Stake Bodies
Stake bodies built your way.
We custom-build steel and aluminum stake bodies in our Jacksonville, FL shop for landscapers, contractors, and farmers throughout Florida and South Georgia. Removable racks, any size, built to take a beating — 70+ years of fabrication behind every one.
The most versatile body on the road.
Stake bodies combine the open hauling capacity of a flatbed with removable side racks that turn your truck into a contained cargo platform. Perfect for hauling anything from landscape materials to bulk equipment.
What You Get.
Every Nichols Built stake body is fabricated to your exact specs with commercial-grade construction designed to outlast the truck it's mounted on.
Quick-release stake pockets let you swap from contained hauling to flatbed in minutes
Heavy-gauge longitudinal sills and crossmembers for years of dependable service
Your choice of aluminum treadplate, steel treadplate, or painted steel surface
Stop/tail, turn, reverse, and marker lights — fully wired and ready to roll
Underbody toolboxes, headboards, hitches, mud flaps — whatever the job demands
Who Uses Them.
Stake bodies are the swiss army knife of work trucks. If you haul mixed loads, bulk materials, or need flexible cargo containment, this is the body for you.
Mulch, sod, debris, equipment, tools — all in one truck
Hay bales, feed, livestock supplies, fence materials
Lumber, drywall, ladders, scaffolding, jobsite gear
Forklift-friendly platform for palletized freight
If it needs hauling, we can spec a stake body for it.
Let's spec your stake body.
Tell us what you need and we'll send pricing within 24 hours.
Frequently Asked Questions.
Quick answers to what most customers ask before ordering a stake body.
What's a stake body actually used for?
A stake body is basically a flatbed with removable side racks. The sides come off (or hinge down) so you can load mixed cargo, large equipment, or palletized freight. It's the most versatile body type out there — landscapers haul mulch and equipment, contractors haul lumber and tools, farmers haul hay and feed. If you carry a variety of stuff, a stake body is hard to beat.
Steel or aluminum stake body — which should I get?
Steel is tougher against impact damage and cheaper upfront — good if you load rough stuff like blocks, gravel, or scrap. Aluminum is lighter (more payload), doesn't rust, and looks cleaner. For Florida especially, where humidity and salt air eat steel, aluminum is often the smart long-term play.
Are the side racks really removable?
Yes — that's the whole point of a stake body. The racks slide into stake pockets and can be removed in a few minutes. You can run it as a full enclosed cargo platform with racks installed, or pop them off and use it as a flatbed. Some customers keep different sets of racks for different jobs.
What stake heights do you offer?
Standard is 42 inches (about waist-high), which works for most loads. We also do shorter racks (12, 24, 36 in) for stuff that doesn't need full containment, and taller racks (48+ inches) for hauling lighter, bulkier stuff like mulch, hay bales, or insulation. Custom heights are no problem.
Can you add a hitch and toolboxes?
Absolutely. Underbody toolboxes (curb side, street side, or both), pintle hitches, ball hitches, gooseneck hitches — anything you need. We'll install everything when we build the body so it's all integrated and looks clean.
Do I need a bulkhead/headboard?
A bulkhead (the front panel between the cab and the bed) keeps cargo from sliding forward into your cab — pretty important if you're hauling anything heavy. We offer solid bulkheads (full panel) or mesh-window bulkheads (you can see through to the back of the cab). Most customers go with one or the other. We don't usually recommend skipping it unless you have a very specific reason.
How long does a stake body install take?
Since we build these from scratch in-house, expect about 2-4 weeks depending on our shop schedule and how custom the configuration is. We'll give you a real timeline when you submit a quote.
Prefer to talk it through?
Sometimes it's faster to call. Our team can walk you through stake body options, lead times, and pricing in minutes.