Sealing Bed Wood?

[Dodge68charger]

Anyone Use Automotive Clear Coat On Their Bed Wood An If So How Did You Seal It To Prevent Bubbles?

Bought a Red Oak Wood Kit From Mar-k But Its Pretty Boring Lol. Not Much Grain Lol
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[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by Dodge68charger

Anyone Use Automotive Clear Coat On Their Bed Wood An If So How Did You Seal It To Prevent Bubbles?

Bought a Red Oak Wood Kit From Mar-k But Its Pretty Boring Lol. Not Much Grain Lol
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I think Mar-K has a how to on sealing their wood on their web site. Might check it out. I don't think automotive clear would work very good.

LockDoc

[Dodge68charger]

Originally Posted by LockDoc

I think Mar-K has a how to on sealing their wood on their web site. Might check it out. I don't think automotive clear would work very good.

LockDoc

I ll check their site out. Thank You
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[Palf70Step]

I have never used a "sealant" on wood. They a.ways tended to crack and split, especially for vehicles outside a lot. My go-to was using Danish oil or Tung oil on the wood. Since mine were driven a lot and out in the sun alot, I would try and do it every other year.

[72c20customcamper]

Automotive clear is as good as polyurethane now in fact it’s probably better . It’s flexible enough that it won’t crack with the wood movement . Used to be you had to add flex agent to paint bumpers but that’s a thing of the past .

In order to not get bubbles you need to thin the first coat or use an inter coat clear so it soaks into the wood. Then sand and reapply it would take a lot of coats and sanding to get a smooth finish . If your going for show results it would work out but it would need to be kept up with if used on a regular basis.

And if the grain isn’t appealing raw it won’t be with clear on it . I just redid mine as it got stained I used an oil but I think working around the truck grinding dust got on the wood . And moisture metal and oak don’t mix oak has tannins that react with iron causing it to turn a blueish hue . Wasn’t going for glass just a well sealed finish . I got the wood from a local mill it was 5/4 white oak and I did the finish work .

Edit: After talking with some cabinet makers and doing online research the Minwax water based spar urethane was highly recommended . We shall see how well it weathers . My truck isn’t going to be outdoors but I’m sure I’ll get caught in the rain

[notsolo]

Spectacular, finish on the white oak..Dining room quality, now what about the truck.

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by notsolo

Spectacular, finish on the white oak..Dining room quality, now what about the truck.

It’s getting there

[Jason Banks]

Here I used Matte Automotive clearcoat.... except I put it over West System 105/207 Epoxy. Had to get enough epoxy on to be able to sand it flat without going through to the wood/stain before spraying with the clearcoat. It it on White Oak. About your original bubble question. I was using a torch to help pop bubbles in the epoxy, then discovered the West System foam rollers and they laid the epoxy down very nice. Then a light sanding between layers and any bubbles would get filled with the next coat. I did have some spots where I had to put a dribble of epoxy to file and then sand flat before next coat.

[Peanut74]

Either way you go be sure to seal the whole board. Top, bottom, sides and especially the ends to keep the amount of moisture the wood absorbs to a minimum. The end grain will absorb moisture the most that is why many times you see boards rotted at the ends and the middle is fine.

[72c20customcamper]

Be prepared for lots of sanding . Also something a lot of people neglect is that you need to round any hard edges . The tensile strength of the finish pulls it from the edge causing it to be very thin and usually the first place to fail . I’m on the 5th coat today last two boards

[Jrainman]

Originally Posted by Palf70Step

I have never used a "sealant" on wood. They a.ways tended to crack and split, especially for vehicles outside a lot. My go-to was using Danish oil or Tung oil on the wood. Since mine were driven a lot and out in the sun alot, I would try and do it every other year.

Very good advice , I will go a step further and tell you if you really want your wood bed floor to last, or I should say out live your truck , This is the method you should use , and I will add the cost is going to be less the 50 bucks.

Have you ever driven through farm land communities and see those old 100 -200 year old barns still standing , or watch a TV program on recovering old wood ships from the 1600- 1800s or even a Viking era ship , and ask your self why they are still intact or standing , well it because they all basically used the same process to weather proof the wood , even the military used this type of application on there rifle stocks this forgotten process was used on many exterior weather proofing of wood products that would be abused , Like the old wood cross country skies and wooden Base ball bats, there is a church in I believe Norway that is a thousand years old that has a cedar shingle roof that used this process and to this day no repairs have been made.

So what is this miracle stuff , well you still can find it easily even Amazon or your local tractor supply will have it in there Equines department ,OH yea they use it on Horses ,have you ever here of hoof rot ,well they still use it to weather proof a horses hoof . its called Pitch Pine or Pine tar .

how do you apply it well there is a few methods , But here is how I use it in wood bed applications and It does not care what kind of species of wood you have , all applications should be done on a hot sunny Day.

This method I use is for the back side of bed boards , remember the sun is your friend , I lay my boards with the back side up to the sun you also can use a heat gun to get your boards nice and warm , I then apply with a brush my pitch pine/ pine tar with a nice coat , not to heavy but make sure of good coverage, then I let it sit for a couple hours and wipe the board down with a rag , I let stand till dry for 24-48 hours , then I do the same process again adding another coat, Now with the back side dry your done . it will appear as if you painted the boards Black or dark Brown depending on the type of Pine tar you bought .

there are only 2 types of pine trees that is used for extracting Pine tar one is called a Small leaf pine and the other is called a Pitch Pine

The front process will be a 50/50 mixture of pine Pitch/tar and Boiled Linseed oil , this will result in a clear or stain like appearance that will enhance the grain , The applying process is the same as above , but you stop when you reach your desired look after that you can apply more build coats of Linseed oil to get a glossy appearance or you could use a ski wax that will hold up very well for a nice shine for a year or soo . you can also color enhance your mixture with adding your choice of color aniline dying powder again cheep at Amazon. but experiment with some scrap wood to get your desired color the way you want.

[mike16]

Not pine tar. That is used to seal between the boards

Linseed oil, boiled. Is what was used. On British ships gunstocks ect.

[Rocketir]

I know that equal parts of Boiled Linseed Oil / Beeswax / Turpentine (refined pine resin) is often used as an antique furniture top coat. But it isn't really super durable and water proof
https://woodandshop.com/make-a-histo...polish-finish/.

[lolcopter]

I used Home Depot outdoor urethane sealer. Put like 10 coats on it. It goes on thin.

[72c20customcamper]

Originally Posted by lolcopter

I used Home Depot outdoor urethane sealer. Put like 10 coats on it. It goes on thin.

Coming out nice

[LS short box]

A question.
On my 68 I used a 69 Camaro gas tank that fills thru a flip down licence plate.
The reason I did that is because I was concerned that if I used a thru the bed filler and I spilled some gas as I was filling the tank the gas would bubble up or discolor the finish unless a automotive clear was used.

[OregonNed]

Epiphanes Clear Varnish with Extra U/V protection worked well for me - we laid 13 or 14 coats of it...

[72c20customcamper]

I can’t leave well enough alone . Sanded with 2500 hand rubbed then 3 coats of wax . Need some swirl remover to get the halos out . One done 8 more to go same board different lighting