Diamondback 270 User manual

PARTS INCLUDED:
Important installation information
IMPORTANT!
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Normal Install Time
75 minutes
Tips to assist installation
Helpful Hints
PREPARE THE CARGO BED & MOUNT THE COVER
Attach the clamp bracket to the bulkhead, centered side to side and flush
with the top rail, using a drill, 3/8" nut driver bit, and four self-drilling screws.
1
If you are also installing a Cross Bin, do so now. Refer to page 2 of the
Cross Bin Installation Guide for details.
3
Place the cab & T panels
assembly on the front half of
the bed so its leading edge
lines up with the leading edge
of the bulkhead.
4
To avoid hinge damage, do not close the
panel until hinges are fully mated: Tilt the
panel past 90° and push to the left until the
hinge locking tabs interlock and the hinge
barrels are aligned with the leaves.
Retighten your clamps after 100 miles.
Check them every time you haul on top.
Mating hinges is
easiest when you
line up the longer,
left hinge pin first.
Place two cap clamps as far
apart as possible at each of the
three ends of the T panel.
Tighten with a 9/16" socket.
8
Center the DiamondBack
side to side.
7
Clamp Bracket
1/4" Self-Drilling
Screws (12)
TOOLS REQUIRED: PRE-INSTALLATION NOTE:
If your truck has bed rail caps, you should affix
the included bulkhead prep kit prior to install-
ing the DiamondBack 270. Refer to the Bulk-
head Prep Kit Installation Guide for details.
Drill
Slide the tailgate panel onto the
T panel by mating their hinges.
Close the tailgate panel slowly
while holding the lock handle in
the open position.
5
3/8" Nut Driver
Installing the clamp bracket is easiest
if you pre-drill it using the screws.
Bed-Rail
Edge Trim (2)
Lock-Rod
Striker Brackets (2)
Utility Knife
Attach a lock-rod striker bracket to each front
corner of the cargo bed with its V bend rearward
using four more self-drilling screws per bracket.
2
It’s OK for the top of the V bend itself
to break this plane.
Make sure the bracket’s legs are located as high
on the bed wall as possible without them break-
ing the plane of the top of the bed rail.
Turn the tailgate-panel lock handle back to the closed position so that
the lock rods pass underneath the bed rails. Close the tailgate.
6
6
Cap Clamps (6)
Tailgate Panel
Cab & T Panels Assembly
Gas Springs (6)
CONTINUED ON REVERSE →
INSTALLATION GUIDE
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9/16" Socket 7/16" Socket
Ratchet Wrench
CONTINUED ON REVERSE →
CVR-270.1
1/8" Hex
Key

ATTACH THE GAS SPRINGS
Attach the 60-lb. gas springs to the cab-panel ball studs and
the two stronger gas springs to the tailgate-panel ball studs.
17
16
Leave the cover closed and
locked for 24 hours to allow
the weatherstrip adhesive,
which is pressure-sensitive,
to fully cure.
18
To avoid premature failure of your
gas springs, attach them barrel up,
shaft down.
If you are also installing a Single-Side Bin, do so now. Refer to the Single-Side Bin
Installation Guide for details.
You’ll find the strength of the gas springs printed on the
sides of the barrels.
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ADJUST THE LOCK RODS
Double-check all three panels to ensure they open, close, lock & seal
correctly. If at any point the weatherstrip does not touch the bed rails,
adjust the position of the lock rods.
15
Loosen the set screws on the
tailgate-panel lock-rod linkages.
10 If your bed rail lips have sharp edges,
they might tear the rubber caps on the
ends of the tailgate-panel lock rods. To
protect the end caps, peel the red adhe-
sive backing from the bed-rail edge trim
pieces, then affix one piece to each on
the bed rail lips where the tailgate-panel
lock rods pass underneath.
13
To get the weatherstrip compression
necessary for its adhesive to cure and the
cover to keep out the weather, have a
second person press down on the cover
while you’re adjusting the lock rods.
Operating the access
panels is easiest when
you press down as you
open or close them.
Your panels should be difficult to operate at first. After finishing
installation below, leave the panels closed as much as possible
for 3–4 days to break in the weatherstrip. After that period, you
should find that the panels open and close without difficulty.
Adjust the length of the lock rods and retighten the set screws so that:
A. with the lock handle in the open position, the rod tips clear the
bed rails,
B. with the handle in the closed position, the rod tips do not strike
the bed walls, and
C. the rods point downward.
11
12
14 Repeat steps 11–13 for the forward cab-panel lock rods so that:
A. with the lock handles in the open position, the rod tips clear
th striker brackets,
B. with the handles in the closed position, the forward rod tips
do not strike the bulkhead,
C. the rods point downward, and
D. in the closed position, they are tight against the underside of
the striker brackets, drawing the panels down & compress-
ing the weatherstrip.
With the lock handle in the
closed position, position the
lock rods tight against the
underside of the bed rail lips
so that closing them draws
the panels down and com-
press the weatherstrip.
Tighten the rod guide brackets
with a 7/16" socket.
1/8" Hex Key
If you have a plastic bed liner or bed rail
caps that extend beyond the bed rail lips,
trim the plastic so the lock rods can
touch the bed rail lips.
9
7/16" socket
If there isn’t enough travel in the rod guide brackets to position
the rods so that they press against the strikers, reshape the
striker V bends with pliers.
The rearward cab-panel lock rods come pre-adjusted tight to the
T-panel gutters. You need only adjust the forward lock rods.