Aftermarket Tailgates

[nandress]

Has anyone had experience with trying to fit in an aftermarket tailgate?

We bought a tailgate from Golden State about 15 years ago, and just learned (when the rest of the bead is in final paint) that the tailgate is a real piece... It would take a ton of effort to correct what appears to be bad or incomplete stamping. In fact our body man refuses to make it work.

In addition, a well known vendor of Goodmark told me that the Goodmark tailgates don't fit well either. I was just curious if the aftermarket tailgates are any good, period.

*****I forgot to mention that this is for fleetside tailgates!! I am sure that there isn't nearly the problems with the stepside gates!*****

(Don't worry, we found a pretty clean original that will probably work, so I am not looking for advice on where to find originals!!)

[tom71]

the older after market tail gates with no letters are really thin the newer ones are up to snuff i have one on my 71 blazer and it fit well and has nt bowed i got mine from wes and i ve stood on my tail gate a bunch of times no problems here . but ive seen pics of the older ones (5 yrs ago) that bent like tin foil

[QKENUF4U]

i wont make that mistake again. my smooth aftermarket is bowed really bad and fits semi-crappy. i found a OEM gate that i will try to pick up this weekend.

[BowTieMan]

Originally Posted by QKENUF4U

i wont make that mistake again. my smooth aftermarket is bowed really bad and fits semi-crappy. i found a OEM gate that i will try to pick up this weekend.

How bad is it? Let me know if you would want to sell it cause I just need something for my daily thats in better shape then mine.

[jamie72]

i got a no letter one from tim`s a few years ago and put it on my blazer, i have had no issues with it fit good i can set my fat butt on it and not worry about it bowin, i would buy another one.

[rage'nrat638]

heres mine

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by Green Machine

I have no first hand experience with after market tailgates, but what I have heard is that the ones with Chevrolet stamped in them, and made by Dynacorn are the best aftermarket gates available. not saying they are like a NOS, but "best available" for what it is worth. The aftermarket smooth gates are real thin metal and bend easy.

The oem gate with letters weigh 47 pounds painted, the aftermarket gates with no letters are like 2 lbs less unpainted. How much thinner does that translate into. They do not bend easily. If you can bend them You can bend and oem. I am not saying they are perfect. I've repaired oem tailgates and have alot of time in them. [QUOTE=Green Machine;1796543]I have no first hand experience with after market tailgates

[Jerry Jones]

I have a no letter one and it bent immediately (day one), the thing is a piece of junk. It was of the generation of 5 - 6 years ago, and I here the ones today may be better.

[LUV2XCLR8]

I have always heard the same thing JJ has said, but no experiances here

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by Jerry Jones

I have a no letter one and it bent immediately (day one), the thing is a piece of junk. It was of the generation of 5 - 6 years ago, and I here the ones today may be better.

How did you bend it?

[see ten]

I have a Goodmark gate without letters on my K10 and it hasn't bent as of yet. I couldn't justify the cost of a lettered gate just to cover it with a tailgate band. My previous gate was one of the $100 ones that was all you could get about 10 years ago. It bent the first time we closed it! Seriously it had two waves where my hands were when I slammed it. And don't even think about sitting on it, it would bow if you leaned on it. Maybe I should have kept my OEM it just had some rust holes across the inside bottom of it. I bought a patch for it but never installed it.

[rage'nrat638]

heres the test 285 lbs
just for u guy's no ugly commits please

[QKENUF4U]

whats really stupid about mine is that its bowed OUT at the bottom and decently straight at the top. as for the weight , i wieighed my no name gate and it was 41lbs. , then i weighed the GMC gate i had and it was 51lbs. but felt a hell of alot heivier.
if you look at my no name gate the outside panel is about 1/2 the thickness of the OEM gate, inside panel is the same thickness looking at it by eye.
so ragerat who did you get your gate thru ?

[rage'nrat638]

my tailgate is a goodmark...i had more problems getting one not damaged by shipping. after 2 damaged tailgates by shipping. the factory drop shipped one and it was ok. it seemed ups likes dropping them on the corners alot

[Joe67]

How many companies actually make these fleetside tailgates?
Goodmark is just a reseller

[Greaser]

I sell goodmark, sherman industries, have ordered the classic industries gate for one customer, and, except for the one with the letters (which by the way is not being produced anymore) I cant tell the difference. I think there are only two manufactures, both are overseas. I sell a couple of gates a month, and have looked at every one. they all need the spotwelds glazed down the sides, and some will have a row spot welds through the center, that are kind of a pain to fill. I also always get asked "will it bend", those are the guys that make me nervouse, cause they're gonna try to bend it, and come back and complain when they succed. Take your new pick up and drop a small block on it, surprise, it's bent now too.

