extended tie downs

[Fawnbuster]

So in my F150 and Ranger I had used some paracord or leftover web strapping to make loops for our tie downs. Worked good just too short and I'm tired of climbing in and fishing them out. So I ordered some heavy duty but cheap 18 Inch and 24 inch sewn loops and some clips and screw together cable key chains. All on Amazon.

The orange 18 inch ones are looped thru the tailgate and middle tie downs and the black 24 inch ones are up under my bed cover box so I could reach them. I ran a zip tie thru the bed cover clamp and the plastic clip that holds the bed rail caps in place. They will be fine because they don't bear any weight they merely keep the straps up near the bed top so I can reach over and unclip them and attach a synch or ratchet strap to hold cargo. The ones by the tailgate I used an 8 inch Scotch double sided velcro strap from Lowes(used to gather cables and such) I ran it thru the looped end of itself then folded it over the tie down extender to hold it up and easily accessible. I bent the tab end a bit to pop it out of the round hole after I slid it from the back where the corner meets the bedside on both sides.

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[Timbo63]

Hi all, I also was interested in improving the tie down capability in my 2021 Ford Ranger XLT extended cab (6' bed).

As others noticed, these ship with a heavy duty black bracket at the cab and tail ends of the bed, with a cap for a user to buy the $100 set of missing ones in the middle (although I saw them for less online). I took some measurements and found that these are 3.75" spacing. The pair of holes near the cab has holes with 4" centers. I'm not using those for anything, so I put in a pair of "4 Pieces Stainless STeel 316 Lifting Eye old 8mm M8 Marine Grade" rings from Amazon. These make for easier to access points for a tiedown net.

I also put a pair in the middle area (where the missing bracket would go).

As someone mentioned in the forum, the three holes near the tailgate are M6, so I put one pair in the top holes ("Eowpower 5Pcs M6 Male Thrad Machinery Shoulder Lifting Ring Eye Bolt" at Amazon).

I also got a set of Sparta Tie Down Anchors, Steel V Ring Bolts, but the screws I ordered don't fit (MOEBULB Anti-Theft screws for Ford...). I should have just bought M8 bolts but darn Amazon had those ready to click on.

Those screws are reinforced, while the oval cut outs are not, so I believe the folks that recommended skipping those for tiedowns. I also bought one pair of Bully WTD-823's (the chrome T-shaped clamps). They are bigger than I expected. But I found that the rail on the Ranger has a gap between the thin metal rail and the plastic cover, so it's never going to be real sturdy. If the rope is not angled up, I fear it would get pulled down and off eventually, but looks fine for a tarp or net without a lot of tension on it. The are groves that look like you can push the T down to lock, but the cuts seem off a bit. I'll either file them bigger or just put a piece of rubber in to keep them from rattling around.

Note that the Bully has a protrusion on the piece of metal that gets hidden inside. You could cinch it in with that lip behind or around the flange on the Bully. I found that both modes had about the same amount of contact with the teeth on it.

 

[t4thfavor]

Hi all, I also was interested in improving the tie down capability in my 2021 Ford Ranger XLT extended cab (6' bed).

As others noticed, these ship with a heavy duty black bracket at the cab and tail ends of the bed, with a cap for a user to buy the $100 set of missing ones in the middle (although I saw them for less online). I took some measurements and found that these are 3.75" spacing. The pair of holes near the cab has holes with 4" centers. I'm not using those for anything, so I put in a pair of "4 Pieces Stainless STeel 316 Lifting Eye old 8mm M8 Marine Grade" rings from Amazon. These make for easier to access points for a tiedown net.

I also put a pair in the middle area (where the missing bracket would go).

As someone mentioned in the forum, the three holes near the tailgate are M6, so I put one pair in the top holes ("Eowpower 5Pcs M6 Male Thrad Machinery Shoulder Lifting Ring Eye Bolt" at Amazon).

I also got a set of Sparta Tie Down Anchors, Steel V Ring Bolts, but the screws I ordered don't fit (MOEBULB Anti-Theft screws for Ford...). I should have just bought M8 bolts but darn Amazon had those ready to click on.

Those screws are reinforced, while the oval cut outs are not, so I believe the folks that recommended skipping those for tiedowns. I also bought one pair of Bully WTD-823's (the chrome T-shaped clamps). They are bigger than I expected. But I found that the rail on the Ranger has a gap between the thin metal rail and the plastic cover, so it's never going to be real sturdy. If the rope is not angled up, I fear it would get pulled down and off eventually, but looks fine for a tarp or net without a lot of tension on it. The are groves that look like you can push the T down to lock, but the cuts seem off a bit. I'll either file them bigger or just put a piece of rubber in to keep them from rattling around.

Note that the Bully has a protrusion on the piece of metal that gets hidden inside. You could cinch it in with that lip behind or around the flange on the Bully. I found that both modes had about the same amount of contact with the teeth on it.

Run two of the eye bolts and run a length of orange strap between them maybe? Seems like it would increase the capacity and allow you to extend them at the same time.

 

[Timbo63]

Run two of the eye bolts and run a length of orange strap between them maybe? Seems like it would increase the capacity and allow you to extend them at the same time.

Yeah, I forgot to mention that, but I do like the idea adding the orange strap between them. Thanks!

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