Rayz Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 What is the correct color and material used to achieve the color of the bed wood and attaching hardware. Also did they use pine or oak in 1936? What does AACA require Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keiser31 Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 13 minutes ago, Rayz said: What is the correct color and material used to achieve the color of the bed wood and attaching hardware. Also did they use pine or oak in 1936? What does AACA require 1936 what? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayz Posted May 8, 2022 Author Share Posted May 8, 2022 Chevy 1/2 ton pickup bed wood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 As a general rule they used spruce. Pine rots and oak warps. Finished with tar or creosote. This is from memory of when pickup trucks came with wood bed floors. Last seen in the sixties or early seventies. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloo Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 I would try the VCCA forums, those guys know more details than you would think possible. https://vccachat.org Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpage Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 I don't know for sure, but I think that most all bed wood was treated with some kind of preservative and then painted body color with the bed as a unit. None where stained and varnished! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soupiov Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 My '78 F150 Flareside has bed boards that are body color but they were clearly treated with some kind of sealer first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Restorer32 Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 AACA judging rules say that beds were always painted body color. Varnished wood was never a factory option. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glen Andrews Posted May 14, 2022 Share Posted May 14, 2022 Rayz: I'm not positive about the 1936 high cab, I have a 1938 (low roof) Chevrolet pick up. I know the 1937-1938 and for a few more years, the beds were made by an outside vendor and were shipped to the Chevrolet assembly plants and were already painted in black primer when they arrived, the wood was Oak and was also painted black primer, the bed skid strips and hold own bolts were also primer black. At the assembly plants the the tailgate and bed panels were painted to match the body color, leaving the boards and skid strips primer black. The bed was attached to the frame with carriage bolts that were silver and were not painted. So correct color could/should be flat black; my boards and skid strips are gloss black so they are okay for AACA judging (my truck has a Senior Grand National) . Stained & varnish wasn't done at the assembly plants: tar and creosote probably was not done either, more than likely the owner of the truck back in the day added tar or creosote to protect the wood boards and to extend the life of the wood so he didn't have to spend $ to replace the boards. Try a company called Mack Products in Moberly, Missouri; they do beds and parts for old trucks, they list Oak boards for 1934-1938, which includes the Chevrolet high roof cabs. They may know if Oak was used for the bed of your truck. Good luck, Glen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayz Posted May 15, 2022 Author Share Posted May 15, 2022 Thanks for the info, I will check out Mack Products....Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayz Posted May 15, 2022 Author Share Posted May 15, 2022 Almost forgot, If the top side was to get painted body color what would the under side finish be ? Thanks again Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Glen Andrews Posted May 15, 2022 Share Posted May 15, 2022 I take it you mean the boards, they too were painted primer black, as well as the nuts & other hardware on the bottom that hold the skid strips in place. The carriage bolts and attaching hardware that hold the bed to the frame remain natural, silver, or galvanized appearance. As I indicated, my boards (top & bottom) and skid strips are gloss black, which is considered over restored, but is okay for AACA. Last April, 2021, in Charlotte, there was a guy with a beautiful 1953 Chevy pickup that had stained and varnished wood. The owner told me that the lumber came from the family farm, and he was not going to paint it due to sentimentality. Obviously his choice, I don't know how many points were deducted. So there ya go.Later, Glen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rusty_OToole Posted May 16, 2022 Share Posted May 16, 2022 I had the impression at the time, that wood pickup bed floors were treated with creosote or some kind of tar preservative but I could be wrong. It might have been black primer soaked with oil after carrying junk motors and parts. This is from memory of old trucks I owned 40 or 50 years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
De Soto Frank Posted May 21, 2022 Share Posted May 21, 2022 Bed floors for Chevy / GMC trucks were southern yellow hard pine. The bedstrips were plain mild steel. The floor and strips were painted black (flat or possibly semi-gloss). They were NEVER varnished like a blond bowling alley floor. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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