the frame and towards the rear on either side. I used 1/2" bolts lock washers and nuts, better to use lock nuts or locktite. I bolted the double drilled pieces to the frame on all for corners. Then I took the other pieces, lined them up and dropped the bolt through and just ran the nut on to hold in place. Get it lined up on your channel iron and weld it to it. Leave about a 1 1/2" gap between your two pieces of angle. Then you can pull them down real tight and sinch them together. Have had two trucks like this with no problems and know many friends that have them the same way.

Good luck with it and think it out real well how you want it so you won't have to go back and think, "darn, I wish I did this".

rfeiller

thankyou dodgeguy71, for the info also looked at your photos, that '91 is a great looking truck. when it comes down to it i prefer that body stile that dodge hung onto for so long over todays. it was such a clean strong looking truck even with the badges and especially the ram ornament.

i have spent hours and hours going around on configurations trying to avoid the wish i woulda or shoulda. i want the bed to be low as possible, yet of course safe. i have to carry a 4 in1 bucket (950lbs) and dirt bucket (550lbs) for my trailored track loader.
thanks for your help.
rich

Colo_River_Ram

Are you going too put a winch and poles on this truck? or just a flat deck only?

rfeiller

being a general contractor, i get pulled in several different directions.
1.i need a heavy lumber rack, but don't want to have one standing in the air unless needed. however, we are working on a retractable lumber rack. my brother does CNC machine programing and 3d modeling so has an animated drawing of our design. The rack will recess into the bed.
2.won't have rails around perimeter, but low side panels
3.deck will be cut around SS fenders to maintain a low profile.
4.at this time i can't see the need for a winch.
5. one of the big challenges is where to put the spare.

for all purposes the concept is a flat bed

safety is a huge deal with buidling construction and i don't want my flatbed to be the cause of an injury statistic due to a faulty design. the truck can carry 10k on it's back, i want to be certain that it will stay there.

colo river ram, you certainly did a beautiful job on yours

dodgeguy71

you want low profile bed ideas you should look at some welding rig beds. I don't have any pics but just search welding beds and some should pop up.

Colo_River_Ram

Thanks Rich,

I can appreciate what your trying to design as versatility adds to the bottom line, That is why I used 2 1/2" receiver tubing for the stake pockets. This will allow me the option to build side boards, metal racks or portable scaffolding as needed . (The bed design was copied from both of the GN Trailers that I built anything that I build for them will fit the truck) I have enough pockets on the rear bumper to mount the pipe/regular vises and what ever else I need.. I used 6" channel for the main rail and 2x3x1/4 offset angle for the cross members.. Then I used some more 6" for the sides . so far I have seen about 8000 lbs on the back..I was into the factory overload springs about 1" and there was still ample room for tire clearance...

rfeiller

Colo River Ram
if you can...do you know what grade of steel you use? 33k 50k?
i got to keep the weight down because i tow my track loader, and carry buckets, tools etc you know how it goes. my ram5500 is 18750, not 19500, 26k as you know total. so what goes in the bed comes out of net weight i can
haul. sorry for all the questions.
but, like Dodgeguy71 warned i don't want to have to many of those "oh, cruds or ooopes."
appreciate it
rich