tl, you are right about the wear and tear aspect of polished aluminum. I installed it because I do not plan to haul much if anything with my '55. If I do, I will lay something down to protect the finish or use a utility trailer to haul stuff (I normally use my 1997 S-10 as my daily workhorse).
I found the aluminum to be relatively easy to work with. Plastic is another matter...I don't know how one would take a one-piece bedliner and cut/fit to make it work in an AD AND make it look good.
