Ford Bed Track Tie Down v2

2/28/24 v2 released!

• Got rid of the hook because it was basically worthless; was too low to hang a grocery bag on it. 
• Adjusted model to allow for most common brands of eyebolts
• Added locking nubs to keep tie down from vibrating loose. 

Adjustable tie down locations for the Ford Bed Track and Cleat Cargo Management System. I've made these for my Maverick, but I assume that these will work on any Ford truck using the system.

These use a 5/16", 3 ¼" eyebolt to provide strength to the tie down, securing to a nut on the inside of the bedrail. Pop the endcap off, slide the nut holder in, put the endcap back on. The square insert fits in the locking spacer, keeping it from turning. Then simply screw in the main body and hand tighten, locking it down on the spacer. You can adjust the tie down location by loosening the body and sliding it where you want.

I separated the tie down halves from the rest of the print to allow for printing them either vertically or horizontally, depending on your material and preferences. Printing vertically works well with no supports, but like most vertical holes they end up a bit out of round. They will print horizontally in PETG with no supports, but I've had cleaner results by using supports. If you use supports, be sure to use blockers for the alignment holes, or you will never get the support material out.

You will need to clamp the two sides with the bolt inside when you glue them up; it's a tight fit and you might have a tiny gap when you first assemble it. Thanks to some good advice, I added holes to use short (~10mm) pieces of filament as aligning pegs; this allows the two halves to be printed horizontally. I would not suggest superglue for this; I used JB Weld Plastic Bonder with good results. Add some adhesive around where the threads meet the eye to keep the bolt from rattling around inside if you have any clearance.  

Use a few dabs of the same adhesive that you go with on the nut holder to keep the nut in place.

USE THESE AT YOUR OWN RISK. I would only use the factory tie downs for any heavy load. While the eyebolt seems pretty stout, it lists the safe working load at 90lbs. While I believe it will hold a lot more than that, I don't know the limits. The factory cleats are rated at 200lbs. If you roll your truck with a lawnmower in the back, I wouldn't count on these holding it down.

Do not use PLA, as it's not suitable for use outdoors. PETG will probably work for light duty; I'd suggest at least 4 walls and heavy infill. I made my latest set out of ABS; considered using some PA6-CF but I didn't think I had enough for 4 sets.