The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Paint and Body Shop What is or was used to support the beds?

Hi All,
What was used in the old days to mount the flatbed on the frame? Just 4x4 non-treated oak and clamps? Sheesh there seem to be so many ways to do this.. what is overkill and what is too little?? I looked at the tech section and that seems overkill..

heavy ibeams mounted to frame with bolts, clamps and welds ; then some welds to support the frames c-channel from bending from THAT weight.
or
some say 4x4 posts clamped.. seems not enough..

or scratch the entire idea of long beams and use some sort of wood or metal blocks?

I did one when I was in HS. PT cross members cut to fit. Hemlock for the sides and floor.

From what i am reading pt is corrosive to metal. Long term i guess.

We restored a 1941 Ford 1.5T that had been a ranch truck its entire life and the full length wood beams were still good except where the ends were messed up from bumping into docks. If you want something for longer than 75 years maybe this isn't the way to go. I noticed the frame rivets made dimples in the wood which prevented any shifting around when the 18" long clamps were tightened down. A photo showing the beam and long U-bolts. All bed wood was made by a local saw mill from trees in the Red River bottom.

If you zoom in you can see the beams and U-bolts:
[](https://postimg.cc/p9w7p3YH)

[](https://postimg.cc/9R3mC8D4)