50 f2 bed rebuild

[goshencars]

I am going to rebuild my 50 express bed on my truck.my problem is that a previous owner removed the wood and welded a plate floor in. In doing so they modified the tail gate end of the floor. There is no longer a raised section where the boards stop. Photos and dimensions of that area would be appreciated. Also is there a cover plate to cover the end of the floor planks. The bed strips are 92 1/2" long and the bed is 96". Are the boards longer so the ends can be covered to keep stuff out of the space. Thanks.

 

[GB SISSON]

There is a hollow rectangular box section rear crossmember at the rear. It is made from two stamped steel sections welded together to form the box, and lays flat, bolted to the rear frame rails with a reinforced rubber pad in between. The crossmember has a flange about 1" down along it's forward edge that the bed wood sits on, creating a flush surface, The steel strips bolt through this flange. This crossmember is welded to the box sides, but in the six or eight 8' express beds I have re-worked, it's rare to see these welds not broken away from hard use with the tailgate lowered. It's very common to see struts welded to a bumper to prevent this (or repair it). I took some pictures a couple minytes ago but they are not loading as normal. There was a post last week about the wood crossmembers and you can find some pics showing that area in that thread.

 

[GB SISSON]

Crossmember. Looks like I haven't bolted the strips through the flange yet.

 

[51504bat]

Easier to see