Buy a Wood Bed Kit or Make one

[JRBECK64]

I was wondering if its cheaper to buy a pre made wood bed kit or to buy the lumber and make it myself? Has anyone built one and if so is it more work than the extra money it would cost to buy one? Any suggestions on who to buy a wood bed kit from? Thanks for any help.

JRBECK64

[63 & 64 Bowties]

Here's some reading to get you started. Do a search for bed wood on this forum and you'll find plenty. It's been discussed a lot here.
http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=356601
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=331632
http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=356024
http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...t=78098&page=2

[72freak]

If you have all the correct wood working tools, bits and so forth, and you have cheap place to get the wood......and you dont count your time as $$$$....then yes...you can come out ahead.

I did about 6 months of research before doing mine and in our area the price of the wood and the few bits/blades I needed was about the same cost as the best priced wood kit with shipping. There is a guy on EBAY that is about the cheapest I was able to find.

With this said...there are plenty of people who cut their own and say they save a lot of money. After my research was over, the only way it was close was if the wood was 1/2 price or FREE! (time included)

[Chevy Fleetside]

The other thing about doing it yourself is you get to pick which wood you would like to use. If you get a kit you usually just get a choice of Yellow Pine or Red Oak and Red Oak is not a good outdoor wood. This is my stepside bed I did with Birch. I paid $175 for the wood at Home Depot at the time and it would cost that much for a Yellow Pine kit which I did order but sent back because it was ugly.

[62 short step]

I own a cabinet shop and with my discount on hardwood it would be cheaper for me to buy a kit!

[mbgmike]

I am a big fan of doing your own wood. It does not take a whole lot of woodworking skills. We sell wood kits and all the parts. Don't get me wrong I don't mind selling them. It boils down to time. If you need fast buy a kit. If you can cut accurately on a table saw and have the time. I say do your own.
Its fun and you can have even more pride in your truck. I have made beds out of trees that I cut down (red oak) dried myself and planed my selftalk about a long time

Like said above you can make it out of any wood you want ( Indian Ivory wood????) (plexiglass?) the options are a lot.

All you need is a quality table saw to cut the wood, assuming you bought planed lumber. You don't need a router to cut the kerfs on the edges, you an use the table saw for this also. Router? ah if you want to but not needed. A few drill bits. If doing like factory a forstner fit for the bed to frame washers.

a band saw or jig saw to cut out th wheel house openings. .

I would do my own. Its fun.

True alot of it is where you get the wood. There is no stock answer for this as many people have diff sources for diff prices depending on where you live.

I always wanted to make one out of Mesquite. Kind of black and Yellowish

[JRBECK64]

Thanks to all for the input. I think I might just buy a kit this time as Time is a factor. Need the Truck completed in about 3 weeks.
Thanks again,
JRBECK64

[JRBECK64]

Originally Posted by Chevy Fleetside

The other thing about doing it yourself is you get to pick which wood you would like to use. If you get a kit you usually just get a choice of Yellow Pine or Red Oak and Red Oak is not a good outdoor wood. This is my stepside bed I did with Birch. I paid $175 for the wood at Home Depot at the time and it would cost that much for a Yellow Pine kit which I did order but sent back because it was ugly.

Sweet looking truck and I really like the bed. Would birch be considered a hard wood?
JRBECK64

[mbgmike]

Originally Posted by JRBECK64

Thanks to all for the input. I think I might just buy a kit this time as Time is a factor. Need the Truck completed in about 3 weeks.
Thanks again,
JRBECK64

Good Choice

[padresag]

birch is a hardwood but does not survive well in the elements so it has to be pretty well protected from the elements
ron

[austex66]

I am also contimplating going the diy route. Would cedar hold up well?

[Chevy Fleetside]

Yeah.. When the water gets into the wood it turns black. That would be the birch. My truck was garaged so it wasn't so bad in the 4 years i used it. My next bed will probably be White Oak with some African Mahogony accents.

