Underside of Bed Wood

[umrebelsfan]

Anybody have any ideas of how I should finish the underside of my bed wood? My father had given me some beautiful red oak which I have cut and routed to size. I am using marine varnish on the top, but it seems paint would better protect the bottom. I know red oak isn't ideal for something exposed to the elements, but it is harder than pine and this particular wood came off a home farm, so there is some sentimental attachment.
Thanks in advance.
Brad

[Woody]

Brad,

Should look nice on top with the marine varnish. And I really like the idea of using some wood from your farm!!
I think I would varnish the boards on all sides before I assembled the floor. Then once everything was together I would undercoat the bottom to protect it. Maybe even use some of that do it yourself roll on bed liner. Good Luck.


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Woody
'69 Custom-10 Deluxe
Short Fleetside,Factory 350cid/TH400,A/C,PS,PB,Carpet
Coming soon 700R4, 350 Crate Engine, Pwr Disks...

[BUXMAN66]

why couldn't you just protect it w/ afew coats of polyurethane,after your'e done staining it of course. a good polyu.would seal it as good as anything. we used it on our front door here at home(wood),and has held up to the elements nicely,underside of a truck bed should be fine.

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'68 swb 350/350 w/edelbrock total performance-performer pkg.ceramic headers,2.5" delta-flow 40 series flowmstrs.no rust of the notorious mid-west on this one! see my truck at free photo-i under "'68 chevy truck"

[Big69C20 Toy]

Just did the bed on my truck. I put a good marine spar varnish on all the boards, few good coats and i figure it'll hold up nicely. Pops thought so too.

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69 Custom 20, 396BB,Longbed fleetside.
New Oak Bed With SS strips... damn nice.

Edelbrock performer RPM-O, Edelbrock 750Carb, Headers, HEI, 2 40" glasspacks.
Stereo: Classic-style tape deck/radio, 2 6x9 Cerwin Vega's in doors, 2 10" Neo subs under seats, 1 900 Watt amp.

SN= Ares220

[Erl]

The most important thing is to paint the ends. This is the way the water moves when the tree is alive. The boards will pull the mositure inside. Coat the ends them several times.

[da-burb]

Erl is right on the money. The end grain should be coated until it stops soaking in. Seal the end grain and every hole that is drilled through a board. It will stay looking great for a longer time if you do.

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1971 C-10 Suburban
1972 C-10 Suburban
1969 XL Galaxie Fastback
1968 Galaxie 500 Fastback
1974 SCOUT II

Montrose, Minnesota

[Longhorn Man]

Don't forget the holes you drilled, and the counter sinking too, You'll need to seal them up too.

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'69 G.M.C. 350/350. Trying to clean up the left over damage from the Dope-Smokin-Old-Man
I've been dubbed the Longhorn Freak/Fanatic/Expert, I just hope I can live up to it.
FINALLY got the HORNIAC...a '70 one ton Longhorn with a Pontiac 350/350 and lots of 'personality'. Check out The Longhorn Webite.
If you need a pic posted, E-mail me at longhornmail@yahoo.com
Andy, in Columbus Ohio

[nucleus]

surface treatments like paint, poly or varnish will come off. wood expands and contracts with humidity and temperature, and this movement will cause any surface treatment to fail

the best solution is an oil based penetrating treatment like Deks Ole, tung oil, etc. be sure to treat all edges, ends, holes etc.

for a show finish you can polish with wax

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: 69 C20
: anything with tits or wheels is nothing but trouble ...

[Longhorn Man]

Black tar would be a good idea for the underside...messy to apply, but would protect it from the elements pretty darn well.

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'69 G.M.C. 350/350. Trying to clean up the left over damage from the Dope-Smokin-Old-Man
I've been dubbed the Longhorn Freak/Fanatic/Expert, I just hope I can live up to it.
FINALLY got the HORNIAC...a '70 one ton Longhorn with a Pontiac 350/350 and lots of 'personality'. Check out The Longhorn Webite.
If you need a pic posted, E-mail me at longhornmail@yahoo.com
Andy, in Columbus Ohio

[umrebelsfan]

ttt

Thanks for all your input. I went with a marine varnish as I said in my original post. I've coated the ends well and sanded between coats. I am on coat two. Directions say 4 coats for anything that might get wet such as marine applications. I should have pics tommorrow.

I cannot bring myself to use undercoating. Probably becuase I remember what a sticky mess it was to remove when I was restoring the fenders and bed sides. Ditto tar. I think I'll put the varnish on the underside as well.

As far as shrinkage goes, I've been worried about cracking, but my dad dried the wood in a solar kiln for months. There is very little moisture in the boards. I may be making a mistake sealing them completely with the varnish as opposed to an oil, but beleive me if this thing ever gets finished it will lead a pampered life.

Brad

[stllookn]

You are not making a mistake at all. A good marine spar varnish will work just fine. Oak is an excellent choice since it has been used for centuries in ship construction especially the strength members like ribs. For the perfect bright finish you do need to finish all the end grain and surfaces. The classic boat guys that go for the "perfect" finish which includes buffing out the dust particles to make it look like glass will put on eight (8) coats and spend about 30 days doing it. The last couple of coats should dry for about 14 days before buffing! Each to his own however! When they use 10 coats the first 4 are cut with up to 50% varnish and used as a grain filler.

[umrebelsfan]

ttt

Here are the boards after three coats. They don't look as reddish as in the pics. Thanks for your help.



Brad