Diamondback owners SE or HD, and why?

I have hauled sheets of plywood with the tailgate down and strapped ; kept the cover on. Don’t see why you can’t just raise the panel and have them rest on the tailgate. Should fit fine

 

Thanks, I typically cary with the tailgate up, but suppose it would be fine down. Still love your choice?

 

DB has some cossbars that would allow you to carry longer lengths of materials, I carried some 20' long aluminum sections. I would steer clear of resting my load of materials on the closed tailgate. There are some paint wear issues with the upper spoiler that could be accelerated.

I also attached some Thule Tracrac to my cover so I could carry all sorts of things.

When I carried sheets of plywood in my 5' Ridgeline, I just left the tailgate open but I put some dunnage at the end of the bed and then loaded the plywood and strapped it. I used my racks on the HD cover for the lumber so it was well loaded.

 

HD for me. I decided it was worth the extra for security and the margin of error. I’ve never put 1600 pounds on it. But I’ve gotten close or over the 400. One additional note. I bought mine for my 2016 Tundra and now running it on my 2019. In 7 years, the only maintenance I’ve done is to change the weather trim…. Once. It’s as good today as the day I bought it. That extra $400 investment 7 years later feels like a good one.

 

Thanks for the input, I was unaware of paint wear issues: ouch

 

I bought everything used. Drove 2 hours to pick up the hd cover after letting one slip away that was VERY local to me. Waited another 3 months for one to pop up semi-local. Got the cross bin 13 used locally - waited 6 months for that. Added the Yakima base track and an overhaul hd clone rack for kayak hauling and camping in the spring summer and fall.

I really like the setup especially if we get the mountain property we are hoping for. I could haul a quad on top.

All that said, I wouldn’t pay full price for one. My used one came with a cut in the weatherstrip / gasket that I sealed with roofing caulk and wax paper (hack that I learned from YouTube). It leaks a bit in the corners. But I prefer it over the trifolds I have had

 

I had the SE for 2 years on a Ram. Never even came close to needing the HD. No one really does unless you put a quad on top which is kind of ridiculous IMHO..

 

SE , I normally don't carry/haul stuff on top, especially heavy stuff. Just couldn't justify the extra money for it. The heaviest load I did was putting my tires on top to transport for my lift install. I like the security diamondback provides when I transport my scuba gear or guns. But who knows what the future will hold. I have a lot of outdoor activities. Time will tell if I'm gonna use it to it's full load rating.

 

I had my HD installed on Monday at the their shop and took a tour while I was there. I was very impressed with the entire operation from start to finish.

 

Got my HD smooth because it was available at the outlet store.

Don’t have 1600lbs of crap I would want to load up but I’ve probably exceeded the 400lbs a couple of times.

If I was working more on the road I think this is the one I would get.

 

One reason I bought the HD was because of the show special that they were offering that saved over $400 off the HD.
The SE would have been over $400 off to, but I thought the HD would be better in the long run,

 

I went with the SE due to lower price and the fact that I didn't foresee having a need to carry more than 400 pounds on it. Normally I am a 'better to have it and not need it' type but the SE is solid and and less $.

 

I have zero regrets buying the HD. We recently moved a powered love seat just over 300 lbs. I weigh 270 and I was on the cover unloading the furniture so while it’s likely the 400lb SE has a built in safety factor, I’m glad I went HD. Totally happy with this cover.

 

Not an owner yet, but I just ordered the HD smooth with loose cleats for a 6.5 3rd gen. Also ordered the 8" cross bin. (Wanted the cleats loose because someone said one of theirs arrived crooked and that's the sort of thing for which I'd want to have only myself to blame when I couldn't stop seeing it. Probably just leave them off until I miss them.) I'm analytical to a fault and looked as hard and as closely as I could at the differences. Based on the full list price,* for $400 (21%) more you get 25% thicker sheet metal (0.10 vs 0.08) and 2 or 3 times as many "structural studs" 7 vs 2-3 (not sure why the ambiguity on the SE) yielding 400% increase in load rating (1600vs400), and 3 times as many cleats (12 vs 4). I judge that a fair value. If I never use the cleats a little less so, but if I do I think having lots of them vs just 4 is a plus. Also, the top is too high for me to ever want to put anything really heavy up there, I'd be afraid of rolling the truck if nothing else, but I do want to be able to stomp around up there with total confidence. I felt like the SE was probably strong enough for what I would ever need, but for 20% more I get one that's absolute overkill. The down side is the extra 35 lbs in dead weight I'll being hauling for a few hundred thousand miles with any luck, and I gave that serious consideration. But in the end testosterone ruled the day. More is more

That said I don't think anyone should feel like they compromised buying the SE: same design; same quality; plenty strong enough by all accounts; panels are lighter and easier to take on and off; saves money up front and in gas.

*which is what I paid. Could have gotten 10% off in the outlet store for a rough (diamond plate style; not smooth) blem with the cleats attached. They had three of them. Had some blem SEs too.

 

I saw that review about the cleats being crooked too and it had me concerned (I’m very OCD about that stuff) but I had mine installed by them and glad I did. They use a laser to cut everything out so maybe the one that was crooked was older and not cut with a laser.

 

I have a crossbin 13 that I am selling if anyone is interested; dc/md/ca area. I can help with delivery.

 

Does anyone know if Toyota has a weight rating for their bed rails? I haven't been able to find any. Just for curiosity, I checked Ford and found nothing, checked GM and found a rating of 1,000 lbs for the 3500 (1 ton)
This is for a 2024 Chev Silverado 3500: