Paragon Bed Cover Installed (Tonneau Cover)

After researching multiple brands of tonneau covers I decided on the Paragon Limited HD XRP Matte Black. I knew I didn't want a vinyl cover or a tri-fold so I was looking at retractable systems. The main reason I chose the Peragon was because it doesn't use a canister/box to house the cover when retracted. With having the short bed, I didn't want to sacrifice 8-12 inches of bed space being taken up by a permanently attached canister for the cover. I liked that the Peragon panels are easily removable when retracted if you need the entire bed. Retracted, the panels only take up slightly more than 5 inches. So far I'm happy with the cover. Through my exhaustive research I learned there is no perfect cover. Every type has its pro's and con's. There is also no such thing as a waterproof cover unless you go with a hard fiberglass type cover, which comes with more limitations that other covers IMHO. After a few car washes (yea I know I know) there was only minimal water intrusion at the driver and passenger side of tailgate seam which ran forward along the edge of the bed. Not a big deal and the rest of the bed was dry. Installation was easy thanks to their detailed instructions and short video tutorials on their website. I did the install myself in about 2.5 hours.

The bedcover looks good, I don't see many people on the forums with this particular cover. The HD only adds the matte black surface?

z28tranz said:

The bedcover looks good, I don't see many people on the forums with this particular cover. The HD only adds the matte black surface?

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Basically, yes, the “Limited HD” adds the matte black finish but it also comes with a longer warranty than the others, and it’s shipped immediately. The “Classic” and “Platinum” are made when ordered so the lead time is several weeks, whereas the Limited HD arrived at my doorstep 3 days after I bought it.

I guess that's one way to push the premium model. That being said, I definitely like Paragon vs the other bed covers.

z28tranz said:

I guess that's one way to push the premium model. That being said, I definitely like Paragon vs the other bed covers.

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Exactly. I needed the bed security and wanted the matte black finish vs the glossy finish so I ponied up the extra money. But I think any of the 3 models are great. I really like the option to remove the cover altogether for full bed access. And it’s very easy to do.

salty1z said:

Exactly. I needed the bed security and wanted the matte black finish vs the glossy finish so I ponied up the extra money. But I think any of the 3 models are great. I really like the option to remove the cover altogether for full bed access. And it’s very easy to do.

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Yes, the ease of removal and also the space that it occupies while in the folded position is what sold me on this specific cover.

I have been looking and this is a nice option between a rolling and folding cover.

Thanks for the info. Can you answer these questions:
Does it rattle/make noise in the open or closed position?
Does it easily open partially, and hold that position?

JimVG said:

Thanks for the info. Can you answer these questions:
Does it rattle/make noise in the open or closed position?
Does it easily open partially, and hold that position?

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Hi Jim,
1. The cover does not rattle or make noise in the closed position. It will rattle in the open position if you do not strap the slats together with the nylon tether that is used to pull it closed.
2. The cover is only designed to open fully or close fully. It can be opened partially but will not hold position, since it is supported by hydraulic struts. However, I personally have opened it halfway and loaded some Home Depot items in the rear half of the bed, then closed the cover halfway and used the tether strap by tying it to the rear bed anchor to hold the cover in position.

While no bed cover system is perfect, what I like about this cover is that I can remove the cover in less than a minute and have full use of the entire bed space, unlike many other similar systems. This came in handy several times when I transported some large items like appliances and pallets of building materials where the entire bed was needed.

I mainly use this to secure valuable items in the bed when camping, such as a generator, propane tanks, tools, and such.

Hope this helps answer your questions.

I just looked this one up, looks good but how do you open it if the front of your bed is full of stuff? Seems almost unusable for a loaded up road trip if you want to grab something out of the middle or front of the bed.

otterman said:

I just looked this one up, looks good but how do you open it if the front of your bed is full of stuff? Seems almost unusable for a loaded up road trip if you want to grab something out of the middle or front of the bed.

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That is one of the downsides to this system, but there are work-arounds that still allow you full access/use of the whole bed. I usually load lower profile items in the front of the bed that won’t interfere with the glide path of the slats when they retract. But many times, I have loaded the bed with larger items that don’t allow me to open the cover until I clear room for the slats to retract. In those cases, I load the items I know I might need access to at the very rear of the bed and access them through the tailgate. I then unload the bed using a pole hook similar to this one: https://a.co/d/1akBfgI
I actually prefer using the pole hook since I’ve had ACL reconstruction in both knees and have knee issues now. Also, I’m vertically challenged (5’-8”) so reaching into the bed from the side is a futile effort anyway! The pole hook makes unloading camping gear and luggage super easy.

If you opted for one of the canister style roll up systems you would essentially have similar issues: not being able to fully load the front of the bed. But with those systems you lose almost a foot of your bed permanently. That was a no go for me.