62 SWB wood bed kit.

[Chevhell]

I'm looking for a suggestion on which company makes the best wood bed kit for my 62. Thanks.

[1320warrior]

Have you checked out Mar-K? I have no personal experience but have heard they are the best kits available.

[donthekawguy]

If you have a tablesaw you can make your own. Takes time but it's about half the cost and you can say you did it yourself.

[60sIron]

Donthekawguy have you done this? I've been told that the thickness is thinner on truck bed wood. Regular 1 x material from a lumber store needs to be milled to fit right. Also heard that without old wood for patterns drilling the holes could be a problem as some are offset. I've never met anyone that's done it to verify. Always seemed to me a table saw and a dado blade and you'd be good to go.

[PGSigns]

I used the strips from Mark K and made up my own wood using Douglas fir. There are good drawings and size charts out there for doing this.
Jimmy

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Mar-K has got great reviews. If you're going to buy a ready-made kit I'd go with them. But you can save a load of money by buying the wood yourself from Lowes and talking it to any cabinet maker. They have all the tools and they'll cut the little grooves (measurements here) for you for just a few bucks. It's like a kid's project to them. Very easy.

After that you'll be good to go. Just drill the mounting holes up from the bottom when you get ready to mount.

[Clyde65]

I just bought some Hickory wood that is cut to size for $100.00 ( got the info from GMCPauls) but 1" thick. a local cabinet maker is willing to plane them down and finish them like I asked for $150.00. So I will have $250.00 in my wood bed, ill use the stainless strips I already have. BTW, I also bought another set of the same wood for my pickup bed trailer but will just paint\stain those black.

[kieth]

We used Mar-Ks dimensions, bought pine locally for $ 55.00, por-15 the wood, then used black uv inhibited paint from Home Depot. Just took a inexpensive table saw from Harbor Freight and a Dado blade set borrowed from a friend......black is the color that Mar-K found that actually holds up over a period of time if exposed to the elements. Mine still looks new after 2.5 years.......Kieth

bare wood after dado blade (we did not have to plane them for depth)
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-G...edfloor3-L.jpg


closer shot:
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-GMC/i-ngvCcFt


after painting black: dust is why they look so bad
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-GMC/i-gqXXwG8

final installation:
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-GMC/i-tLxvc8z


All done:
http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-GMC/i-VFxsvXX

[Clyde65]

Keith,

As I look at your posting, I am more inclined to finish mine just like you did. I know everyone likes the stained and cleared pretty wood, but I want mine to last. I wont put much if anything in the bed ( that's why I have my pickup bed trailer). Can you share how you put applied the por15 on and the information on the HD paint you used please?

[Trump]

Has anybody used this fella? Seems reasonable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oak-Bed-Wood...8c2603&vxp=mtr

[Trump]

Originally Posted by PGSigns

........ There are good drawings and size charts out there for doing this.
Jimmy

Could you post some links please? Thanks

[Clyde65]

http://www.gmcpauls.com/47-72_BedWood_Info.htm

[Clyde65]

Originally Posted by Trump

Has anybody used this fella? Seems reasonable.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Oak-Bed-Wood...8c2603&vxp=mtr

If your truck will be out in the elements, Red Oak isnt as good as White Oak for durability.

Best if you can find a local lumber yard that cuts the logs themselves and order from them. Specialty lumber places would also have it but you are paying for a few middlemen with that too.

[Chevhell]

Thanks for all the help guys. I see that LMC has a kit and Brothers offers one pre-drilled. Anyone have any intel on those? Thanks again.

[Clyde65]

look at the review forum here, I think you will get some insight there about these companies.

I think you can go to a cabinet shop or a lumber yard and get better quality and surely cheaper than the kits offered.

[kieth]

Originally Posted by Clyde65

Keith,

As I look at your posting, I am more inclined to finish mine just like you did. I know everyone likes the stained and cleared pretty wood, but I want mine to last. I wont put much if anything in the bed ( that's why I have my pickup bed trailer). Can you share how you put applied the por15 on and the information on the HD paint you used please?

Clyde, we sanded, applied por15, sanded , applied por, sanded, 3 coats, then sanded and applied some uv inhibited black latex from home depot. this just helped keep the uv rays from breaking down the por 15......sanded between 6 coats, applied with a brush.......just took a little time and patience.

Go to Mar-K website, they tell you how to do it. and they also show the test results for lots of different types of finishes......I took there advise.....and it seems to be working.

[jayoldschool]

If you have (or know someone with) a radial arm saw, you can EASILY do all the cuts yourself. You will save a LOT of money, enough to make your strips/bolts "free". I used GMC Paul's dimensions, they were perfect. Cut lengths first, then made passes for width, a pass for the groove, and a pass for the lower part next to the groove.

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Originally Posted by jayoldschool

...

That looks great Jayoldschool. Is it white oak too? I just had some milled up in white oak. The stuff is HEAVY but should last forever.

[jayoldschool]

That is genuine plastic/recycled wood. TREX facia board, that had sat outside my local hardware store as overstock for a few years. I made them a deal they couldn't refuse. I chose that because my truck will sit outside, and I didn't want to worry about stain/paint failures. If you have a truck that is going to see any weather, I would suggest following Kieth's advice, or consider synthetic like I used. Sharps40 went with this stuff, too, after I did mine. I can't take credit for the idea, I got it from others on here who did it first.

[donthekawguy]

Originally Posted by donthekawguy

If you have a tablesaw you can make your own. Takes time but it's about half the cost and you can say you did it yourself.

I did mine last summer. It takes time and the 1x wood is perfect. It is 3/4 inch thick right from the yard. I got a used Sears table saw, dado blade and the wood for about half of what a kit costs. It's not perfect but next time it will be. I think it turned out good and I get compliments at every fill up. This pic was taken before they were set in place and bolted down. The hardest part is getting all the old stuff out which you have to do anyway.

[AcampoDave]

Kieth, what does Por15 do for wood? I always thought it was some kind of rust encapsulator.

[kieth]

Originally Posted by AcampoDave

Kieth, what does Por15 do for wood? I always thought it was some kind of rust encapsulator.

? Got me, I just followed Mar-Ks' instructions, and it seemed to work. It encapsulates and seals the wood which keeps it from rotting......(I think)

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Originally Posted by AcampoDave

Kieth, what does Por15 do for wood? I always thought it was some kind of rust encapsulator.

It's an epoxy coating so it theoretically should work for anything. Think Plastic Coating. If it can keep the moisture and air out it should make the wood last forever. No active rot can get a foothold.


Kieth do you use your bed? Does it get dings and scratches on the coating showing the wood? I saw their writeup and thought it might work for a well kept bed but I wasn't sure about a used one.