Wood Type for new bed

[Dan Wales]

I have the stainless pieces from previous bed it was Pine and had lasted several years. I'm certain it was not parked inside either.

Ive considered Red Oak, White Oak, Aspen, Poplar, and Select Pine.

The Red & White Oak are the most expensive right at $300 just for the wood.

Looking for some opinions I have seen some beautiful beds on here. Poplar would hold up well and it's about half the cost of Oak.

The select pine they have here is pretty knot free and has a nice grain to it and now that my baby will be parked inside 90% of the time that would last for years.

Sooooooo I was just looking for some opinions, it's not a show truck, or a daily work truck I have even considered synthetic I have seen a couple on here done nicely with that.

Appreciate tips and thoughts.

Dan

[LockDoc]

-
I just bought some White Cedar for the bed of the 4x4 Longhorn. A local guy had it sawed for a project a couple of years ago and didn't use all of it. I bought enough for the bed for $75. See if you can find someone close to you that saws wood for a living or as a hobby. The only down side would be that it might need finish planed or cut to width. Usually the sawyer can do that too for a little more money. Being you are from Florida maybe you could find some Cypress. Just a thought.

LockDoc

[RenoKeene]

I put cypress in 'Rose', its beautiful and durable but expensive. In your case pine would work fine and not break the bank.

[slomotion]

There's a few factors to consider; I suspect the clear pine you're looking at is furniture grade which would be pretty soft. The original pine was probably a hard southern yellow pine. You didn't mention if you intend to paint or finish the deck bright. If you intend to paint it, poplar would be good. Tight grained and sands very well. If you want to finish it bright with a spar varnish, there's too many to list that would look good. The color of your truck is also a factor. Take a trip to a flooring company and ask to take samples of what they have on display outside and see how they look next to your trucks color.
Personally, I like oak or ash for a couple of reasons. They're tough, can be painted, stained and/or varnished, can be bought thick enough to actually support something in the bed, can be milled (as opposed to pre-finished which would leave a raw edge,) and even though it's a little more expensive up front, you'll only have to buy it once.
If you decide to go with raw wood regardless of the species, after the milling, fitting, and everything is ready for finishing, don't forget to finish the entire board. Top, bottom, edges, ends. You won't regret it later. Of course the top wants the best finish, but your goal is to seal the entire board before it gets installed.

[skorpioskorpio]

Teak, if it's good enough for battleship decks...

[Ridgeclimber]

I am in the process of getting some wood for my short box step side aswell. I am going to use maple. Just because it is cut locally, hard wood,tight grain, priced right. I also had a local guy that does specialty wood project mill the grooves and cut to length. My next question is what to finish it with? What would be the easiest, most durable? Marine varathane or oil.

[slomotion]

Originally Posted by skorpioskorpio

Teak, if it's good enough for battleship decks...

If there's a budget in play here, teak isn't even a consideration.

[skorpioskorpio]

Actually teak may not be cheap but because of the teak Danish furniture craze of the '80s that dried up the world teak supply. The reaction was to plant teak in managed forests all over the tropics. Those forests are now maturing and the Scandinavian furniture manufactures have moved on to other species. So... plantation teak is actually cheaper now than it was 30 years ago.

Ipe is also a a spiecies that is grown for good weather resistance, smooth finishing and a cost point reasonable enough for home decks, cyprus is another but is pretty soft. Cedar is weather resistant but once dry will split very easily.

Personally I wouldn't use poplar for anything that needs to be durable, poplar has zero linear grain strength and will break almost as easily against the grain as with. Spalts (turns black in the softer summer grain) and rots easily.

White pine, birch, maple and red oak with also spalt and rot quickly, they are not good choices for anything that might get wet or be exposed to changes in humidity. White oak, hickory and ash are lots better in hardwoods, and if you can find it anymore southern yellow pine or Douglas fir are the more durable softwoods, yellow pine being the better of the two, though all these are going to probably start getting into the range in cost of outdoor decking woods or maybe some of the pressure treated decking.

It looks like the OP is in Florida, a state pretty much designed to consume wood, with wild humidity changes, the worst wood eating insect problem in the US, wood destroying funguses and almost unavoidable exposure to rain and wet roads. I'd choose carefully if I wanted it to last more than a couple years.

Manufactured artificial decking substitutes is another option, there is some very belivable products out there now that really look like wood but are in fact plastics or resin products.

