The front of the hole (at the back of the channel's lip) should be no more than 26" forward from the back of the bed, but 25 is probably best. The back of the hole depends on the size of the cover plate you have, so DON'T CUT THE HOLE until you have a repair plate in-hand. The sides of the hole should be at the upward bends in the lowest points of the bed ridges so that any fuel or debris will be easy to sweep into the hole. But don't cut into the flat bottoms of the ridges since the cover panel screws have to hit this area. The front edge of the hole can be an inch or so behind the welds to avoid the lip of the floor support channel. You can always cut the hole too small, and then enlarge it as-needed. But if you cut it too large, the plate won't cover the hole, so always start small.

Owner caption April 2006 · Photo 1245 of 5000