J-Brace Installation, Yikes

[Walker]

It may not be verticle loads. I think it's to prevent lateral movement. " Ford recommends the installation of a load box reinforcement bracket kit to improve the structural performance of the bed when used in extreme off-road conditions."

So those of us that will never have more than a tonneau cover should be fine without this I guess? I might go off road a little…

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[Mike9816]

So those of us that will never have more than a tonneau cover should be fine without this I guess? I might go off road a little…

You're probably right. Time for a consensus of the word "EXTREME". If graded dirt roads were a 1 and Rubican a 10. Maybe a 7 or 8 would be extreme?
I will have a FX4 real soon and ordered a Leer shell. I will get the brackets and don't plan on extreme conditions.

 

[ivotuk]

It's so ridiculous! They built the Raptor to Baja, they show it flying through the air, yet they say it's all good, unless you put a topper on it. Then it needs bracing?

 

[T-Rev]

https://www.ranger6g.com/forum/threads/bed-rattle-and-crack.8630/

 

[Moto26]

I find it insane that Ford seems to have forgotten what "trucks" are for. It would be 10 times easier to just install this brace on the production line than to have some dealership hack mechanic throw it on after the fact.

I've never heard of any pickup truck ever that you couldn't put an aftermarket bed cap/camper shell on it without going through the tedious process of adding a piece like this. What a pain in the ass.

Shame on Ford.

 

[pablo94sc]

It may not be verticle loads. I think it's to prevent lateral movement. " Ford recommends the installation of a load box reinforcement bracket kit to improve the structural performance of the bed when used in extreme off-road conditions."

I plan to drive it like it was advertised to do. That's why I ordered a Raptor instead of waiting for a Tremor or getting an XLT. So WTF is this nonsense of needing extra braces for things like a rack or shell, and again for off roading? It's a truck, FFS, not a sedan. What does Ford think people are going to be doing with it? This is truly some poor thinking on Ford's part. SMH

 

[pablo94sc]

I find it insane that Ford seems to have forgotten what "trucks" are for. It would be 10 times easier to just install this brace on the production line then to have some dealership hack mechanic throw it on after the fact.

I've never heard of any pickup truck ever that you couldn't put an aftermarket bed cap/camper shell on it without going through the tedious process of adding a piece like this. What a pain in the ass.

Shame on Ford.

Indeed!

 

[olefordguy]

So what would happen if there was too much weight on the bed side? Has this happened and are there failure pictures somewhere?

See post #19, it has picture of damage I assume is due to no j brace

 

[Rapture2423]

Got my braces with member points from buying truck. Just do that, get it done, and move on. Ford sucks for a lot of reasons but here we are.

 

[richman555]

Do other truck manufacturers have j-braces straight from the factory?

 

[jrRaptor]

Do other truck manufacturers have j-braces straight from the factory?

I'm guessing other manufacturers built their trucks with proper structural support so they were not needed.

 

[sikedsyko]

Ordered the braces from Ford today and got an email that they're on backorder with no eta. Greaaaaaaaaat.

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