# Truck Bed Finish 1949 Ford



## milbert (May 23, 2010)

I am nearly finished restoring a 1949 Ford F-1 truck with my Dad. We are doing the "traditional" wood plank finish with white oak and stainless steal separating strips.

My question is what kind of finish to use on the Oak? The truck will spend most of its off time in a garage and therefore not exposed to extremely harsh weather, but there should be some type of weather protection.


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## stevenhsieh (Jan 8, 2010)

Do you want a clear coat that is clear, or don't care if its amber color?


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## cloakie1 (May 29, 2011)

i think most of the resto guys just use polyurethene….and lots of it


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## BarneyTomB (Jul 5, 2011)

Can't go wrong with Spar Varnish. That many boat owners can't be wrong.


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## tenontim (Feb 24, 2008)

I would put about 4 coats of pure tung oil (not tung oil finish) on the boards, with about 2 days between coats, then top coat that with spar varnish.


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## lwllms (Jun 1, 2009)

I'm not sure what finish was traditionally used but I'd sure like to see photos of your truck.


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## milbert (May 23, 2010)

Steven: I wouldn't mind a nice amber color, and I have been thinking either a gloss or semi gloss finish.

Barney: I was looking into Spar Varnish a little before I posted this. I don't know too much about but like you said if its good enough for marine applications I'm sure it would be alright for this use. It seems like penetrating the wood first with oil would probably be best to get the pores full.

Here are a couple pictures of the truck (green machine).

This one is minus a lot of trim/bumpers/running boards that have since been added









Here is a picture of the wood after it was milled to size. The bed actually sits on top of the wood bed, this is just the wood laying in the bed with the stainless steel strips to get an idea of the look.


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## Iguana (Jun 22, 2011)

Milbert,

Check out this article, and the followup articles it links to. Their test regimen was much more severe than what you'd expose your truck to, but you can probably draw some conclusions as to what the best approach might be in your situation.

Apart from the differences in coating performance, I found the conclusion that using BLO under a spar urethane to be beneficial was enlightening.


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## cloakie1 (May 29, 2011)

love the truck…


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## stevenhsieh (Jan 8, 2010)

*milbert*

I would use a quality marine varnish like any these.
Apply at least 4 coats.

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=92&familyName=Epifanes+Gloss+Clear+Varnish

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=100&familyName=Z+Spar+Captain%27s+Varnish

Its not cheap but worth the money.


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