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This article details the design & installation of a 5' section of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strut_channel Strut Channel] into the bed of my 2012 Nissan Frontier Crew Cab SV 4x4. This is a functional (although different) stand-in for the [http://www.nissanusa.com/innovations/utili-track.article.html Utili-Track™] that comes as an option on some Nissan Frontiers. Frontiers that did not come standard with the Utili-Track™ cannot have it easily installed because the bed-frame is different. Inspiration for this project came from [http://www.clubfrontier.org/forums/f23/diy-writeup-utilitrack-unistrut-34948/ Tyson Cook's DIY Writeup - Utilitrack with Unistrut] over at the [http://www.clubfrontier.org/ Club Frontier Forums]. I chose to install this Strut Channel because it gives a good base (that does not permanently modify the vehicle) to mount a Ham Radio Antenna (which I'll add to the bottom of this article as soon as it is done). After a parts order from [http://www.mcmaster.com/ McMaster-Carr] (who doesn't show shipping costs up front, but has really good shipping rates... my order was $6 shipping) and 5 trips to various Home Depots & Lowe's I finally had what I needed. I'll try to streamline the process for anyone wanting to follow my example.
==Assumptions==
#You have a drop-in bed-liner
#You don't want to make any permenant modifications to the vehicle
==Grocery List==
*Metric Ruler with at least 30mm (preferably 60mm) of marked length
*13mm Socket + Ratchet with Extension
*[http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100356502/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=square&storeId=10051#.UJZ4n8VuSQE Combination Square]*[http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100000053/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=Utility +Knife&storeId=10051#.UJZ4xMVuSQE Utility Knife]
*[http://www.homedepot.com/buy/brasscraft-deburring-tool-t090.html#.UJZttcVuSQE Deburring Tool]
*Pencil
*(optional) [http://www.homedepot.com/Plumbing-Plumbing-Tools-Brushes/h_d1/N-5yc1vZbqnb/R-100342840/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&storeId=10051#.UJZunsVuSQE Fitting Brush]
*(optional) [http://www.lowes.com/pd_78742-46069-PCB660DP_0__?productId=3162489 Drill Press]. If you don't have access to a Drill Press a Hand Drill will work.
==Basic Information==
*These holes are spaced 30cm apart from each other and are centered in the bed (left to right)
*These holes are size M8x1.25 (a metric bolt meaning an 8mm diameter with 1.25mm thread spacing. Don't get M8x1.0 bolts by mistake)
==Directions==
<span style="color:#55E439">Click on any photograph for a larger view.</span>
===Prepping The Truck===
#Pull up the front lip of the bed liner. I simply had to pull up & out on the middle of the top lip to get it to come free. I probably pulled it off and put it back on 20 times during the install to check fit.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Liner_Lip.jpg|400px]]
#<span style="color:#55E439">'''This is probably the trickest part of the whole install'''</span>: You need to drill pilot holes in your bed-liner that line up with the factory bolts on the Frontier. I basically had to eyeball my first hole. From there I measured as best I could (although this was made difficult but the uneven surface of the bed-liner) I haven't come up with a better solution but this worked for me.
##With the bed-liner pulled off (and the factory bolts in place) I eyeballed the first hole and used the smallest drill bit I had to drill a hole through the bed-liner.
##I then reinstalled the bed-liner, stuck my drill bit back in the hole, and ran it against the factory bolt for a second to, intentionally, leave a scratch mark. After seeing that I was off center a bit I tried again. The 3 photos below show the results of this technique. The blue circle highlights my 1st attempt. The green circle highlights my 2nd attempt. The photo of the bedliner shows the 2 holes I drilled for the 1st location. (click <br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt1.jpg|400px]][[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt2.jpg|400px]][[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt3.jpg|400px]]<br />[[File:Strut Channel_2_Pilot_Holes.jpg|400px]]##For the rest of the pilot holes I attempted to measure the distance of the "good" pilot hole from the top lip of the bed-liner using a ruler and then used this value + the known 30cm spacing of the bolt holes to measure out the rest of the locations which I marked with a pen before drilling. This was, surprisingly, successful and all the rest of my pilot holes lined up well. The photo is an example of a marked & drilled pilot hole. You can see how I marked both the up-down & left-right separately. I repeated the "scratch the bolt head" technique for all the rest of my pilot holes to prove to myself that they were in the correct locations.<br />[[File:Strut Channel_Pilot_Hole.jpg|400px]]##Once you've done all 5 pilot holes the hard part is over! Congratulations!#Now you can remove all 5 factory bolts from the truck.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_No_Bolt.jpg|400px]]#The next step is to drill out the holes in the bed-liner to the desired size.##I chose a larger image7/8" spade bit to do this.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Spade_Bit.jpg|400px]]##While pulling out on the bed-liner (to ensure you don't overshoot into the painted bed of the truck)using your Spade Bit to drill out each pilot hole.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt1Strut_Channel_Liner_Hole_1.jpg|400px]]##Use your Utility Knife to remove the excess plastic.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Liner_Hole_2.jpg|400px]]##Use the Deburring Tool, followed by the Fitting Brush to clean up the hole<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Liner_Hole_3.jpg|400px]]##Replace the bedliner for the last time! Congratulations! The Truck is now Prepped.<br /> ===Prepping The Strut Channel===#Drilling the Holes##Flip the Strut Channel face down so the open part is against your bench and you are looking at the back.#Measure the exact width of the Strut Channel, divide that in half. Mark the center line of the Strut Channel in several locations. Using a pencil and ruler, draw the (lengthwise) center line of the Strut Channel.##Measure the exact length of you section of Strut Channel (it might not be exactly 5'), divide that number in half, and mark off the center of the piece.##At this point you should have a cross where the center bolt hole goes. Using your Metric Ruler measure out 30cm & 60cm in each direction and mark those points. Double check your measurements after doing so.##Using a small drill bit (and, ideally a Drill Press) drill pilot holes at each cross.##Then go back and, using a 23/64" Drill Bit drill out each pilot hole. The photos below shows the finished product. You can see the pencil marks as well.<br />[[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt2Strut_Channel_Bolt_Holes_1.jpg|400px]][[File:Strut_Channel_Bolt3Strut_Channel_Bolt_Holes_2.jpg|400px]]#Mounting the Spacers & Flat Washers.##Place a Spacer on top of a bolt hole and put a drop of glue on each side. You don't need much. This isn't meant to be structural, just to hold the spacer in place. <span style="color:#55E439">Let this dry for several hours before moving on to the next step.</span><br />