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by rage'nrat638

my tailgate is a goodmark...i had more problems getting one not damaged by shipping. after 2 damaged tailgates by shipping. the factory drop shipped one and it was ok. it seemed ups likes dropping them on the corners alot

Thats are problem too but its just not UPS. Sometimes the box is not damaged and it was damaged overseas and was shipped here that way. Sometimes they are strapped down to tight also. I don't really like drop shipping cause I like to see the part before it gets to the customer.

[QKENUF4U]

Originally Posted by Greaser

Take your new pick up and drop a small block on it, surprise, it's bent now too.

i will 100% disagree with that. all the OEM tailgates ive seen are 95% straight compared to my aftermarket gate. hell my toyota gate stayed straighter than this junk i have now.
ive done the whold BIG BLOCK on tailgate etc. to my Z71 and never had a bent tailgate, same goes for my toyota.
i work on motorcycles for a living and load/unload them onto my truck, i never bent my toy or z71 gate. this gate is bent all to hell from one bike being loaded on it.
ill stick to the OEM gates myself (unless i can find an aftermarket gate that uses the same guage metal)
just my OPINION

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by QKENUF4U

whats really stupid about mine is that its bowed OUT at the bottom and decently straight at the top. as for the weight , i wieighed my no name gate and it was 41lbs. , then i weighed the GMC gate i had and it was 51lbs. but felt a hell of alot heivier.
if you look at my no name gate the outside panel is about 1/2 the thickness of the OEM gate, inside panel is the same thickness looking at it by eye.
so ragerat who did you get your gate thru ?

I just had to re--weigh ours
repro 45 lbs
oem 47lbs 12 oz. stripped just as repro ,weighed on an expensive scale too

I could not find my gauge today but using the eyeball method they look fairly close. Maybe u have an older one. This one is TriPlus. I don't feel like that they are that much difference when I move them around the shop I will set them side by side with the guage when I find it

[QKENUF4U]

good possibility i have a really old version........ shrug ?

[see ten]

Originally Posted by rage'nrat638

heres the test 285 lbs
just for u guy's no ugly commits please

That's a testimonial if I ever saw one! An old repro gate like I had would have collapsed under that kind of pressure!!!!!

[SactoJim]

Got mine from the Truck Shop. Fits like crap, so I decided instead of ordering multiple tailgates, hoping the next one fits better, I decided to cut my original up and the new one. Just need the back (bed inside) of the new one because my original is so beat up.

The aftermarket is lighter guage. but I think one of the main reasons it is weaker than the original is because it is not pinch welded in the tailgate relief like the original is. Got the aftermarket tailgate back off pretty easy, but I'm fighting the factory gate due to those welds.

I realize that most the aftermarket parts need some massaging and maybe a little body work to fit, but that tailgate is waaaaaay off.

[Jerry Jones]

Originally Posted by mbgmike

How did you bend it?

Rolled a rototiller onto it... which I have done for years with the stock tailgate.

[GMCPaul]

Those with the unlettered bowed tailgates sound as though they bought either a Gordon manufactured tailgate which is 21 gauge steel, or a APEX manufactured gate which is a unbelievable 23 gauge steel tailgate. The originals were made of 19 gauge steel, current reproductions by Tri-Plus & Dynacorn are 19 gauge steel whether they are GMC / Chevrolet lettered or unlettered tailgates.
GMCPaul

[Rich72C10]

Sorry to dig up a very old thread but GMCPaul was the last reply and I just ordered a tailgate from them. I asked where the gate was manufactured, Dynacorn Industries & Key Parts INC by Apex in Taiwan.

Now my current gate is crap and when I would just set on it I could feel flex (I'm 205 lbs). A week ago we were unloading my brother's 78 Wurlitzer Jukebox he leaned it to me and than I stepped on the gate to catch my balance. It proceeded to fold. Luckily it was already on my list to replace since it had a bad dent on the outside from the PO. The tuck was restored roughly 10 years ago and this is when the new gate would have been bought/painted/installed.

I am really hoping this gate is MUCH better. I am hoping I am not really getting a "APEX manufactured gate which is a unbelievable 23 gauge steel tailgate". To be fair, on GMCPauls site, it is listed as new Tooling and 19 gauge.

But I do have a question: is it expected that all the hardware to be painted matching the truck - like the hangers/latches for the tailgate?