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The Rough Draft: In the Spotlight Archive

In the Spotlight

Roof rack vs. bed rack: compare cargo space, overlanding use, weight ratings, tonneau compatibility, and fitment to choose the right truck rack.

A roof rack works well when you want extra cargo space while keeping your truck bed open. A bed rack works well when you want to carry gear above the bed, build an overlanding setup, or mount larger accessories without loading the cab roof.
Neither option is better for every truck. Your best choice depends on what you carry, how often you use the bed, your vehicle's available mounting points, and the weight rating of the specific rack.
Here is how roof racks and bed racks compare and what to check before choosing one.

Roof Rack vs. Bed Rack: Which Is Better for Your Truck?

Learn what truck wheel well liners do, what they protect, their benefits on lifted trucks, and whether adding rear wheel well liners makes sense for your vehicle.

Wheel well liners are protective panels installed inside a truck’s wheel wells to help shield exposed areas from mud, rocks, water, road salt, and other debris.
They also cover open areas between the truck’s body and frame, which gives the wheel well a cleaner, more finished appearance.
For trucks that see gravel roads, muddy trails, job sites, winter weather, or lifted suspension setups, wheel well liners are worth considering.

What Do Wheel Well Liners Do, and Does Your Truck Need Them?

Learn what skid plates do, what parts they protect, steel vs. aluminum differences, and how to choose skid plates for your truck, Jeep, SUV, or UTV.

If you drive off-road, skid plates help protect some of the most vulnerable parts underneath your vehicle from rocks, ruts, stumps, ledges, and trail debris.
A skid plate is a protective panel mounted under a vehicle to shield components such as the engine, oil pan, transmission, transfer case, differentials, fuel tank, exhaust, and suspension areas. Different skid plates protect different parts, so the right setup depends on your vehicle and where you drive.
For trail riding, rock crawling, overlanding, hunting, or regular travel on rough terrain, skid plates add protection where impacts are most likely to happen.

Skid Plates Explained: What They Do, What They Protect, and Do You Need Them?

Compare light bars, pod lights, and ditch lights to find the right off-road lighting setup for your truck, Jeep, SUV, or UTV.

Light bars, pod lights, and ditch lights serve different jobs on the trail. Light bars provide broad forward lighting, pods give you compact and flexible placement, and ditch lights use auxiliary lights near the hood or A-pillars to illuminate the sides of the trail.
One important distinction: ditch lights are usually pod-style lights mounted and aimed for side visibility. They are defined more by their location and purpose than by a unique light design.
The right setup depends on where you drive, how fast you travel, where you need more visibility, and how much mounting space your vehicle offers.&nbsp;

Light Bar vs. Pod Lights vs. Ditch Lights: Which Off-Road Lights Do You Need?

Compare all-terrain, rugged-terrain, and mud-terrain tires for hunting. Learn which tire works best for gravel roads, mud, trails, and daily driving.

Hunting season puts your truck through a mix of highway miles, gravel roads, muddy trails, ruts, and changing fall weather. Choosing the right tires comes down to where you drive most and how tough the access gets once you leave the pavement.
For most hunters, all-terrain tires provide the best balance of road comfort and trail traction. Rugged-terrain tires add more off-road bite for drivers who regularly face mud and rough trails. Mud-terrain tires make the most sense when deep mud, severe ruts, and difficult off-road access are part of almost every trip.
Here’s how all three compare and which tire type fits your hunting setup.

Best Tires for Hunting: All-Terrain vs. Rugged-Terrain vs. Mud-Terrain

Compare retractable vs. folding bed covers to see which offers better bed access, security, weather protection, installation, and value for your truck.

Retractable and folding bed covers both protect your truck bed and cargo, but they fit different needs. Folding covers offer quick access to large or oversized cargo, while retractable covers give you more control over how much of the bed stays open. The right choice depends on how you use your truck, what you haul, your budget, and whether you plan to add a bed rack or other accessories. Here’s how the two compare.

Retractable vs. Folding Bed Covers: Which Is Better?

Learn what tire sizes fit with 2-inch leveling kits, 3 to 4-inch lifts, and 6-inch lifts, plus how wheel offset and tire width affect fitment.

The tire size that fits your truck after installing a lift kit depends on your vehicle, lift height, wheel specifications, tire width, and available clearance.
There is no single tire size that fits every truck with the same amount of lift. Still, Rough Country fitment data gives you useful starting points for common full-size rig setups.

What Size Tires Fit with a Lift Kit?

Learn what wheel spacers do, when your truck, Jeep, or UTV needs them, and how to choose the right Rough Country wheel spacer size.

Adding larger tires, installing a lift kit, or keeping your factory wheels with a modified suspension sometimes creates a clearance problem. Your tire might sit too close to a control arm or another suspension component, or you might want the wheels positioned farther toward the edge of the fenders.
Wheel spacers offer one solution.
Wheel spacers install between the wheel and hub to move the wheel farther outward. Depending on your setup, they help create additional tire clearance, accommodate wider tires, or give your truck, Jeep, or UTV a wider stance.
Before ordering a set, though, you need more than the spacer thickness. Your vehicle, bolt pattern, wheel setup, tire size, center bore, and available clearance all matter.
Here’s how wheel spacers work and how to choose the right size for your setup.

Wheel Spacers Explained: What They Do and What Size You Need

Learn what steering stabilizers do, when to upgrade, and how to choose the right setup for your truck, Jeep, or UTV.

Do you need an upgraded steering stabilizer? If you run larger tires, have a lifted setup, spend time off-road, or notice more steering wheel kickback over rough terrain, an upgrade might make sense.
A steering stabilizer, also called a steering damper, helps control sudden side-to-side movement in the steering system. It absorbs some of the force created when your tires hit potholes, rocks, ruts, and uneven terrain, helping the steering feel more controlled.

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