How to Remove a Dually Truck Bed

Trucks with dual rear wheels on each side are nicknamed "duallys," and are popular among people who need to carry or tow large loads, because of their towing power. They're also very customizable, and many people take off the traditional dually bed and replace it with a flatbed or a custom fifth-wheel trailer hitch. Removing a dually bed isn't difficult technically, but it is extremely heavy and will require help from some assistants to do safely. In this case, the vehicle is a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado dually, but the process is similar for other vehicles.

Instructions

1

Crawl underneath the truck and unbolt the bed from the frame using the 1/2-inch ratchet and socket set, as well as the ratchet extension. There are 10 bolts on holding the bed down, five on each side, and they're easy to find by looking underneath the truck. The trickiest two to find are underneath the rear bumper, where you access the bolt through a hole in the frame.

2

Open the gas door using your hands and unbolt the gas filler from the bed using the 1/4-inch ratchet and socket set and torx-head sockets. Then push the fuel filler neck into the bed, so that it's out of the way. Crawl underneath the vehicle and pull the filler neck down so that the neck itself is outside of the bed. This is so that when you lift the bed up, it won't catch on the filler neck.

3

Place the sawhorses directly behind the vehicle. Space them out to be about the same length as the bed, that way when you lift off the bed, you can set it on the stands.

4

Crawl underneath the rear bumper and locate the wiring block that is on the bottom of the bed, near the center of the tailgate. Unplug every wiring harness from this box using your hands to push in the tabs on the harnesses. This is going to disconnect all wiring to the bed, and although it's not necessary to remove every plug, it's easier this way because then you don't lift the bed with a wire still connected.

5

Place your assistants around the truck, making sure you at least have a person at each corner of the bed. Lift the bed straight up using your legs with your hands on the underside of the bed, then walk the bed back to the sawhorses. Depending on the size of your assistants, you may have to lift the bed higher over the wheels.

6

Place the bed down on the stands, making sure the sawhorses are spaced out evenly enough to support the vehicle. If you need to, have your assistants lift the bed while you adjust the stands yourself.