Wood Bed Finish
 

I have just stained my wood for the bed and was wondering what kind of varnish people used to protect the wood from the elements: rain and sun. I know normal varnish will not stand up to the elements, I was thinking a marine grade used on boat to protect the wood and still give it a shiney look. Does anyone know of any vendors that would sell something like this? Thanks for the help as always

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

marine grade varnish. I'm not sure where you could get some though. I'm sure someone will chime up and say something more.

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

Make sure you do the ends as well as the back side of the boards.

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

i used this West Marine branded Wood Pro Plus synthetic varnish on the wooden rear deck on my ski nautique, it has held up good so far, but only been on a couple months. the rear deck of the boat is where you put your wakeboard, waterskiis, etc. on, so it gets some use.

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs...1/10001/244035

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

Thanks guys, I seach other threads on here and found one which tested many different types of coating. I have chosen to go with the POR 15 clear coat for wood and them spray 3 coat of minwax outdoor sealant to get a shine and uv protection

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

Let us know how it works out. We love pictures......

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

The finish of the bed is something I've been looking at lately.

Everything I've seen has always peeled and flaked in a year or two, hence the requirement to refinish your bedwood on a continual basis. Even the very best finishes will eventually break down over time... god forbid should you use your truck to carry anything.

My intention is to paint the truck black with chrome accents, so I decided that I will be using a heavy black stain on the oak boards of mine with stainless tracks. The idea is to soak them in the stain for a couple of months before removing them and allowing to 'dry'. Hopefully this should entice some heavy pentration of the stain and without the hard shiny coating on the outside, I shouldn't see the finish flaking over time. Hey, a quick wipe and recoat of black stain is easy to do and looks great all over again.

Cheers,
Ted.

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

Check out this link to Mark-K web site, they tried out 10 different products over a 2 year period to see how they lasted. Very interesting as they were left out in the summer sun and winter snow to brave the elements. I'm going with the POR-15 Plucid and Helmsman combination because my truck is usually garaged if I'm not driving it. I've tried the Por-15 on Red Oak and it looks like water it that clear...

http://www.mar-k.com/wood_finish_testing_ii.html

Re: Wood Bed Finish
 

Yes Atom,

Thats the same thread I looked at. I ordered my POR 15 and doing that same one. I will post pictures when its complete. Mine will also be garaged so I m thinking it will hold up well