Finishing Bed Wood with oil: Does it last, Let's just see

[leadfoot067]

almost a year since last update. hows the oiled wood? i am ready to do my own and thinking of going the oil route.

[jeffahart]

Originally Posted by leadfoot067

almost a year since last update. hows the oiled wood? i am ready to do my own and thinking of going the oil route.

Let me take some pics tomorrow and I'll write an update with the good the bad and all that.


j

[Ironangel]

Lot of nice looking wood beds...I treat my wood bed once a year (whether it needs it or not) with used motor oil. I mop it on liberally on a hot summer morning after a good high pressure cleaning a day or two prior to oiling. The oil seeps through and coats the fastening hardware protecting it as well...Nothing fancy because I haul dirt, rock, straw and brush as well as tools and fuel barrels. My truck spends it's life outside in the rain sleet snow and blazing sun...Nothing Fancy...

[3757chevy]

I have planned to use beetle kill pine and am interested in seeing you're results.

[jeffahart]

Here's a couple pics from last Oct 2018 when I last did an application. Normally I will touch up the strips and wheel wells with white canned rust-oleum. Then I will apply the oil next day, week, month or whenever I get around to it. Oiling only takes about 15 minutes. But, how's it holding up? Last Oct when I went to oil I noticed the second big board from the left was cupping up about a 1/4". So I lashed it down, you can see the bolts to the cross members. That same board had continued to open up. I have always had my eye on that particular board. If you look at the original pics you can see the faint black lines in the same board. It has continued to open a bit each year. I don't think it's going anywhere now. I dripped extra oil in the cracks and that has now hardened like a resin.

I like the dark patina. I like that the wood is getting hard. I don't like that it's opening up. I think I will get 10-15 years. I think the wood will still be structurally viable in that time frame. But it won't win a show prize!

The truck stays outside and the bed get's abused. But.. it's not the usage abuse, it's just flat the weather. Wood doesn't like weather. You have to maintain wood. It's why I tried this (almost) maint free solution. Easy maint anyway, not like paint or varnish.

I was at a restoration shop Saturday. The owner was looking over my truck, he commented on the bed wood and said they spray a poly clear coat like for paint jobs. He said it won't split with that. I really doubt it though, let me see the three to five year bed spent outside. His stuff is expensive and his clients probably both garage and cover their expensive toys. But, everyone comments on the bed wood and has an opinion, I listen and I am interested. But I really want to see the five year, been in the elements solution. Keeping wood looking natural and pristine is a tough one. Paint is the pest protection you can get, and sometimes boards still crack and move. You can get paint that's pretty damed good, but there is no guarantee how each board is going to behave. But I wanted my wood to look like wood. So there's that, the satisfaction I get when I look at the wood.

Anyhow thats the update. Would I do tung oil again? Not sure yet. I will definitely know in five more years. Would I do yellow pine again? Not sure on that either. Next time I may just mill some railroad ties.

I posted this to help people decide. Not really an evangelist, just hoped to get a good solution to keep the natural look.



j

[jeffahart]

Oh also, one other thing. The zinc bolt heads are beginning to rust now too. I mean patina!


j

[weq92f]

.
Nice! Thanks for the update. FWIW I'm thinking your bed looks fantastic given the minimal amount of time required to maintain it and the fact that you don't really protect it at all.

-klb

[leadfoot067]

thanks for the update!

[3757chevy]

I've finished cutting my wood , now I need to drill some holes , sand and finish. How is yours looking now ?

[leadfoot067]

i finished mine with penofin. https://www.penofin.com/wood-stains/...ish-wood-stain
my truck sits inside. i drive it to work 2-3 times a week. the wood is pine.

[jeffahart]

Originally Posted by leadfoot067

i finished mine with penofin. https://www.penofin.com/wood-stains/...ish-wood-stain
my truck sits inside. i drive it to work 2-3 times a week. the wood is pine.

Bed looks killer! If you can, try to keep up on annual updates so we can see durability and manit. Looks like I'm due for an annual application and update pics myself. I can say mine is starting to petrify and get hard.

