Tom Boehm

Hello Mike, I like the wood on your '49 Buick Super. It appears to have a light stain on it. How did you do that? What brand/color did you use? What clear coat did you use? Where did you get the panels? Did you have to have them custom made? How thick are they? Is the mahogany veneer honduran or african? I am researching these questions for my 1940 Lasalle woodie now. Thanks, Tom Boehm New Albany Indiana.

Hello again, I read the Technical Data Sheet in the link you provided. Penofin is not a varnish and does not form a film at the surface of the wood. It is an oil that soaks into the wood. The TDS suggests reapplying twice a year. A varnish is far more durable. A good marine varnish would last at least two years outdoors 100% of the time before a maintenence coat is required. Our woodies will be in the garage most of the time which is why Bob c49er varnish lasted 30 plus years. I recently came across a varnish made in France called Le Tonkinois. Is it made with Tung and Linseed oil and contains no solvents. Guys on the wood boat discussion forums say it has durability equal to that of other marine varnishes like Epifanes, Pettit, Awlspar,Interlux etc. Anyone out there used it? www.tarsmell.com is the website where it is sold in addition to Hamilton Marine.

Hello David, I am building an exact replica body for my woody to replace the original. Mother Nature destroyed the original. I have never refinished a woodie but if I were in your place I would remove the panels before I stripped them. Any of you guys out there with T&C s have an opinion if that is feasible? Tom

McCloskey Varnish is still sold but like many products it has been reformulated in recent years to meet more stringent VOC limits. In other words, they have less solvents in it.

Hello David, There is an excellent article on strippers in the 2016 Tool Guide published by Fine Woodworking and Fine Home Building Magazine. I bought a copy at the checkout line at Home Depot. It is an overview of all the types out there and they do a test to which works the best. Also I have been doing a lot of reading lately about varnishes as I eventually will need to do that to my woodie. If you are going to use a traditional varnish it is best to go with a marine varnish such as Epifanes. Boat supply companies such as Jamestown Distributors, and Hamilton Marine sell many brands of marine varnish including West Marine. They also sell strippers too. Jamestown has a technical support phone number That I have used and they were helpful and knowledgeable about varnishes. Tech hotline: 401-253-3840 or tech@jamestowndistributors.com. JamestownDistributors.com and hamiltonmarine.com. It looks like only the panels need to be stripped on your car. Tom Boehm New Albany, IN

Hello '48 woodie, Picture #673 above is a 1937 or 1938 Willys. That is probably as rare as the Terraplane woodie. I have seen pictures of a surviving 1940 or 1941 Willys woodie. Tom Boehm

Hello Brigalli, Are you going to do the woodwork yourself? I am restoring a 1940 Lasalle woodie. I was able to make an accurate reproduction of the original body using the pile of rotten splinters that came with the car as a guide. There exists one other 1940 Lasalle woodie which I was able to refer to. I also came up with some pictures of mine before mother nature destroyed it. I don't know if there are plans out there to build a 1940 Ford woodie. What I'm getting at is you may not need it. You may be able to get your hands on some old wood from a 1940 Ford restoration that some one replaced with new wood. Wood not good enough to put on a restored car would still be good enough for you to copy for your car. You only need half of all the parts for copying because of symmetry. I have also seen useable old wood advertised in the Woodie Times.

Since my posting I cut up all the ash from the old stack and burned it at a boy scout campout with my kids. I went through the new stack and carefully examined each piece for bug damage. I found one additional board with bug damage and I threw it away. I did not want it around until the next campout. The rest of the wood I have is pine and cedar. I'm going to carefully monitor the remaining good ash boards for bug damage. If the bugs show up again I will have to treat the pile with insecticide.

How do I get rid of the bugs? A while back there was a post about "powder post beetles" on this forum. that sounds like what I have. Years ago some guy gave me some ash lumber to start building my woodie. Some of it had a lot of insect holes in it. I did't think much of it and just cut out the bad parts. About 2 years ago I bought a stack of good ash lumber from a company specializing in hardwood. Yesterday I used a board off the new stack and noticed the little piles of wood dust and some insect tunnels in the wood. I don't want my stack of good lumber to be ruined nor do I want them in the completed woodie parts. How do I get rid of the bugs?

Hello restorer '32, I have not researched automotive clear coats because I decided to use varnish because of authenticity and ease of application. I perceive automotive clear coat to be more durable but I am comfortable with varnish because my car is not going to be stored outside. I think it comes down to personal taste as to the appearance. I tend toward being a purist in restoration but I do not think automotive clear coat on a woodie is wrong or inappropriate. There are more opinions and information in the thread I started in this forum titled "varnish question".

Hello Mike and '46 woodie, You are absolutely right. I know our cars will be pampered and never subject to the conditions in those tests. This is my first woodie restoration and after all the work I'm putting into building the body I can't help myself but want to put the best varnish on it. I am a painter by trade (as in brushes and rollers) and I already do some of the varnishing suggestions. The clean room is a good idea because my shop is dusty. Thanks for your responses. Tom

Hello Woodie Club, Here is another varnish test I found. http://www.practical-sailor.com/issues/37_9/features/exterior_wood_10576-1.html

Hello Woodie Club, Here is a link to something I ran across. It is a durability test some guy did of various brands of varnish. http://www.myccr.com/phpbbforum/viewtopic.php?f=49&t=40923 One of the brands he tested was Coronado Marine Spar. This product is now sold under the name Lenmar Spar Varnish available at Benjamin Moore stores. It is the identical formula. Coronado and Lenmar are owned by Benjamin Moore.

I wanted a variety of opinions and I am getting it! The 36 Dodge is a little farther along than mine is. The Town and Country is beautiful. What is the yellow one? I'm still eager to hear more finishing stories. Has anyone used varnish over epoxy primer? Thanks, Tom

Hello, I am restoring a 1940 Lasalle woodie. Right now I am building/reproducing the wood body out of ash and ribbon grain mahogany plywood. What brands of varnish do y'all use? What is the most durable? I made some samples with Epifanes and that seemed OK. I have heard of some using Mckloskeys Man O War on woodies. I read an article in Fine Woodworking magazine about using a clear two part epoxy penetrating sealer before the varnish. This is supposed to prevent moisture from getting under the varnish and discoloring the wood. I made a sample of this also. It looked OK but it is worth the extra effort? Has anyone out there heard of or used this method on their woodie? Thanks.