Poor Boy's Truck Bed

[gor in san diego]

Poor Boy's Truck Bed

I read through summerj's post of 2-14 on bed rebuild tips so this seems an opportune time to post this one. I have a 64 C-20 that I have rehabbed, not to be construed as "Restored". This was a low end no frills workin' truck, has a fairly low mileage chassis, 136K but was wasted body wise. He originally carried my camper, but also took on big loads of un-split fire wood logs, large rocks, rough gravel, heavy junk and who knows what on rough roads. Sat out in the rain, sleet , and more. Because I had owned him since 1966, I made it a project to bring him back. After lots hammering, cutting, metal forming, wire feed welding, fastening, fiberglass plus Bondo, a new wind shield and a little paint, enamel only, he began to look like he once was, plus refitted with late sixties wheels and caps to replace the old split rims. The bed around the wheel wells had developed fatigue cracks. I put in a steel strip as a well stiffener with sheet metal screws and added two supports similar to the stock rearward support as shown. The bed side panel is a lot more ridged now and I recommend this procedure. This was done before the major body work and before a welder.

Then came the bed. The bed boards after this much time were cracked and splintered with sections punched through and large views of the road below. Considering the cost of commercial restoration bed kits, I decided that this investment proposition was worth more than the truck was. The steel retainer strips were rusted, but intact. Taking it apart was a chore. Some of the fasteners could be unscrewed in place. Some of the crimp type connectors in the strips and the carriage bolts around the perimeter the had to be held with various means to get the nuts off. Some removed with a cut off wheel. Once apart, the steel retainer strips were wire brushed and painted in black enamel. The original wood bed material was Southern Yellow Pine. This is a high resin soft wood that lasts and wears well and was often used for flooring. (born & raised in Florida, go Gators). To fabricate long bed boards, you need just a little over 8 feet, which means a 10 foot board. Pricing the hardwoods and Yellow Pine in 10 foot lengths was pretty high. Western fir and spruce is not good for this application because it weathers badly, but wait, what about red wood or cedar, not strong woods, but durable in the weather.

I chose to use cedar, very soft, and it splits easily as in cedar shakes, an obvious risk. I selected 6 foot western cedar fence boards. Part of the decision was that I was rebuilding my back yard fence so bought a substantial quantity. The boards were about $2.50 each, which was reasonable. I stacked the boards into a spaced rick because as received boards are green. After about a year of curing, (I am a retired guy with no hurried agenda), I carefully picked the ones with the least number of knots. The knots in the selected boards were drenched in low viscosity epoxy (Shell 815) to fix them in position.

Now, how do you fit 6 foot boards into an 8 foot plus bed? Well, if you look at the chassis with no bed, there is a subtle zone that can support two piece bed boards, if you cleverly cut them to share the support. The very outside sections fit within the 6 foot restriction. So...I started at the outside, and cut the fender well and outside pieces to fit and routed the joint sections to take the retainer strips. Moved inside fitting and routing the boards. I got to the center, cut the board width to fit and routed the joints. It all laid out well. Drilled the peripheral holes. The boards were coated with Behr Clear Waterproofing Compound. Purchased 1/4-20 stainless steel truss head cap screws to fasten it down. Used conventional 5/16 galvanized carriage bolts on the perimeter. Assembled the whole thing. Held the cap screws in position with a strong ceramic magnet on top of the retainer strip until the nuts started to bight into the lock washers. It went together real tight. Painted the carriage bolt heads white. See pics, particularly the middle of the bed joint. This is no restoration, but, the old beast looks fine, if you don't get too close. As a sort of test case, I picked up and carried a large double door fridge, with wheels (high pressure points). Rolled in and out and no problem. Time will tell how it holds up.

[64shortbox]

Thanks for posting your info and pics. Your article wants me to get started replacing my bed.

[Woogeroo]

That's good thinking!

It's a truck and you can still use it that way without breaking the bank.



-W