Truck bed size

So I’m looking at trading in my suv for a truck. Currently I am looking at 1500s and the largest bed size I can find is 6ft 4 in length with a 1500. Those of you have 12 to 14 ft kayaks, how easily do they travel in the truck bed? What size truck bed do you have? How do you transport them?
I’m trying to look to the future for when I go from a 10ft basic kayak to my Hobie and I want to make sure I will be able
To easily transport it.

I drive a Tacoma with 5' short bed. When transporting my wife's kayak (10ft) I simply leave the tailgate down and flag the end of the kayak. When taking my outback out I use a Boonedox T-bone https://boonedoxusa.com/products/t-bone-bed-extender  There's many options similar to this but the T-bone doesn't scrape when leaving steep driveways (mine is.)

I have an F150 with 6.5 ft bed and a 2020 Outback.  The 2020 Outback is 12’9”.  The truck bed is my primary transportation for the kayak.  I have the kayak all set up ready to go, so getting on the water is very quick. 

Lots of options for 6 ft beds and 12 ft boats, lumber racks work. I’ll be posting up custom headache rack with secondary bars  I’m building with cjweinhe here pretty soon.

I drive a Tacoma with 5' short bed. When transporting my wife's kayak (10ft) I simply leave the tailgate down and flag the end of the kayak. When taking my outback out I use a Boonedox T-bone https://boonedoxusa.com/products/t-bone-bed-extender  There's many options similar to this but the T-bone doesn't scrape when leaving steep driveways (mine is.)

I was actually thinking of this exact thing. The only problem would be when I hauled the camper. Though I don’t even know if a 1500 would haul that.
I was also thinking because it is so much longer than the truck bed of rigging up some trailer lights to the ends of the bars.

Also, do you guys put down anything to set the kayak on top of in the bed or do you guys just toss the kayak in the truck bed.

Just toss. I  have a long bed which makes it easy for one or two 12' kayaks, though.

Also, do you guys put down anything to set the kayak on top of in the bed or do you guys just toss the kayak in the truck bed.

I use an old scrap of carpet to cushion the kayak

We sell the Boonedox Bed extenders at Outdoor Emporium in Seattle.  I've got both the Groovy (50" wide) and the bigger original bed extender (60" wide, good if you are hauling 2 kayaks).

Kevin

For day-trips I just throw my Outback in the bed with the tailgate down. 6.5 + 1.5 = 8, so only 4' to extend. Throw a flag on it, and at a corner-to-corner angle only 2' past the end of the tailgate.

From time to time I will go further to lift it onto the kayak saddles on the ladder rack, but that's so much more effort that I only do it with the lightest boat. My teardrop has a rack and saddles on it as well, to the boat rides there unless I have more than one boat with me.

Anymore, if it is my boat and my bitter half with hers, I have a jetski trailer that hauls them both.

Add a "bed extender" or whatever they call those baby-gate things that fold out and rest on the tailgate to extend the truck bed.  That will add another foot-and-one-half to the length of the bed, plus tilt the kayak into the bed, and you'll have more than half of a thirteen foot kayak in the bed.  Careful use of load straps will secure it rock-solid.

I have a five foot bed with one of these extender-things and it worked perfectly for an 11'6" Trident 11 but it isn't quite long enough for my 13'6" Tridents.

And they still make pickups with long beds, like C_Run's truck.  They may not show them on the lots, but they make them.