I needed some bed boards for the Erwhipee truck just to have a bed, nothing fancy, just to hold it together and get rid of so many rattles. I just went to the lumber yard and bought some construction pine 1x8's and 1x6's that were straight and free from knots. I spent an hour going through the pile to find boards. Ran a dado blade on the edges and made a groove. I used some PPG oil base clear UV deck finish on them and called it good. It looks beautiful. I spent less than $50 on lumber, $50 for new carriage bolts, nuts and washers and $70 for new steel metal strips I could have saved $40 if I would have bought some used metal strips and cleaned them up. The deck finish I had already. The labor was mine. The boards look so good, I'm kicking myself for going through all the labor just to get some boards in the bed without giving the bed a new coat of paint too. Good thing I like patina. So, for around $170 I have less rattles and a bed that don't squeak. The plywood I had in the back layed flat when it got wet from the rain, but curled up when it dried in the sun. I didn't need all that flopping around anymore.
I also have a '51 1/2 ton flatbed that looks like it was made of oak floor out of a house. All 1 1/2" strips locked together. I bet it was real pretty when new.