The type of wood used originally is probably not even an option since, unless you have a good source for reclaimed 50 year old plus wood, wood with that sort of grain structure will probably cost you a fortune today. It used to be that trees were not cut for lumber until they were substantial in girth to get a good yield on the older, wastfull, mills. Now mills analyze the logs and have much thinner kerfs in the blades meaning they can go back and cut the same land far more often. The lumber has a much wider, weaker grain structure, a much higher percentage of sap wood, and a lot less resistance to rot, insects and fungus.

Maybe you need to find one of those guys from Axe Men who are pulling up some of those old sinker logs from the rivers in Florida, that stuff will probably last you forever and add a bit of native Florida flare to your truck.

[68shortstep]

Don't forget "right side up," regardless of what wood you use.

Growth rings need to be installed "bowl" down, so water is shed off.

"Bowl up" installation catches & holds just enough moisture to promote cupping & rot.

Even treated 5/4 deck boards do this. Look at a deck, and the rotten, cupped, & boards with pulled-loose nails & even screws will ALWAYS be on boards which were put on upside down.

Dave

[skorpioskorpio]

Avoidable with quarter sawn, but that's a whole other subject.

[mattfranklin]

I noticed that no one suggested the wood kits advertised here on the site. I think you can get them with or without hardware. Is there that much difference in price?

[67Slider]

I made mine out of beetle kill pine. When I sealed it with Pelucid it turned the beetle kill portions a cool blue shade. The wood is soft but this bed won't be hauling anything and stays in the barn when not being driven.

[Fitz]

Originally Posted by Dan Wales

I have the stainless pieces from previous bed it was Pine and had lasted several years. I'm certain it was not parked inside either.

Ive considered Red Oak, White Oak, Aspen, Poplar, and Select Pine.

The Red & White Oak are the most expensive right at $300 just for the wood.

Looking for some opinions I have seen some beautiful beds on here. Poplar would hold up well and it's about half the cost of Oak.

The select pine they have here is pretty knot free and has a nice grain to it and now that my baby will be parked inside 90% of the time that would last for years.

Sooooooo I was just looking for some opinions, it's not a show truck, or a daily work truck I have even considered synthetic I have seen a couple on here done nicely with that.

Appreciate tips and thoughts.

Dan

I used to live on Merritt Island so, when it came time to look for wood for my bed I found several sources of milled lumber.
These guys are in Lakeland and they specialize in domestic hardwoods only:
http://www.hardwoodlumberandmillwork...lm3335_006.htm

Your bed will take about 26 board feet. Take a close look at cypress. It is much harder than pine, almost as hard as red oak but it is available at $4.17/bd ft or 108.00.

Red oak is 4.45/bd ft or $116.00

Most yards charge a premium for letting you pick boards and if you pick carefully you should not spend more than $140.00
When I did my bed, I used Purpleheart . Cost was $230.00

[skorpioskorpio]

hmm, Purpleheart, impressive. Lignum Vitae would be awesome too, heavy and hard to work, but awesome.

[Dan Wales]

Fitz that bed is just sick.

Money isn't a huge player and I don't mean that I'm loaded, I just mean I'm going or I intend to do it once and it's going to be there a while.

My truck is yellow I'm trying to imagine how that would look. Frankly I think what you have would look KILLER with just about anything.

Next week it's lumber yard time.

Dan

[SJLenz1340]

If this is not a show truck and you intend to use it as a pickup truck is intended, then I would consider pressure treated. I am not a carpenter nor an expert at wood types, but it seems logical. Clearly selection of boards as close to hearth would make it more stable. I am considering the same.

[Red Tractors]

Some really good advise here.

Southern Yellow Pine SYP can be found in some of the home centers. Seal it well and it will last a long time, same for cedar.

I'm planning on making mine from pressure treated 5/4 deck boards. But I intend to use the truck.

[Axle]

The only problem with pressure treated is, you will have to isolate the pressure treat from any metal on his truck, bed supports, bed sides, etc.
Modern pressure treat (higher copper content preservative) corrodes metal, and requires specific hardware for installation to prevent corrosion. (ie:the green deck screws you see in the hardware isle, still got to double check the labels though. Stainless steel, and HOT dipped (but not cold dipped) galvanized is acceptable, same for the hangers or other metal supports/ties you might use to build your deck). Todays PT is not the PT we are familiar with.

https://www.oaa.on.ca/professional+r...ted+wood+alert
http://www.deckmagazine.com/decking/...corrosion.aspx


As for the truck, I like skorpioskorpio idea of composites. Might find a good out of the box accent color for your truck and you won't need to be concerned about treating it.

