Plans for a lumber rack...???

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Hello allJust joined up on here and was hoping someone might be able to help me out.  I just started my second 8 week welding course.  I am hoping to build a lumber rack for my pick-up truck but I'm having trouble finding plans or at least ones that I like.  I'd like to combine it with a headache rack and do the top rail with round tubing that extends out over the (at least partially) cab.  So my question is...Does anyone know where to find decent plans and/or examples for different racks??  And, of course, any other advice is appreciated!Thanks!John
Reply:Form should follow function here, because lumber racks sure ain't for looks! There are lots of neat features that you can go with, and many levels of expertise in creating the form you decide to create.The easy go is having a truck body shop put one on for you, the tooling to bend alot of tubing alone is worth more than the rack!Have fun, take your time. Sorry, I have no idea what you are planning, racks have really evolved into lots of types since I first saw one. Today I saw a midsized truck that had an expanded metal cage full of tools built into a standard looking rack.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Thanks Tangle..I'm finding it's very much a personal thing with these racks.  Seems most go at with a sketch and go from there.  Thinking I should have just asked for examples.  Was hoping to work something up on CAD today but things changed...best laid plans.....Thanks againJohn
Reply:There is definitely something desirable about a custom rack. I was just thinking today it might not have to be too hard to bend enough tubing to get one personal rack done, especially if you got help doing the bending! I know many are built with out the need for bent tubes. Yet of all the times I did service work in carpentry, I always wished I had a forklift compatable setup. The rest are the details that fit the owners purposes.Truck Racks.Edit:- for example...http://www.calrack.com/class250flrack.shtmlLast edited by tanglediver; 03-03-2009 at 05:37 PM.City of L.A. Structural; Manual & Semi-Automatic;"Surely there is a mine for silver, and a place where gold is refined. Iron is taken from the earth, and copper is smelted from ore."Job 28:1,2Lincoln, Miller, Victor & ISV BibleDanny
Reply:Check out this tread.  I really like the looks of his design. One picture towards the top and bunch at the bottom.http://weldingweb.com/vbb/showthread.php...ght=truck+rackCarlohttp://public.fotki.com/Naudi2U/