Anyhow, great job. Your'e going to love looking in the bed and seeing that wood!

j

[leadfoot067]

Originally Posted by leadfoot067

i finished mine with penofin. https://www.penofin.com/wood-stains/...ish-wood-stain
my truck sits inside. i drive it to work 2-3 times a week. the wood is pine.

to update on my truck... the bed wood with the penofin didnt really change visually in a year. still looks good! i sold the truck in july of 2020.

[leadfoot067]

i specifically posted this so i can find it later! so then i will know when i did it. i will update in 6 months or so.

[jeffahart]

I oiled so I will log an update. Wood has taken on a nice dark patina. I like it a lot. The wood is getting really hard. I posted a pic of the bottom also. I have not touched the bottom since install. Over the weekend I touched up the strips with the canned white Rustoleum, and took some steel wool to the wood to bring up a little amplitude then oiled. I abuse the bed pretty badly, no mercy. It lives outside. It ain't pretty, but it looks like I might get 20 years if it continues to get harder.

Top




Bottom

[cornerstone]

I'd call this method a win!

[leadfoot067]

Looks Great!

[lil hoodlum]

Any updates?

[Steeveedee]

Jeff hasn't posted since 11/06/2020. I hope that he's just real busy.

[jeffahart]

Originally Posted by Steeveedee

Jeff hasn't posted since 11/06/2020. I hope that he's just real busy.

Yes, doing fine(knock on wood). Moved to Arizona beginning of 2020 and have indeed been very busy. Thanks for kind thoughts.

j

[Steeveedee]

Originally Posted by jeffahart

Yes, doing fine(knock on wood). Moved to Arizona beginning of 2020 and have indeed been very busy. Thanks for kind thoughts.

j

Sometimes people just disappear and are never seen again. People are left wondering. I'm seeing more of it as I get older.

[MAC71Cheyenne]

Nothing like a nice wood bed...years ago I re-did the bed in my GMC after the factory paint was peeing off. Used linseed oil thinned with turpentine. The thing about an oil finish is it actually penetrates into the wood instead of lying on the surface. Iowa winters and hot humid summers were not a problem.
Mike

[custom10nut]

I’m using Yellow Pine, that I went to the Lumber Mill and picked out each board.
Then I cut to length and milled the grooves myself (using the Spec Chart that GMC Paul has )
The finish I chose was a mixture of Stains, to closely match the color of the Interior “Wood” accents.
To finish it, I chose Boiled Linseed Oil. I went with the BLO for the breathable nature of the oil. I put on three coats (both sides) over about 10 months to let it soak in good. Then I rubbed it all down with Acetone and Steel Wool, to get the Tacky film off.
Currently, the wood is in my garage waiting to be installed. I’ll post it on this thread when I finally get to put it in.
The main reason for going with the oil finish is that I destroyed my original bed (which was perfect when I bought the truck) by sanding it smooth and applying a Marine Urethane to make it look nice.
Fast forward about 15 years, and I’m up under the bed and find a Mushroom Farm, because the outer finish wouldn’t allow the moisture to escape. Live and learn

[MAC71Cheyenne]

Depending on the look you want southern yellow pine, fir, or oak...red or white, seem to be tops. If you can find them the recycled old growth barn boards with the tight grain is the best. More work cutting, finish sanding, and fitting but wow. If you dabble in wood working and use a good old fashion hand plane or scraper you don't have to sand it. Looks like a Victorian parlor floor.

[lil hoodlum]

I only ask because I recently bought a 68 C20 that came with the wood bed. I would like to replace the wood bed and use the yellow pine kit from MarK. I'm thinking of using an oil type product to preserve the wood. The truck would be outdoors 24/7 and used as a truck. I like the idea of the use of oils on wood to preserve them.

[special-K]

Does oil last? Nothing lasts, everything has to be redone at some point. The oil soaks into the wood and protects it. It isn't a hard finish to peel or scratch through. You just add another coat when you feel it is needed. The more times you oil it the better it gets, for protection against rot