# Flatbeds and Stake Beds Body Repair > Deck, sill, stake pocket and tie down repair for Santa Ana flat and stake bed fleets, plus headboards, liners and full deck refinish. Source: https://fleetservicesocrv.com/vehicles/flatbeds-and-stake-beds Business: Fleet Services OCRV, 23281 E La Palma Ave, Yorba Linda, CA 92887 Phone: (714) 909-1844. Serving Santa Ana, California, about 17 miles from the facility. A flatbed or stake bed is an open deck body built on cross sills and long sills, with a headboard at the front and either removable stake sides or an open perimeter. Repair covers deck plate and planking, cross sill structure, stake pockets, rub rails, tie down anchorage, headboards and protective coatings. ## Chassis and bodies seen - Knapheide steel and aluminum platform bodies - Scelzi flat and stake beds - Harbor Truck Bodies - Reading platform bodies - CM Truck Beds and Bradford Built - Isuzu NPR and NQR stake bed chassis - Ford F-450 through F-750 platform chassis - Freightliner M2 106 platform chassis ## Common damage - Deck plate dished or torn under concentrated point loads - Cross sills bent or cracked where they meet the long sill - Stake pockets torn away from the rub rail by shifting loads - Rub rails crushed by forklift forks and dock contact - Tie down rings and D rings pulled out of the deck structure - Headboard bent forward or rearward by a load that shifted in a stop - Aluminum deck planks worn thin and separated at the interlocks - Side gate hinges and latches bent from being loaded against - Rear pintle or receiver mount cracked at the frame attachment - Deck surface corrosion where coating was worn off by cargo abrasion ## What does deck damage tell you about the structure underneath? A dished deck plate is a symptom, not the problem. The deck spans between cross sills, so a permanent depression usually means either the load exceeded what the deck was designed to carry between sills, or the sill under that area has already bent and stopped supporting the plate. Repairing the deck without checking the sill produces a flat looking deck that dishes again on the next similar load. The inspection is straightforward once the truck is on a lift or over a pit. Cross sills are checked for bend and for cracking at the joint to the long sill, which is where the stress concentrates. Cracks there are common on beds that regularly carry steel, pipe, block or equipment, because those loads sit on a small footprint and drive the load into a couple of sills instead of spreading it. Repair generally combines sill replacement or reinforcement with deck section replacement. Where a fleet consistently carries a particular load in a particular place, adding sills or a doubler in that zone during the repair costs very little and changes the failure cycle permanently. That is a conversation worth having at the estimate rather than at the second repair. - Cross sill inspection for bend and cracking at the long sill joint - Deck plate or plank section replacement to match existing material - Additional sills or doublers in high point load zones - Weld preparation to sound material before any crack repair - Coating restored over all repaired and drilled surfaces ## How are stake pockets, rub rails and side gates repaired? Stake pockets take load in the worst possible direction. A load that shifts sideways in a hard stop pushes on the stake, the stake levers against the pocket, and the pocket tears out of the rub rail. That leaves a hole in the perimeter of the deck and a rub rail with a section that no longer carries load, so the repair has to restore both. Rub rails themselves get crushed by forks and dock edges more than by cargo. A crushed section can often be straightened when the material has not cracked, but where the pocket area has been deformed the section usually gets cut out and replaced. Matching the new pocket spacing to the existing pattern matters, because stake sides and racks are cut to that spacing and a shifted pocket makes them unusable. Side gates and drop sides fail at hinges and latches. Crews load against them, drivers close them on cargo, and the hinge mounting area on the rail eventually elongates. The correct repair rebuilds the hinge mounting area on the rail, replaces the hinge, then aligns the gate and adjusts the latch, in that order. Adjusting the latch on a sagging gate is the version of this repair that fails again in a month. ## What is involved in tie down and cargo securement anchorage? A tie down ring is only as strong as the structure behind it. Rings that are bolted through deck plate with a washer will pull through, and they usually pull through with a load on the strap. Anchorage that lasts is mounted to a sill, a rub rail or a fabricated cross member that is part of the deck structure, and the mounting point is designed for the load direction the strap actually pulls. Adding e track, D rings or recessed pan fittings during a deck repair is efficient because the structure is already exposed. Layout is worth planning rather than copying, since crews secure the loads they actually carry. A landscape crew, a glass hauler and a mechanical contractor all want anchorage in different places, and the difference between good and poor layout shows in how often straps are run at bad angles. Where a ring has already torn out, the repair addresses the hole and the reason. The torn deck area is repaired with new material, the anchorage is relocated or reinforced into structure, and the surrounding coating is restored. A patch over a torn ring