Redo bed wood before selling?

[doodah man]

Hi all,

I'm wanting to get y'all's thoughts on a question I've been asking myself.

I've been daily driving my 72 for 6 years. In fact it's my only vehicle. I'm thinking about selling it for a number of reasons but the biggest is that I'm just not feeling the motivation to deal with a needy vehicle anymore. I used to want to fix stuff that wasn't even broken and now I'm dreading the next hiccup.

Truck condition: good running, old paint with several dents and dings, a little rust here and there but the worst has been repaired. It's definitely DD material or an excellent starting point for a full resto. The major issue at the moment is the bed wood. It was put in by the PO in the 90s and done with SS hardware and painted wood to match the truck. It's currently rotted out to the point that the bed is held down by a ratchet strap, which brings me to my questions:

(1) Should I install new bed wood before putting it up for sale, i.e., will I get my money back assuming my labor is free? Most people who've seen it say yes.

(2) If the answer is yes, how should I do it? If I were re-doing this for myself, I would choose paint over pine like it has now. However, would varnished oak be more popular choice/easier sell?

Thanks in advance for your opinions!

[67ChevyRedneck]

If it's that bad, then yes.

I would also pay a professional detailer a couple hundred bucks to bring the paint back to life (or you can do it). That would bring you the greatest return. Literally make it shine like a diamond in a goats ass. If there's a bunch of little dents, it might also be worth taking it to a PDR guy.

It may look so good you won't want to sell it anymore.

Nice truck!

[robs71]

I think a lot depends on the buyer.I personally would meet your situation in the middle.I would buy the bed wood kit and hardware.I would try advertising truck this way at the price you would like for it explaining you have the new kit to go with..If a true truck nut looks at it he might be glad to do it himself with the finish he likes.As hot as these trucks are to people who know them I do not think price would change much doing it this way...

[jeffahart]

I did a one man job post on this last year. I would not use Oak. The yellow pine in the bedwood kits has a nice tight grain, good for outdoors.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=7657962

[davepl]

I spent months on mine, and hundreds of dollars in materials, but you could do it cheap too like a backyard deck, or somewhere in between.

I'd say do it, can't hurt the value. Only downside is it might have been a simple project a new owner envisioned themselves doing and then you do it different - so it might matter to people who've already seen the truck, but I think it's a plus for anyone that hasn't yet.

[doodah man]

Hey Jeff,

Thanks for the link & post. That will definitely help.

Craig.

Originally Posted by jeffahart

I did a one man job post on this last year. I would not use Oak. The yellow pine in the bedwood kits has a nice tight grain, good for outdoors.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=7657962

[Boog]

I guess it depends on the buyer but to me its a great big turn off to look over in the bed and theres no floor. it's kinda like that girl who from behind looked some kind a hot but when she turned around she had those really bad teeth. It's hard to get past that.
I have used oak in one truck and #2 ypine in one. These were daily drivers so i painted both floors and they held up good. The yellow pine was a good bit cheaper than oak but held up well.

[custom10nut]

Originally Posted by jeffahart

I did a one man job post on this last year. I would not use Oak. The yellow pine in the bedwood kits has a nice tight grain, good for outdoors.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s....php?p=7657962

This is a great thread. I'm saving this for when I replace my wood.