bed wood

[Dad's Truck]

Originally Posted by slomotion

Thank You, Longhorn. Here's a couple shots of the other end. BTW, I do use this to haul. I have two pieces of plywood with carpet on the bottom that matches the skid strips. When I'm going to use it I just strap down the ply's and go.

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread!

NOW I know what I want to do with my six-banger!

[OLDIRON69]

A good idea after you blow the wood down with air is run a tack cloth over it, there will still be some residual dust if you don't. I have seen both applications on oak and pine (brush and HVLP). I have always believed a brush will give a better coat and the chance of stirring up dust is minimal. I build custom furniture as a hobby and I always apply a sanding sealer on the woods I use and sand between coats, mainly to etch the suface for the next coat of sealer to adhere too as well as take care of any imperfections in the application of the varnish.

The wood beds are beautiful, unfortunately my '69 is a worker bee.

[rckendal]

I finished bed Saturday it took a solid 9 hours to do. i Put 4 coats of spar varnish and sanded with 220 in between coats on Friday. I put new cross sills and a new reinforment sill, i was lucky because neighbor was able to help here and there could not have done this by myself. again 9 hours to put all new wood in had a hell of a time it was one of the hardest things i have done. Thanks for your help oh yea my bed looks great it turned out real nice.

[Yeller68]

Originally Posted by rckendal

I finished bed Saturday it took a solid 9 hours to do. i Put 4 coats of spar varnish and sanded with 220 in between coats on Friday. I put new cross sills and a new reinforment sill, i was lucky because neighbor was able to help here and there could not have done this by myself. again 9 hours to put all new wood in had a hell of a time it was one of the hardest things i have done. Thanks for your help oh yea my bed looks great it turned out real nice.

You did yours, pretty much the same way I did mine, and I agree with you, it was one of the hardest things I did to the truck. But it was worth it, as good as it turned out. But as they always say.....

[70 net440]

If your truck lives outdoors be sure to touch up the varnish every year or so. We didn't on my wife's truck and eventually the wood got ruined.

[Atomsplitter]

OK, before you guys let anyone else brush, spray, dip or apply anything onto thier bed wood. Please have them check out the 2 year test that Mark-K did on various common bed wood products (they used both Pine and Oak too).

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

I opted for the Por-15 product called "Plecid" and applied 3 coats with a foam brush and man you wouldn't believe the finish. It actually looks like water is sitting on the wood. Problem is the "Plecid" doesn't have any UV protection so they used Minwax Gloss "Helmsman Spar Urethane" as it has one of the best UV protection on the market. So far I have not finished my bed wood as yet (just on a 1 foot long sample of the Red Oak I'm going to use) because I'm trying to hurry and get my motor installed befoe the snow flies.

[Sequoyah]

Originally Posted by Musclerodz

I don't think too many people are using their nice wood beds anymore as haulers. I have gone to using automotive clear cloat as a wood finish several years back on the vintage wood propellers we manufacture. It does not yellow with age, UV proof, and durable. Problem with sanding andthing finer that 150 will clog the pores of the grain. Once you are done sanding, wipe the boards down with a wet rag, not wringing wet with water dripping in the floor. It will open the pores and stand the grain up. It will feel rough again but will allow the finish to penetrate deeper into the wood. Apply 1-2 good coats, let it cure. Finish sand with 320/400 and apply 2 more coats and the wood will be as smooth as a baby's a$$.

Not really...I'd recommend sanding 80, 100, 120, 150...220 if you're really insane Use a new brass bristle brush to get the dust in the grain (especially if you are using a wide, open grain like ash or oak...just brush with the grain). Blow it off with compressed air and if you like use a tack cloth over it (I usually don't personally). I'm going to use a "card" scraper to give it a surface I can finish. I guess you could say "hand-scraped" but that term is kind of over used with some flooring materials. It won't be wavy...it shears the fibers instead of putting progressively finer scratches in the wood. Both ways work well though

[Orange Truck]

Suggest that you use a high quality marine varnish and apply three coats. The varnish is somewhat expensive ($30), but is worth it in the long run. I did somewhat like you are doing. Purchased the wood oak wood package from Mar T? (Oklahoma City) already drilled and grooved. When over it with the finest of sand papers thoroughly. Applied the marine varnish and topped it off with polished SS strips and fastners. If your model had the heat shield, I would suggest installing it too. Hope this helps.

[Sequoyah]

Any updates?

[ETsC10]

Originally Posted by Musclerodz

I don't think too many people are using their nice wood beds anymore as haulers. I have gone to using automotive clear cloat as a wood finish several years back on the vintage wood propellers we manufacture. It does not yellow with age, UV proof, and durable. Problem with sanding andthing finer that 150 will clog the pores of the grain. Once you are done sanding, wipe the boards down with a wet rag, not wringing wet with water dripping in the floor. It will open the pores and stand the grain up. It will feel rough again but will allow the finish to penetrate deeper into the wood. Apply 1-2 good coats, let it cure. Finish sand with 320/400 and apply 2 more coats and the wood will be as smooth as a baby's a$$.

You are quite right Musclerodz...

The property you describe is called 'mill glaze'. The planing and sanding of wood causes the grains to lie down, preventing proper penetration of finishes or later, after the finish had been applied, those grains can relax, affecting the integrity of the finishes adhesion. The water method works well plus there are "mill glaze removers" available at most better lumber yards. ...just my .02 worth.

[Old Chevy Mech]

WOW! That Flatbed is awesome! Beautiful Workmanship!

Frank

[GMCBubba]

mar-k did a study where they compared several different types of finishes on different types of wood over 2 years in the elements. it's on their website

and i just saw that someone else said the same thing.