pickup bed

[Heard]

Can anyone endorse the Mack Products pickup beds? Not that I really have a lot of choices.......

Thanks,
Heard

[Karl Wescott]

If you are looking for a bed that will pass muster from a very critical concourse judge... No. If you are looking for a bed that will fit well, be of overall very good quality, and look very good from 5 feet away... YES!


Also, as with 1932-34 original beds, the fenders will not match the reveal on the bed at the lower rear. This appears to be due to Ford carrying over the reveal design from late 1931, then changing the fender profile in 1932.

[nelsb01]

Your options have shrunk over the years.
Macks is good. Do you have to do a lot of work to make it fit - yes.
You have to learn how to make carriage bolt holes and cut your gas filler hole.
And unless they corrected the mounting brackets that I complained about, you will have to test fit and move or re-drill the brackets that rest on the frame. Not show stoppers, but time consuming.
They really do a good job of making a shipping crate for it.

[Krylon32]

Used a stock length 32 Mack Hils from Missouri bed with the wood floor and stainless strips on a pickup I built a few years ago. I ordered it assembled which was worth the money. I also ordered the welded version which worked for what I was doing. Then we proceedesd to shorten it 10 inches which made it about 61 inches long keeping with what was done in the 50's. My guys did a good job, you couldn't tell it had 10 inches sectioned out of the sides behind the fenders. Mine bolted on with virtually no problems. I always felt the 55 inch beds offered are to short with the horns exposed out the back. I also recently got a replacement 32 tailgate for my original bodied truck which fit perfect and looks original. one more thing, I recently replaced the rear fenders on my 32 pickup with new metal ones from United Pacific and they were a bolt on. They look good.

[OldGold360]

I purchased their bed floor, wood underlayment, stake pockets and other bed related parts and nothing was accurate nor did they fit. I would not purchase their products again. You can see all the trouble I had in one or two of my previous posts. A couple folks told me their products are spot on, but this is far from the case. I’m probably more picky than most though. Nothing compares to original. Beds are out there, you just have to hunt for them and some may need a bit of work, but you’ll have an original bed that fits and looks perfect.

[GB SISSON]

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When traveling in the arid West I have been known to check the local CL for box trailers, which as we know are sometimes made from pickup beds and often have a front or rear axle under it. I have towed three nice beds home using this formula. Only down side was my wife figured we could now stop at more antique stores on the way home with our increased capacity. It's worth a look.

[sidevalve8ba]

Heard,
i have one of their beds on my '32 and I am very pleased with it.

[Heard]

Thanks for all the input guys.

My pickup is going to be a driver for sure.

My bed is in pretty bad shape. I figure by the time I buy replacement panels for the two sides, the front, and the floor, I may just as well buy a new bed.

I expect there will some fitment things to deal with. What I DON"T want is for some junk to show up here that costs a bundle to ship and that wouldn't be practical to send back.

Heard

[37 truck]

I got a bed from Bruce Horkey wood and parts. Not original but went together well and looks great. Tailgate is nice too. He uses screws and nuts to assemble rather than rivets. Offers a fair number of options as well, and his stainless parts are very nice.

[totto]

I bought front panel, metal floor and tailgate for my 1934 and was very pleased with the "fit".with all. I purchased the parts in 2008.

[Ron_r1959]

I have heard once upon a time that Howell sheet metal from Texas makes the beds for macs, I am not sure if that is true or not. if it is , I can say the bed is pretty nice, while I would not recommend getting a bed directly from them unless you went and picked it up directly, I can say i was verry pleased with my bed that I got from them. As far as dealing with them directly goes i would not recommend that unless you like getting a prostrate exam, because its about the same level of fun LOL

[CA Victoria]

If you have time, hold out for an original bed.
I used original bed sides and MACKS front panel, sub frame, and pockets and a repo floor from MacÂ’s i bought off of craigs list. It was time consuming to buildÂ…Â…..each repo part had to be hand fit, the sub rail did not fit the frame. I will send a few photos.

[CA Victoria]

[QUOTE=CA Victoria;2327748]If you have time, hold out for an original bed.
I used original bed sides and MACKS front panel, sub frame, and pockets and a repo floor from MacÂ’s i bought off of craigs list. It was time consuming to buildÂ…Â…..each repo part had to be hand fit, the sub rail did not fit the frame.
Also a driver with a 20’ paint job, but would have preferred a better parts fitment.

[fordyford]

I have an OK original bed but bought a complete new assembled bed with metal floor from Mac Hils. Waited for 3 months. The individual components are all accurate, well made pieces but the "craftsman" made a total mess of assembly. The sub frame was poorly welded instead of riveted like it should be. Cross members had 1/4" gaps at each end. All of the floor to cross member screw slots were damaged from using a too narrow impact driver and the outside screw rows were forced in at an angle due to the extra width of the miss-assembled sub frame. The rivets used in the stake pockets were too long and poorly bucked. I made it fit because the "new manager" said there would not be any correctly made beds available if I returned it.

[TJ]

I thought I heard that some company bought the bed tooling from Northern Classic Trucks? NCT stuff was the best.

[OldGold360]

Here is the older post which has a lot of good information in it regarding the beds for 35/36 Pickups, and a few things to know if purchasing a Mack Hils bed.

https://www.fordbarn.com/forum/showt...=290934&page=3

Some people have been happy with their products, others, including myself, not so happy. With the amount of time I spent correcting the Mack Hils bed floor and stake pockets, it would have been quicker to just fix the original panels. I also purchased the wood underlayment and the bed filler panels but I did not use either due to poor quality. The cuts in the wood were incorrect and looked as if they were done by an amateur. The bed filler panels were the wrong shape. The bottom edge was flat but should be curved to match the running boards and the bead was the wrong shape. I only share this information because it is my honest experience and I wish I learned of these issues before spending the money on the parts I purchased from them. Depending on your skill level, most of the issues I had with their products can be corrected but may not be practical depending on the condition of the bed you currently have. Just don't buy their bed or bed parts and expect them to not need any work. Regardless of which route you choose, I am happy to help however I can if you need some more info or guidance. I feel I have encountered all of the problems one can have while restoring a 35/36 pickup bed and hoping my experience can help others.

[Heard]

Thanks OldGold. That info is valuable for sure. I'll be lookin at my old bed once again before I make a final decision.

Heard

[rawlir]

I bought a 46 1/2 ton box & tailgate assembled from Macs years ago. Used my fenders. i was happy with them, would not want to assemble anything like this myself. Had no issues with Dearborn judges, would do it again AFTER researching Macs again, Had good luck with Bruce Horkey & my Tonner for bed wood, etc

[Krylon32]

I made the almost 800 mile round trip to Moberly when I was having the tailgate fiasco. When the office manager included in her last e-mail that they don't make mistakes I was in the truck in the next couple days. They were quite surprised when I walked into the office carrying the defective tailgate. It took a little while but the plant manager finally came to the office and escorted me and the tailgate to the back where the beds and parts are made. He measured and measured, compared my gate to 3 others and finally admitted all 4 had the hinges off center. When asked what I wanted I said lets measure a 32, we did and it was perfect. They were very apologetic as I was leaving. As I said above I had a good experience when I bought the assembled 32 bed. I'd buy another one but I'd go pick it up so I could inspect it.