Alex.

[69chevytrucker]

i did cheap pine just did it with a couple diff layers of stains



less then $100.00

[Lou Boffa]

If its to be a work truck, TREX decking does a good job. Doesn't wear, just wash it down. Easy to mill. Comes in different finishes--no as pretty as wood for sure, but practical.

[Dan Wales]

Shoot there isn't a bad lookin bed in any of this.

I'll do what Fitz suggested and hit a couple lumber yards next week. From the sounds of it you never know what you may find.

I'm in a couple small local clubs last weekend I saw several beds, Red Oak was pretty popular as well as White Oak.

Doing a good prep job before installation it seems is what will set it off no matter what wood is chosen. It had regular old pine in it that still looked half decent, once I got it out though the edges were pretty rotten.

I sure appreciate all the photos and advice.

Dan

[leftybass209]

Maybe this website will help- www.warmoth.com . It's for guitar building but helps to know wood strength and grain type. It also gives you sample wood types. Personally I'd use wenge or rosewood. It's really a matter of personal taste like paint.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by SJLenz1340

If this is not a show truck and you intend to use it as a pickup truck is intended, then I would consider pressure treated. I am not a carpenter nor an expert at wood types, but it seems logical. Clearly selection of boards as close to hearth would make it more stable. I am considering the same.

Originally Posted by Red Tractors

Some really good advise here.

Southern Yellow Pine SYP can be found in some of the home centers. Seal it well and it will last a long time, same for cedar.

I'm planning on making mine from pressure treated 5/4 deck boards. But I intend to use the truck.

Pressure treated wood is not all it's cracked up to be. Some of it rots quicker than non-treated.... If you are dead set on pressure treated be sure and get the "foundation grade" treated wood.

LockDoc

[Cash3481]

My daughter was in HS when I did her bed. Lots of gym bags and team sport equipment tossed in there with no regards for consequences.
She loved the truck but an offer I couldn't pass up got her a new car with a/c.
Cost was about $25 a board and I cut them as wide as possible (I like the look better).
I used the thinner facia boards instead of the correct deck boards.
*If you use the thicker deck boards you will have router out for the cross sills if you want the boards to line up at the end of the beds height. It's very durable but the sun fades it.
Hope this helped. Good luck with your choice. So many nice beds here.
Mike

[skorpioskorpio]

Originally Posted by Axle

As for the truck, I like skorpioskorpio idea of composites. Might find a good out of the box accent color for your truck and you won't need to be concerned about treating it.

..and if you are not picky about it being wood looking, the HDPE "lumber", you know the stuff they use for park benches made from recycled milk jugs, is actually available as sheet goods. In that case, the floor could be done in maybe 2 pieces, because 4x8 won't do it in one, and then the top trim strips won't actually have to hold individual boards.

My plan is to use it as a bed veneer in my Jimmy project to level out the bed and route it out to flush mount a grid of cargo rails into the bed and sides. In my application I'll be putting it over the steel bed floor so I'll be able to go thinner, maybe 3/8-1/2" to make up the difference between the cargo rail mounted on the bed low spots of the corrogations. I think when I calculated it out, even at 1/2" it was pretty light, like around 100 lbs to do the Jimmy bed, side panels and tailgate.

About the only thing you can do to damage the HDPE stuff is to scratch or gouge it, it's fairly slick so things slide on it pretty easy (same material they use for those gliders to move furniture around a room), it's oil and fuel resistant, resists most chemicals, is available as UV resistant, is impact resistant, and a good sound deadener.

Originally Posted by Lou Boffa

If its to be a work truck, TREX decking does a good job. Doesn't wear, just wash it down. Easy to mill. Comes in different finishes--no as pretty as wood for sure, but practical.

The TREX stuff is pretty good looking stuff and available in like 3 grades from the basic textured type to their deluxe product that is color embedded to look more wood like. TREX is like a cross between the HDPE stuff and MDF and is a composite between saw dust and plastic.

Originally Posted by leftybass209

Personally I'd use wenge or rosewood. It's really a matter of personal taste like paint.

Rosewood huh? Hey you might as well go for ebony or ivory, real rosewood lumber is virtually non-existant. You'll be hard pressed to find it much thicker than a few sheets of paper or solids much bigger than enough to make a pen. Teak, walnut and mahogony are firewood in comparison.