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I'm installing a new oak bed. What are some of the best clear high glossy finishes? Thanks!

Z-Spar Flagship Varnish. Got mine plus thinner from Jamestown Distributors. Less than $60 incl. shipping for two quarts plus can of thinner. May be a little pricey but has way high UV rating and lays down nice. You won't be disappointed. I'm in the middle of putting on 6 coats on all sides of my bedwood.

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Go to a good new stand and get a copy of Wooden Boat magazine. Read up on different spar varnishes. Boats deal with all the same elements as a truck bed does but to greater degree. Therefore, I rely on marine products when dealing with wood, water, sun and long term preservation. Depending on your location go to a good boat yard for purchase.

Another source is www.woodcraft.com. Great outfit of quality and knowledge.

Has anyone had any experience with Tung oil? I know that it is more work, but seems to be durable and looks like furniture with 5-6 coats.

terry , if you look at the pic of my truck you can see the hardwood on the deck , with 3 coats of tung oil , I think it works well ,
truck deck

There's a pretty good article on bed wood finishing in the June issue of Custom Classic trucks done by Bruce Horkey/Dale Brunswick

Tung oil will not provide a hard barrier coat.

What's the point? It's a truck! Use a good quality deck stain, and you won't be afraid to use your truck as it was intended.

After watching the web page for some time . My question to you mam is have you ever driven the truck you own ? I have to stain the deck at my home at least 1 time per year . My 56 big rear window f ord had 4 coats of poly and has not been touched in 5 years . Some of us may have to leave our trucks outside so deck stain will not cut the mustard . It costs a lot of money for us to buy wood and i want the best protection i can afford. Deck stain wont do it , i promise you . You must be very new at this . Sorry for the truth but i have been involved in trucks for the better part of 40 years . The people in the amish country really know the secrects of truck body protection .They have given many secrects in the days gone bye,i think i will stick with what has worked on 7 + trucks in my lifetime. Regards Carl

remember that what ever you use it should contain reference to "spar". this is what makes it good. it will shrink/stretch to keep from cracking open and letting the moisture do its damage to wood. I have used tung oil on household wood products but find the spar urethane works good if the wood is preped good and you put two or three coats on it. I put 3 coats on my 37 oak wood bed 2 years ago and it still looks great. yes, it's inside but its gotten wet its fair share. The good part is spar urethane doesn't cost you an arm and a leg!

I have had Dupont Automotive urethane with a hardener on my huckster bed for almost 10 years. The automotive clear is bulletproof and has outlasted the best spar varnishes and urethanes I have seen.

Bruce Horkey tipped me off on how to do this when he was starting to get going on bedwood...again about 10 years ago.

No cracking checking or peeling when done right. There are some limitations but overall this is absolutely the way to for the truck that wants the perfect bedwood look.

Think about the flexible surfaces that we put clear coat on now in today's vehicles: bumper covers, mouldings, etc. It's very flexible and UV resistant.

That sounds good, though the material is very similar, the seperate hardener might give it superior wear characteristics.

This is all baloney. You lay on half a dozen coats of the best gloss spar varnish on your box deck planks and screw them down with the stainless fasteners and strips. Then what? What happens if you use the truck and scratch the darn thing? Get out the touch up and sandpaper?
I haven't got around to the box on my '49 AD yet, but the more I hear about these showpiece decks, the more I lean toward getting a flat of 1/4-inch diamond steel to fit, block it up to the right thickness, bolt it in, and put a couple of good coats of rust preventive black on it. Then when somebody says, well it ain't authentic, I will drag out this piece of bed-size marine plywood, varnished like glass and studded with stainless screws and strips. I will flop it in the bottom of the truck and say, You want authentic? How's that for authentic?
It's a truck. How do you haul a load of gravel or fertilizer home with a darn show quality yacht deck in the bottom?

Retread ,,, you use your truck for what you want to use it for ,,,, and leave others to use their trucks how they wish !
Just because some one does it different to you , does NOT make them wrong .

Hey retread, why wash your truck if it will just get dirty again? Why a nice paint job? Why get a good looking wife just to watch her get old? Might as well just marry a nag right? At least you won't mind getting manure on your nag...

Or you do the real wood and put the diamond plate over it when you want to haul a load. Even Yacht decks get walked on. A lot.

What Dusty says is right, and what Tony says may be true, but so far I haven't had much trouble distinguising between my truck and my wife, who wins hands down over any truck I ever saw.
This truck of mine was built 53 years ago for work and it still does better than most of the expensive new junk on the road today. If you've tried any of it you know what I mean. Seems like a shame to let all that old heavy gauge steel go to waste under a bunch of frills. When you have a good piece of machinery (that's what it is, machinery) you ought to use it. Treat it right but use it. Then pass it along in the best shape possible to the next owner who can moon over it 25 hours a day if necessary.
Using a steel floor sure doesn't mean the truck will be any kind of wreck. But if it that ever happens (and before I am) at least we'll have a good no-fuss trip along the way to getting there. That's why I plan to lay down a steel deck. Next guy wants to toss it and do a piece of cabinet work on the floor, I'll leave him a good start and maybe a few good wishes.
4onthefloor's suggestion of reversing the wood and steel makes sense except you might need a block and tackle to move it otherwise you might damage the wood wouldn't you? Which is back to square one.

If you scratch it, work it, tear it up, you can rebuild it again.Have some friends over,socialize and enjoy the truck as much as possible and ,,,,everybody,,,,,"QUIT WHINING" :p
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I know some of us are just not happy unless we have something to whine about ,,,such is life!

Those metal strips between the boards are there to protect the wood. They are supposed to stick up above the wood so that any load that is wider than the board rides on the steel strip and not the wood. They are not just a pretty fastener, they are functional.
You don't need a piece of metal to protect the bed anyway. An old ratty piece of plywood works fine.

Retread, steel deck beds are sure durable ,and the best for hauling soil or engine blocks. But you have to tie down the loads well or they slide around.Wood has friction, so the stuff stays put better. Plus you can nail down temporary wood cribbing as supports.This is a image of the white oak bed on our 45 Chevy 2 ton. Just 1-1/4 thick planks, no metal strips.A few coats of CWF deck preservative to repel the water.Just mop on a new coat once a year. farmer style bed.

I see you finally got that dirt unloaded!
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Didn`t sratch that wood deck with the shovel did you???

Right on Tony! I build doors for a living, on a small scale, and white oak is a preferred material for exterior use. Because of its stability. The Cwf works well, but might not stop oil stains (if it matters to you.) The plywood works for that. No matter what finish you use, including good marine spar varnish, if your truck sits in the sun, your finish will degrade. I would think that the automotive clear might be a real good bet, and would advise you to finish the wood first. Sand it down through the grits to 180 or 220 and get the surface smooth and even. I'm just guessin', here, but that might be necessary for that type of product to adhere and/or cover properly...