Best way to cut this without making it look terrible

I was hoping someone here might have a suggestion or ah ha! idea on how to best trim this Rough Country bed mat. It's about 1/4 to 1/2 inch of heavy thick rubber. Ive noticed it pinching the drain tubes for the bed cover. I'm also planning to install bed stiffeners near the tailgate for a tent that will push it back even further. I'm picturing something like a hot wire to make it look like it was purposefully shaped to give the tubes and the stiffeners a little room. Maybe there's something out there that was made for a job like this.

 

Put painters tape on the backside, draw with a sharpie (or similar) your pattern to be cut, and use a jig saw. It'll let you go slow and steady, giving you control. You can also have someone hold a level to run the jig saw against as a fence for the stiffeners. If you have a sacrificial board to cut through also that will help.

You can also use a utility knife against a straight edge on the sharpie lines. You'll just have to make several passes until you get all the way through.

You don't want to use a hot wire, think burning tires. It'll stink like hell and not move quickly.

 

Hole saw to make the drain tube notches? Maybe sit it on and butt against piece of wood the give center bit something to go thru to keep it from "walking".

 

Or something like this for the drain holes, or notches, or where ever you need to make adjustment.

 

I feel like these guys might chew it up a bit. I like the other ideas though. Appreciate all the perspectives.

 

Oh yeah, but you're just trying to make a notch for the tubes right? You'd literally start at the edge and grind away. If you're going to try and make a hole in the mat, a small hole saw with wood underneath.

 

Make a punch out of iron pipes with right diameter. Clean and easy if you have a bench grinder

 

You had me at tubes and stiffeners.

Nothing a hole saw and or judicious use of a jigsaw couldn’t handle. Don’t overthink the problem

 

If you're just trying to make a straight cut, it's fairly easy.

Here's what I do to cut stall mats (most are 1/2 to 3/4" heavy rubber for horse stalls)...

Using a t-square that you'd use to cut drywall, etc. such as this:


Place the shorter end on the side and the longer end across the 'width' of the bed liner.

Then, using an x-acto knife, make a shallow cut along the length of the square. The knife may try to run away from the square, so take your time w/this first cut and just be precise and not worry about depth of the cut at all...

Now, slide the mat so the cut is over hanging the tailgate, a table, or something solid that allows you to see the separation created by the cut (it will kinda look like skin that has been cut and then spreads open as the end hangs off the edge).

Now make a second, but again highly precise, shallow cut along the same line. You may need to use the t-square as a guide still, or you may be able to free-hand at this point... But, you'll make another shallow cut going super slow and making sure you stay in the first cut (which is why you bend the material to open the cut up a bit and provide a 'channel'). If you try to just cut along the t-square again without opening up the cut, you'll probably have the blade skip and try to move away from the t-square.

At this point your cut(s) should be deep enough to allow you to slowly pass the through the channel that was created by the first cuts as long as you continue to work slow, use a super sharp knife w/a fresh blade, and keep the cut 'open' while working.

Once you're about 1/2 way through the thickness of the mat, you should be able to transition to a box cutter w/a new blade and finish the job.

You'll probably go through 2 of 3 x-acto knife blades doing this one cut, but it will be clean and look good


Regarding the 'drilling' process that a few have suggested. If the mat is absolutely secure and anchored around the drilling point, you should be fine. However if the mat can move around at all, it will bunch up and shift on you causing an uneven and sloppy cut...

 

Hole saw.

$13 Bosch HTW78 7/8 In. Thin-wall Hole Saw, Blue

https://www.amazon.com/Bosch-HTW78-...&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4584413741925419&th=1