The truck's tailgate was taken...
The truck's tailgate was taken off and sprayed separately from the bed. All screws and hooks were removed, and cables and latch openings were all taped off to prevent any overspray. The tailgate was then lightly sanded so the Line-X compound would have a better surface to bond to.
No matter how pampered a life your truck leads, eventually you're going to throw something in the back. Our '08 Super Duty looked pretty cool with a newly installed lift kit and tires, but even just a few months of using it like a truck had left the bed all scratched up. For better protection and looks, we opted for a spray-on bedliner from Line-X. The bedliner actually bonds to the metal surface like paint, so there's no chance for rust to develop, it fits every mold and contour of the bed perfectly, and it's tough enough that it's considered a permanent modification to your truck. It's also safer because there's no chance it can fly out (we've actually seen this happen) like a drop-in bedliner can.
The Line-X spray-on bedliner still allows all the factory trim and moldings to remain intact (in case a top or camper shell is installed later), so everything must be taped off very carefully to ensure there is no overspray. A few hours after we dropped the truck off, we were ready to hit the road again, only now we didn't have to worry about jacks, tools, or spare parts for our other project vehicles rolling around and gouging our bed. Follow along and we'll show you how Line-X of Huntington Beach, California, restored our bed from scraped and scratched to posh and protected.
 Careful taping resulted in...  Careful taping resulted in a neat transition from Line-X to paint that followed the truck's original body lines. |  All the bolts and hooks were...  All the bolts and hooks were removed, and the bed was sanded before any other prep began. |  Guess what? More careful taping....  Guess what? More careful taping. A lot more. We'll spare you the other 20 photos we have of taping the sides, back, and tailgate area, and just say it was a lot of work. |