hole with a new ring in the same unsupported location repeats the failure on the same load. - Anchorage mounted to sills or rails rather than through open deck - E track and recessed fitting layout planned around the actual cargo - Torn deck areas repaired with new material before re anchoring - Headboard and cab guard reinforcement for forward load restraint - Coating and sealing restored at every new penetration ## How do headboards and cab protection factor in? The headboard is the last thing between a shifted load and the back of the cab, and on many stake beds it is also a structural anchor for the front of the deck. A headboard that is bent forward has already absorbed a load event, and one bent rearward has usually been backed into. Either way the mounting feet and the deck structure they attach to get inspected, not just the frame of the headboard. Trades fleets frequently upgrade at repair time. A light stake headboard that came with the body is often replaced with a heavier cab guard when the crew has been carrying pipe, lumber or ladders that overhang forward. That change is a fabrication job with attention to mounting into deck structure rather than through deck plate, and it is far cheaper while the front of the deck is already open. Cab clearance matters more than it looks. A headboard or rack that sits too close to the back of the cab will contact it when the frame twists on an uneven driveway, and that contact damages the cab rather than the rack. Setting clearance correctly during install prevents a repeated cab repair that nobody connects back to the rack. ## What coatings actually hold up on a working deck? Deck coatings fail by abrasion, not by weather. Steel banding dragged across a bed, pallets pushed into position and equipment tracked on and off all remove coating faster than any amount of Southern California sun. A high build coating designed for abrasion outlasts a standard finish substantially, and it is applied over prepared steel rather than over an existing worn surface. Spray in liner is the heavier duty answer where cargo is abrasive and constant. It seals the deck seams, adds a non slip surface for crews working on the bed, and takes the impact that would otherwise dent plate. The tradeoff is that it needs to be applied over sound, clean structure, so it goes on after repairs rather than as a way to hide them. Whatever the surface, the underside is where the actual corrosion happens. Road spray hits the bottom of the deck and sits in the channels of the cross sills, and that surface almost never gets attention until something is already perforated. Treating and coating the underside during a deck repair is inexpensive at that moment and effectively impossible later without pulling the bed. - Abrasion rated high build coating on working deck surfaces - Spray in liner over sound structure for constant abrasive cargo - Underside and cross sill channel treatment during deck repair - Non slip surface where crews regularly walk the deck - Reflective marking and unit numbering restored after coating cures ## Questions ### The deck on my flatbed has a permanent dip. Is the deck plate the problem? The plate is where you see it, but the cross sill under that area is usually what gave way. Deck plate spans between sills, so a lasting depression means either the load exceeded what the deck carries between sills or the sill itself has bent. Repairing the plate without addressing the sill gives you a flat deck that dishes again on the next comparable load. ### A stake pocket tore out of the rub rail. Can that section be replaced? Yes. The damaged rub rail section including the pocket is cut out and replaced, and the pocket spacing is matched to the existing pattern so your stake sides and racks still fit. Where the tear also pulled the deck edge, that area is repaired at the same time. Welding the old pocket back into a deformed rail is a short term repair at best. ### My tie down rings keep pulling out. What am I doing wrong? Most likely the rings are mounted through deck plate rather than into structure. A ring bolted through plate with a washer will pull through under a working load no matter how heavy the ring is. Anchorage that holds is mounted to a sill, a rub rail or a fabricated member and oriented for the direction the strap actually pulls. ### Should I upgrade to a heavier headboard or cab guard? If your crews carry pipe, lumber, ladders or anything that can overhang forward, it is worth doing, and the cheapest time is during a deck repair when the front of the bed is already open. The install fabricates mounting into deck structure rather than through plate, and clearance to the back of the cab is set so frame twist on uneven ground does not cause contact. ### Is spray in liner worth it on a work deck? For abrasive and constant cargo, yes. It seals deck seams, adds a non slip working surface, and absorbs impacts that would otherwise dent plate. It has to be applied over sound prepared structure, so it comes after any repair rather than instead of one. For lighter duty use, a high build abrasion rated coating is often the better value. ### How long does a deck repair take, and how far is the shop from Santa Ana? The shop is at 23281 E La Palma Ave in Yorba Linda, about 17 miles and 22 to 35 minutes from central Santa Ana via SR-55 north to SR-91 east. Rub rail and stake pocket repair typically clears in two to four business days, cross sill and deck section work in four to eight, and a full deck rebuild with coating in one to two weeks.