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[Dan]

I see. Would it be safe to say that if you were to put a couple pieces of of 2x4, or something to raise the load floor up, you could fit a 4x8 sheet of whatever back there? Kind of like:

[CLAYDOG]

Exactly, although I think for the most part I'd rest 4x8 sheets on the top of the tail gate.Tying the tire carrier off to the side looks like it would be a bit of a pain. The opening in the mid-gate is 50" at the widest point.

[Dan]

That's good news! Thanks for measuring & reporting Claydog. Plywood would do fine up on the closed tailgate, but sheetrock might not like the bend I guess if you were in that situation you could buy a sheet of plywood to go on the bottom of the stack.

I'm glad my bringing sheetrock home days are over anyway!

You brought up another issue I've been wondering about - what to do with the spare if you need to drive with the tailgate down. I was hoping there was a mechanism to lock the tire into the open position.

[CLAYDOG]

Sorry Dan, I think that because of potential liability issues along with the plate being on the carrier, GM couldn’t put a stop in the open position. I haven’t tried it but it looks like it would be no problem to tie it off if you needed to.

[Dan]

There should be a mechanism where if you're driving down the road and see a stinky treehugger waiting to cross the street, you could push a button and swing the tire carrier out to whack him as you go by.

[hummer17]

Clay & Dan,

I thought that the tire carrier was removable?

Clay - in the picture of your bed, I see rust spots on the bumper...what gives?

[Dan]

I'm sure you can remove the carrier, not sure whether it comes out of the hinge or you actually have to unbolt the mount. But then you have to deal with the license plate and the wire for the plate light.

The rust is the infamous rust that happens on the tow loop mounting bolts. Seems to be a common problem since the H2 came out. You can see it better here: