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EFV-8 Club Forum / General Ford Discussion / HELP & IDEAS on Replacing my 1946 PU Bed

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Posted By Discussion Topic: HELP & IDEAS on Replacing my 1946 PU Bed     ersatz 07-11-2010 @ 6:35 AM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 42 Joined: Jun 2010 Fantastic! Got alot of feedback and thanks! Looks like I'm going to have to consider finding a real good Marine paint which should be no problem since I live near the shore. I was in the local hardware store the other day getting stainless steel screws and noticed some different brands of marine paints on the shelf. I like the idea of the grain being somewhat visible. Still not sure about using semi-gloss/satin marine varnish. Thanks everyone for your input! TomO 07-10-2010 @ 7:27 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 7253 Joined: Oct 2009 I would go with the urethane finish. You can buy a satin finish urethane varnish. I would start with a gloss finish for 2 coats and then finish with the satin finish. The gloss finish dries harder and handles the abuse better. Tom 37RAGTOPMAN 07-10-2010 @ 7:12 AM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1961 Joined: Oct 2009 If there is a boat dealer in your area for salt water boats,] they also have many different coating that will withstand much use, and stand up well, up the street from me is HAMILITON MARINE,they have a web site and ship out if that helps, also LINSEED OIL is a option, just wipe in on once in a while, try some on a scr*p piece of wood,{ do this on anything you might use ], to see if you like it,also #30 w reg motor oil also perserves the wood. allow a little play in the wood for expansion, it will move,do not fit to tight, it will buckle. hope this helps, 37RAGTOPMAN KEEP ON TRUCKIN,,,!!! trjford8 07-09-2010 @ 8:14 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 4215 Joined: Oct 2009 You can get Spar Varnish in a semi-gloss finish. There used to be a product called "log oil" that was used to preserve fencing. Not sure if it is still available. I would opt for the semi-gloss varnish. 1932BB 07-09-2010 @ 6:43 PM reply profile send p.m. New Member Posts: 104 Joined: Oct 2009 I took a friend's advice when making a flatbed for my 32BB. I ordered Southern Yellow Pine from my local big box hardware store and used a black deck stain/preservative that they mixed. Yes. Black. Stains are mixed using a color chart now. I was shocked to find black since it wouldn't seem to make sense with heat etc. on a deck. It has worked on the flatbed and I'm not worried about it getting wet. It looks original with the grain showing through. For excellent results have one side of the boards planed. Another idea of his was to use 1/8 inch thick strips of flat metal by 1 3/4 for the skid strips. This will save you time over the original variety skid strips by giving some slack with board warp. As a side note, the metal frame measurements were taken from a truck bed in the woods and formed by a local fabrication company with a ten foot brake. Does it for me! I contacted a popular bed wood/strip manufacturer and was shocked at the price he quoted. After building my "reasonable facsimile" flatbed I got a better appreciation for his prices. He has to control warp in three dimensions and make the skid stips fit and keep us ornery old car/truck guys happy. Not an easy job! ersatz 07-09-2010 @ 5:05 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 42 Joined: Jun 2010 Stroker, Yes, I do know what you're referring to. I had an '82 Chev shortbed stepside with a yellow pine painted wood bed. You've offered me one possibility. However, since yellow pine is not offered in a bed kit, I wonder if a good exterior oil paint by itself would be enough to protect oak boards from staining, etc. I'll look into this some more. Thanks for your thoughts! I mention the oak bed boards because this species seems to be the most common and least expensive. Would prefer to use ash, but ash seems to be more expensive. Hope to hear from more V-8 members.......... TED Stroker 07-09-2010 @ 4:47 PM reply profile send p.m. Senior Posts: 1460 Joined: Oct 2009 Ersatz: Perhaps the earlier trucks were different, but I remember dad taking delivery of a new 51, and as I recall, (I was only 11), it had what appeared to be Southern Yellow Pine flat-sawed, boards that were painted (along with the metal strips); body color. Nothing "fancy", just a solid bottom to the truck bed that you could pile just about anything on with impunity. No varnish, no stainless strips, just a bottom to a utility truck box. These were never intended to be "show-trucks", but they were what you bought to do the job that needed to be done. Stroker ersatz 07-09-2010 @ 2:04 PM reply profile send p.m. Member Posts: 42 Joined: Jun 2010 I have an all stock 1946 Ford 1/2 ton pickup that needs the bed boards replaced. I intend to buy a complete wood bed kit and use stainless steel fittings & hardware. The metal bed cover will not be replaced. I consider my truck a daily driver and not a show piece, although it looks better than most average trucks . Here's my dilemma....... I'd like to try and stay away from using a high gloss urethane finish on the oak boards like most replacement beds have. I want to use something that is less "showy", but at the same time durable enough to protect the wood from warping/cupping & staining if it gets wet. Has anyone taken this same stance on finishing a wood bed? If so, I'd like to hear what you've done to bridge the gap between Show & Daily Driver. Any advice, resources, referrals & photos would be greatly appreciated. THANKS! You can email me directly with pics, etc. at: vickers303@comcast.net This message was edited by ersatz on 7-9-10 @ 2:04 PM

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