[DPowers]

Originally Posted by austex66

I am also contimplating going the diy route. Would cedar hold up well?

Some mesquite would look killer. I am going to do mine in cherry- I already have the wood cut and kerfed. If you wanted some durability- try some locust.

[72freak]

Another reason mine was costly was It was a Longhorn bed.

[JRBECK64]

Has anyone used a Mar-K bed wood kit? I found it online and they are out of Oklahoma. I can get a Red Oak Bed kit for $399 and when you consider its a shortwide thats probably not to bad. The boards are planed, sanded and all the holes are already drilled to mount to the bed. Just wondering about the quality of their product. Pictures are one thing and what you get sometimes dont look like the pictures.
JRBECK64

[72freak]

Originally Posted by JRBECK64

Has anyone used a Mar-K bed wood kit? I found it online and they are out of Oklahoma. I can get a Red Oak Bed kit for $399 and when you consider its a shortwide thats probably not to bad. The boards are planed, sanded and all the holes are already drilled to mount to the bed. Just wondering about the quality of their product. Pictures are one thing and what you get sometimes dont look like the pictures.
JRBECK64

They normally have a fair price with nice quality and now and again they offer free shipping on all kits except Longhorns.

[TR65]

I used the Mar-K oak bed kit with hardware and strips. They are a first rate company. No complaints here. Everything fit perfectly.

Keep in mind that even with the pre-drilled kits you have to drill the holes around the edges to match your trucks hole locations. You can buy a nice Forstner bit at home depot to make nice clean holes.

TR

[Dan in Pasadena]

TR65 - I assume that's the red oak kit? What brand of finish did you use?

On my '46, when the time comes I intend to use some sort of final finish (most likely polyurethane) that has a very high UV resistance rating. So I'll assume a finish intended for marine use. I will protect it as much as possible but I expect it will still see the sun quite a bit being here in SoCal.

[mbgmike]

Here is another Mar-k with Red Oak.
Three coats of quality Urethane and two coats of semi gloss Automotive clear.

[TR65]

Hey Dan,

My truck is a DD or at least a couple of times per week driver and I wanted to be able to repair the finish without much trouble. So it is just a black deck stain rubbed off and finished with Olympic waterproofing. Hasn't seen much weather yet so I don't know how it will work out.

Mar-K has a great technical article on different bed finishes and has pictures after various numbers of years in the weather for each one.

http://www.mar-k.com/wood_finishing.html
http://www.mar-k.com/wood_finish_testing_i.html
http://www.mar-k.com/wood_finish_testing_ii.html

Oh yea, mine is red oak.

TR

[ol Curt]

72 Freak,

What finish did you use? That looks close to the factory finish. I'm hoping to do mine that way.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thanks TR. From your pictures I would never have guessed "black deck stain". I love the depth of a thick clear coat, but I wonder if such would really last in the sun? Too many times I've seen it look cloudy and chipped around the edges.

MBGMike - Automotive clear OVER urethane? Can I ask why? Was this intentional or did you change your mind? Was the urethane applied with a spray gun?

I've read articles over the years about how to do bed wood. One I remember had the first coat thinned about half and after it was applied, it was driven into the wood grain with a squeegee! They may have done this more than one coat. THen it was light sand, recoat a couple times and a final (I think) of a very light sand with like 1500 grit and a final polish and wax. That's a LOT of work. I'd be willing to do it if I thought it would last with regular waxing. But if its gonna crap out regardless because of UV, then...I guess I'd better find another finish.

[ol Curt]

My buddy has a sweet 72. He REALLY put some time and effort into his bed.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Now THAT is beautiful!

I'd love it if you'd ask him what process he used? Looks like Black Walnut, can you verify?

Also, just from seeing that, I'd love to see more pictures of the whole truck.

[LinkbeltOE]

I got some Brazillian Walnut from a job site they used it for decking. I sent it to a guy with the specs and for $200.00 made my planks, It looks great and will last a long time it has the same fire rating as concrete or steel.