Just got a 2005 F-250 Super Duty. Setting it up to haul some landscaping and construction debris. Want to put some metal stakes on and bolt plywood to them. Googling a lot, but can't find any pre-made stakes to fit the 1 1/2 X 2 inch holes. Surprised, thought there would be demand for these, or does everyone just use modified 2X4s? If you know where any can be found, please let me know. Maybe my Google machine is on the fritz. Thank you.

 

Welcome to the site.

Id think using some shaped/crafted hardwood or standard 2X4 would be more gentle of the stake pockets. Is the plan is to go up fairly high with the sideboard addition?

If your metal/weld capable?
What we use to do for adding head boards and racks and to help prevent bed/pocket cracking was to use 2x3” (or 4) angle iron along the full bed rail tops, and 2x2” angle iron forward/front of the bed panel all corner welded to ‘box in’ the bed. Framed in, it added a lot of strength to the bed front/cab panel and we could weld uprights, racks at any position on the angle iron. Quite often even installing a heavy loaded metal cross bed tool box would allow cracks to form at the beds forward corners..

 

Looking to use a full sheet of plywood, so 4' above the stake pockets. Not weld capable and that sounds expensive, so maybe I should just go with 2X4s. Thanks.

 

If not rigid constructed, that will add a lot of stress on pockets/spot welds..

Another option may be to box the inside of the bed with wood framing and ply.. If the pockets Only are used, I’d gusset brace the sides to the front, possibly toward the gate if a removable tail board is used as well to help control racking or swaying back n forth from the high sides adding stresses within the pocket stakes holes ..

 

Thank you for the info Hayapower. I guess I'll go down to 3 foot sidewalls, rigid as possible, wooden stakes, and keep my fingers crossed.