Hi and Happy New Year to everyone!! I was wondering what the best bed wood material and finish would be (durabe and long lasting) for my 59 shortbed fleetside? From my research it seems that mar-k products is a good choice and American made. I have considered using ipe pronounced (epay) as it is a very tough and durable hardwood and very rot resistant. I plan on using mar-k's stainless bedstrips, cross sills, wood mounting strips and mouting hardware. My truck is being totally restored (frame off). The truck will be a driver and i was wondering what experinces others have had with diferent bedwood materials and finishes. All recommendations and suggestions appreciated.
I am in the Millwork Industry, and this is just my 2-cents , the IPE will be a more expensive wood that will probably perform just the same as a OAK or a PINE Product does, the species that you pick might be more of a personal choice when it come's right down to it, All tho you might have better luck with a hardwood lasting longer if you plan on hauling anything or using the truck other than show? as far as finishing the wood you want something with a good UV inhibitor and seal all SIX side's of the board. also think of the wood as Fine Furniture, you would not leave your Antique oak table out in the Elements would you? If you put a Clear over it it might break down and might start to chalk and thats the biggest thing that will happen to the clear on it over time. Allen
Bed wood is a very subjective thing , you want a hardISH but not really hard wood as it won't weather well , even in a show rig . Originally GM used SOUTHERN Hard Pine and this is *very* different from Northern Pine ! . I highly recommend using the correct Southern Hard Pine , fit it , trim it , drills as necessary then take it all out again and paint it with whatever you want , being certain to thin whatever paint / sealant you use to near water consistency and paint the ends , bottom and inside the holes etc. , allow a day to suck it all in then re - apply until no more will be drawn up by the wood . Sadly I tried to do this on my '69 C/10 stepper but my goofy Body Man painted all my $800 Sourthern Pine with some sort of mirror glossy finish SURF BOARD carp and expected me to be happy.... I have some 10 year old hard wood I took out (might be Ash , I don't know) that had mold spots and some splits , I'm going to give it to some local guy who has a grenaded bed in his work truck .
I used Mar-k's bed kit of white pine for my 59 short bed. I also used their unpolished stainless bed strips and fasteners. I'm very happy with their product. I use my truck as a daily driver and as a pickup hauling stuff, so I didn't really want a finish that was going to get all scratched up by cargo so I went with tung oil. I got it from Real Milk through Amazon. I used the dark tung oil. I put 8 or 10 applications, letting the wood soak up the oil, then wiping off the excess each time until it would not soak up any more. I have had this finish for about a year and a half. My truck is mostly garaged at night, but parked outside during the day at work. The finish has faded to a nice natural wood finish. This is not what I would use for a always garaged show truck, but for a daily driver that gets worked it holds up great and looks natural, like it could be original. Also, if you get a bad scratch, all you have to do is wipe on some more tung oil. Here's the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0... tung oil&qid=1455293853&ref_=sr_1_10&sr=8-10 In between one of the applications. All installed. Just walked out to the parking lot and took this. What it looks like after a year and a half.
BTW : some years ago I bought a replacement sheet of exterior plywood to toss in the bed of my old '49 3100 as the original wood was rotted and I'd fallen though a few times whilst working . I got some Tong Oil from the hardware Store and used a rag to lay it on (BIG MISTAKE !) , I still have that old slab of plywood leaning against the fence in my back yard for various uses , it's weathered , sun dry and rained upon but still is in good shape , not de laminated like most plywood gets in the weather . I vastly prefer the black paint , properly done but I don't think anything beats Tong Oil for work rigs and longevity , give it a very hard look .
I guess so , I thought it was ' Tong ' but there will only be _one_ in the flooring dept. of the hardware store . DO NOT get any on your hands !~
Got a 55 first series in one time that a farmer threw the drain oil in the bed and mopped it around every time he changed oil. He lived on and drove on unpaved roads so the whole underside was completely caked with an oil/dirt coating. When we dug down to the wood and metal it was like new other than oil soaked. Zero rust and zero rot but almost had to give the guys double time to work on it till after it was cleaned up.
