Both these covers have a very similar working mechanism but they are very different, and in the end, its up to your needs, which cover is more suitable to you.
The Trifecta 2.0 is a trifold but it made out of a softer material, the cover looks great and is very easy to set up. And in terms of it’s price tag, it sits with premium soft roll up covers and budget pick hard trifolds.
Here the BAKflip F1, is also an equally famous cover, which is their top of the line.
Let’s check out both of these covers:
Table of Contents
Looking at their designs
Starting with the Extang’s boy, the Trifecta “2.0”, this cover with its leather grain fiber is not as durable as a hard folding cover, but it’s definitely a step up from the soft folding ones.
The cover is made out of a canvas material and is factory finished with a matte black accent which gives this cover a very attractive look (but looks are subjective).
The Extangs main focus with this cover was not durability, and they took care of other things like the Ease of Use.
So this cover comes with Jaw Grip and EZ lock clamps which require very less effort to get installed, and the cover is very light weight, so you can easily operate with a single hand.
Note: The main weight of the cover is due to its aluminum frame (of military grade material). And the rest is the vinyl leather on top.
The Jaw Grip latches are spring loaded and are located on either sides, and where in BAKflip F1, you have to fish for the cables underneath, the prominent handles in Trifecta, make a nice grip and can be operated very easily in comparison.
The cover can also be secured at 2/3rd position (with buckle straps) and can also be removed in minutes (under 5), if you wish to use your full bed with it.
Note: You can’t access full bed with this cover on as there are no propping rods with this one.
But the cover has dual tail gate sealing, so the tail gate can be opened and closed with cover in any position.
With the tail gate the cover makes two lip seals and on the sides (along with the rails, it has 4 lips seals).
So you are also going to get nice water protection as well (as you’ll see in the next section).
The cover also does not cost too much (almost equal to what a premium soft fold up is gonna cost you) and comes in 2 different sizes (5 ft 7″ and 6 ft 4″).
In case of BAKFLIP f1, it is a very strong premium cover by BAK industries. It’s all aluminum panels are very durable.
And the fiberglass coating on top, besides giving this cover a nice black texture, also makes it very protective against hurting elements.
The cover has aircraft grade aluminum so it also weighs very light (just 50 pounds when packed in a box).
And unlike the Trifecta, this cover has cable latches instead of handles, and also it does not provide you with dual tail gate sealing, so you can not close this cover over the closed tail gate, and you have to close the cover first and then shut the tail gate after to properly lock the cover.
But the good thing is that this cover, again, unlike the Trifecta can be secured to the last position with the help of prop rods.
The cover also has bumpers underneath which rest on the rear of your truck when fully opened, so you can lean any heavy cargo against the panels as these would protect your truck by taking the impact instead.
Also all these trifolds cover the rear of your truck, but with this cover at least, your 3rd middle brake light is still going to show.
Other than this the cover comes with EPDM rubber seals and 2 drain tubes which are connected with the side rails where the bed rests on.
Protection and Durability
Although, Extang’s main focus with this cover is not durability, the cover still is able to give you protection against weather.
It has a weight bearing capacity of almost 200 lbs (similar to premium soft covers) and so the cover can take on heavy rain, hailing and storms.
That’s because the cover’s fabric is made out of marine grade material, and the frame where this cover sits is very sturdy and made out of military grade aluminum.
Withe the Trifecta 2.0, the cover basically improved its hinges and made its frame overall more sturdy especially on the corners (over it’s previous generation).
With the new model, the cover also presents with double pivot hinges and exclusive snap on seals (which eliminate adhesive and stay in place) providing good weather protection.
And since the cover provides you with dual sealing with the tail gate and 4 lip seals on the sides, it also provides good enough protection against the water leakage as well (given that the cover is properly installed).
But with no coating on top the cover is not good against protecting it from the sun, so it’s not going to last as long as the BAKFLIP F1, which comes with FiberGlass polymer coating on its panels.
And besides giving better protection against UV rays, this coating also provides the cover with resistance to minor scratches and dents, and keep the cover cooler from inside (in summers).
The cover is also of course more durable with its solid all aluminum panels providing you with double the weight bearing capacity of 400 lbs (of evenly distributed weight).
It also makes tight sealing as it has EPDM rubber seals and draining system where it has two seals siting along the drain tube inside the bed. One seal prevents the water from going in and some water that does go in, is accumulated in the drain tube and is taken out of the truck.
The other seal sits b/w the tub and your trucks bed.
But the cover does not provide you with the tail gate sealing and is prone to leakage at that place, where Trifecta does.
So we gonna rate both cover same in the water leakage protection.
But note that all covers show leakage and there isn’t any that is 100% waterproof.
Working and Installation:
Both covers have a very similar mechanism of operation.
But the Extang Trifecta provides you with handles to open the covers, while the BAKflip F1 provides you with the cable latches (both of them have these latches on either side of the truck bed cover).
Also both covers can be secured in 2/3rd with the use of buckle straps but only F1 can b secured at the last standing position with prop rods.
And in case of Extang’s cover, if you need to access your whole bed, you would have to remove the cover altogether, but the thing is, it does not require too much time.
The Trifecta 2.0 offers one of the fastest installation and removal process when it comes to trifolds. So I’d worry about storing the covers more than taking them off.
And speaking of installation, the cover comes all gathered so no need for any complex tools or rails.
And about its installation, I am actually going to go as far and say that it would take longer for you to take it out of the box, then put it on your truck.
So What’s the Verdict?
Well if you don’t need as much durability as a hard folding cover, and also don’t want to pay as much as the premium trifold hard covers… you can definitely take a look at the new Trifecta 2.0.
The cover is a good step up from the soft rolling ones.
And besides providing you impressive looks, the cover is also very protection against weather.
On the other side, with BAKFLIP F1, you are going to get full on security with your cover and yes more life as well as the cover comes with FRP.
But for me personally, the biggest selling point of BAK industries has always been their customer service. They deal with the customers in a really nice way.