Bed Hardware Question

[grey beard]

My bed strips are held on by slotted countersink head screws. Is this authentic? Do any of you know what the correct fastener heads are for this application?

Thanks:)

[H Suhling]

If you mean the metal strips that hold the wood in, mine were carriage bolts.

Harvey

[Young Ed]

Do the pilot house ones still have wood cross members? My 46 uses screws to go from the strip into a cross member and a carriage bolt where there isnt a cross member.

[Merle Coggins]

Pilot House trucks use 4 C-channel type cross members and carriage bolts on the bed strips. Some connect to the cross members. Others have a large washer under the wood and just clamp the strip to the boards.

At least that's how mine was when I tore out all of the rotten wood and bed strips.

Merle

[Guest 51plymouthod]

The pickup's just got 34,000 actual miles on it. Wood was original, but shot.

I could not believe the total lack of rust on the undercarriage when I removed the old wood. I should've gone back with a black finish, but the red oak from Mar-K in OK City was just too beautiful.

[Jim Shepard]

I too considered the 'natural' furniture finish, but elected to go original. I'm glad I did because the rest of the truck is original and it just looks right. I used the white oak from Bruce Horkey.

[grey beard]

Jim,

Can you or Merle (or anyone whose been here already)tell me what the best wood primer to use is for this application? Many wood primers are white, and we all know THAT would be a poor choice to put under black. Like Jim, I plan to keep mine original black, for it will be used to haul in - actually my only truck now, come to think of it. Any primer suggestions? Any black paint especially good for exterior wood use? I am also using white oak - supposed to be the best wood for holding up on exposed surfaces. Hope it is . . .

Thanks

[Jim Shepard]

After sanding mine smooth, I applied four coats of Cabots black deck stain. I think this stuff's from Australia. I bought it at Lowe's. I sanded between coats and then applied three coats of Spar varnish, also sanded between coats.

[grey beard]

Jim,

Certainly looks beautiful! My own truck, however, will unfortunately be a hauler of general things. As such, it must be sorta' utilitarian. It will have lots of things slid in and out, etc., so I am going to paint the metal underneath with Zero Rust, then prime and paint the boards before they are bolted in - on all sides. After everything is assembled, I'll give it all another coat of black - bolt heads, strips and all. Won'rt look nearly as nice as yours, but this one will be a driver and not a show piece.

Immediate probem is that most wood promer available locally is white. They all tell me they can tint it, but not much will look good showing through underneath blackpaint. I may just thin the black paint and use this for primer underneath heavier coats of black paint. Don't know if this thinking is sound or not. I'm open to suggestions. (I'm using white oak, like you did.)

Thanks:)

[Guest 51plymouthod]

Greybeard: A suggestion would be to look on the Mar-K website under the wood finish and testing. They refinished oak in a black with a black primer that held up well in Oklahoma weather. What they used was more of a show finish, but the primer might (or might not) work well for you.

[Vintrader]

Dave, The black stain is the way to go for my money. It will soak deeper into the wood and last longer. You can always go over it with black paint. I use a thick rubber mat on top of the wood, things do not slide around and it will protect the wood. You can also take it out for shows. Good Luck. Dutch