Morgan Wright Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 (edited) Anybody know any tricks to make new wood look weathered and dried out, but still strong. The old running board was shot. It was good for looking "original" and unrestored, but my foot was about to go through it. Needed new wood. The new board is hard maple, 3/4 inch thick like it should be, and I still have to rip it down to 12 inches (it's a little over 13"). So, how to weather the new wood to look old? Leave it on the roof for 2 years? Take it to Arizona and leave it in the sun? What happens to wood when it seasons? . . Edited February 7, 2020 by Morgan Wright (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFranklin Posted February 7, 2020 Share Posted February 7, 2020 Mix up some stain, or look for weathered wood, or barn wood on the label. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 Like this? https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/varathane/weathered-wood-accelerator/ . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Shaw Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 When I worked summers at a state park in the redwoods, the Maintenance Super used baking soda in water to age new redwood shingles before installation. It seems to neutralize the acidic resins in new redwood to make it grey. You might try it on your maple to see if it works. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 The original running boards were 3 boards tongue and grooved and covered in linoleum. They did not use a single board due to warpage. Another option is to distress linoleum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 13 minutes ago, Morgan Wright said: If it never gets wet it won't warp. I have a bridge for sale...... Seriously though, for best results make sure you seal both sides equally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 3 hours ago, Bloo said: I have a bridge for sale...... Seriously though, for best results make sure you seal both sides equally. Ha!! You won't catch be driving this car in the rain, if I do please smack me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 (edited) Wood moves a lot with temperature and humidity. You can look at the end grain and see which way it will go, at least if it isn't full of knots. Staying out of the rain, while advisable, wont make it stop, or even slow down much. P.S. If I were tasked with making a board look like the old one you removed, I might be tempted to make a stew of black walnut husks, and dunk it in that for a while. That wouldn't help much keeping the board dry though would it? Also, maple is really dense and doesn't stain easily with anything, probably not even black walnut stew. It might stain everything else within reach. YMMV. I am no expert on these things. All the best whatever you try. Edited February 8, 2020 by Bloo (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 The holes on the metal running board supports are slots about an inch long, if I don't tighten the bolts too tight the bolts will slide in those slots when the board expands and contracts with humidity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry Wiegand Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 I am pretty sure that all of the wood used in the open and closed bodies by Fisher Body was White Ash. I'm having a hard time trying to figure out why you would want the new boards to look like something that is ready for the landfill - but then again, that's me. Terry Wiegand South Hutchinson, Kansas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 Never mind. I decided to put the original running board back on. I can't make this maple board original enough, it will always look wrong being one piece instead of 3 pieces tongue in groove like it's supposed to be, and everybody at car shows will be asking questions so lets make it back the way it was. ..thanks all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 I found no trace of linoleum on either running board, but when I removed an anchor for (probably) some sort of tool box, I found a strip of the original linoleum under it. It was made of heavy course grade cloth, impregnated with the linoleum: . . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarNucopia Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 Find some reclaimed wood in your area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hubert_25-25 Posted February 8, 2020 Share Posted February 8, 2020 Morgan, Perhaps fasten new wood with Epoxy to the underside of the old wood, if that is the look you are shooting for. A tongue and groove set of router bits is also not that expensive if you just want to recreate the boards out of new wood. All 3 boards are not of equal width anyway so it is best in my opinion just to router your own. Attached are notes and information on how to do this and where to find the correct router bits. Hugh Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 8, 2020 Author Share Posted February 8, 2020 30 minutes ago, Hubert_25-25 said: Morgan, All 3 boards are not of equal width anyway so it is best in my opinion just to router your own. On my car, there are 2 main boards the same width, with a narrow one in between, the main boards are anchored by bolts to the 3 running board supports, (2 bolts each for 6 bolts) to the rear fender (2 bolts) and front fender (2 bolts.) Those 10 bolts hold the whole thing on the car. The middle board is not anchored by any bolts, the only thing holding it on is the tongue and groove. I once thought the boards were random width, to use up as much wood as they could economically, but from looking at other cars and drawings, they always have the 2 wide boards and a narrow one in between them, to take up swelling from humidity. The middle board is not anchored because it needs to move. I could get the router bits but I have decided to keep the car as original as possible because that's what freaks people out at car shows. People will walk right past all the fully restored trailer queens because there are so many, right over to my car, because it's a wreck, 40 people will stand at my car gawking when I start the motor up, people will start cheering, it's weird. Why, because it looks so old and beat up nobody believes it actually runs. Then they start talking about the Beverly Hillbillies and all the rest. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morgan Wright Posted February 11, 2020 Author Share Posted February 11, 2020 This is what I did. I put the running board back on, and bolted a 1 x 10 oak board on top of the part where you step when getting in. The oak board was seasoned so it looks old, and I can still get the Beverly Hillbilly comments because it looks like something Jethro would do. . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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