The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Making a Stovebolt Bed Correct from Factory Bed Finish Question

Hi I am new to this forum but already have found much useful information...THANKS

My question is does anyone have factory documentation on how Chevy actually finished the bed wood and strips...My dilema is I finished my 1952 Chevy pickup bed in the Summer of 2007 (albeit clear varnish on Souther Yellow pine with stanless steel strips which at that time AACA did not deduct points for)as it stands now the truck is 98% complete back to factory as I continue to get it ready for AACA's Hershey show. I found out without notice in January of 2008 AACA's pickup bed requirement is everything painted flat black or body color anything else requires point deductions. I know they were NOT painted flat black from factory and only rumors of them being painted body color but the only appeal process AACA has is for the owner to show factory documentation. I would appreciate any help on this matter. Thank you

Check the bed out in this original '53 on e*spray...

The truck was brought up HERE

It's bed boards appear to be the same color as the body.

54TOW,

I cannot see the bed boards in the camper - it looks like there is a cover over the bed boards??

eturnnellbuzz,

It is indeed odd that the AACA says that body-colored bed boards are an original feature.

You state "I know they were NOT painted flat black from factory and only rumors of them being painted body color . . ."
I have never seen factory documentation on board color but I have always read (and heard, and seen) that the pine boards (at least from 1947-55) were colored a non-glossy black (as were the metal separator strips; and, the bed-side-wall metal edge-strips were body colored).

I would bet that people in this forum would be interested in any documentation that you might have about bed-wood color.

Tim

Hi Tim

All I have like I said is old timer hear say which makes sense the boards were allegedly soaked in creosote like telephone poles which gave them their black color the steel strip painted black and GM would not have used the body color for the boards and strips as it would have slowed down the assembly line and added costs to the truck trying to keep color boards and strip with the correct vehicle.

Makes a lot of sense to me but alas no documentation...that is what really pisses me off with AACA new rule adoption; it seems random and is with no factory documentation.

Jeff

Tim - one pic shows it with the carpet pulled back, bed floor body color

Jeff - there did come a time when the bed floor was always body color, not sure what year - "keeping boards with the correct vehicle" was definitely not a problem, as the beds were painted assembled - I've seen bed wood that obviously had never had any finish under the skid strips or on the underside of the boards

wouldn't it be one of the "rumors" if the boards were creosoted? I've never seen that suggested anywhere, surely someone would have noticed creosote, as it will bleed out of treated wood for the remainder of it's life, and creosote wouldn't make yellow pine a uniform black [which at least some/many years were], it would be blotchy and include browns and dark gray

there's no fighting the AACA rules, especially if you've finished the bed in a way you know isn't "correct" for an original, they base their decisions on examination of documented original vehicles

Bill

I am dealing with the same thing on my 53. But, I have a 1963 C-20 that had a slide in on it all its life from California,(original black plates) and the bed boards and bed strips are a flat black and only painted on one side. Again no documentation. I had thought about staining the boards for my 1953 with an ebony stain, but I am probably going the route of a satin finish black paint.
Mike

Thanks, Stuart. It looks like the bed wood was painted black.

Here is what Jim Carter says about 1956 and later bed wood.

The 53 in the picture is the only other truck that I have seen with the boards painted the same way as my 51, that has been in the family. Thanks for that information Now I no of someone else. But that still not making things correct for the AACA.

but the AACA says flat black OR body color, Jeffs problem is trying to get clear varnish and ss hardware accepted ... by accepting either black or body color they're saying it was definitely one of the 2, nothing else, sounds right to me

Bill

I believe the AACA is saying body color was not until 55? And no one can tell me how mine was body color. The Flat Black on the skid plate just does not sound right to me. I’m trying to get the correct information before I start putting my bed back. Jeff is trying to get his truck in under the old rules when the beds were not judged for the correct Sheen or species. The way the new rule reads anyone that has won awards in the past with varnish and the wrong species of wood will not be handed down to any new owners if they sell the vehicle

i remember my dads early 60s chevy trucks they had wood beds painted black it would wear off in 2 or 3 years from use

Painted Black???? I think that 99.9% of us Bolters would agree that the bed and strips were painted black, that’s not the question that always remains unanswered. What black was it? Was it a flat black, a semi-gloss black, a satin-black, a gloss black? It is rumored here and over at the VCCA site that the bed wood was treated/dipped with Creosote, I wouldn’t argue that because that was the preservative of the day before they had the pressure treated process that we know today. Even if the wood was treated, it was still painted and it was apparently done before it or the strips were installed. If they had been painted after installation there would have been some evidence of that from over spray on the ends and corner angles which the outer boards had to slip under. My boards are still in serviceable condition and have never been out of the bed so when I get to that phase I’m interested to see what the surface/finish looks like under the strips on the bottom of the boards and strips. That will tell a lot of the story I’m sure.

I’ve also uncovered some other details pertaining to the bed paint. I have the RR fender off for some bodywork right now and took the advantage to excavate some of the color layers on the bed side. When I scrubbed the area under the fender I noticed that the bed side was still in its E-coat and original paint. Since the truck was ordered and delivered from the factory in Mariner Blue that is what I expected the bed to be. I’ll describe the paint build from the E-coat up.

It appears that the bed and fenders were assembled in their E-coat primer and then sprayed the standard green and put on the shelf and held in inventory till it was needed on the production line. There is a very light dusting of green with the vertical passes still showing on the bed side under the fender. Under the flange where the fender was bolted to the bedside there is only black E-coat primer. The outside of the bed and fenders were also sprayed green over the E-coat. Apparently when the order came down for Mariner Blue this was sprayed directly over the green with no primer in between.

The village that bought this truck new used it as their fire truck, so somewhere in the 50’s or 60’s a red oxide primer was shot over the Blue which was getting dull in spots and the present coat of fire engine red was applied over that. That village retained ownership up until a few years ago. I talked with the custodians of the truck for the last few decades and from all accounts they knew nothing about the bed ever being replaced and they felt positive that it was the original bed, fenders and floor.
Couple of pics for those that care: http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2954317120098611668lsxdTU , http://rides.webshots.com/photo/2546611970098611668iTPgUK

Now all we need to do is hear from Mar-K on what the original bed finish was. I’ve asked several times, and I’m sure that they have done a lot of research on the subject but still haven’t heard their reply one way or the other.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

Mar-K has done testing and research on what finishes will last in the elements, but we have no information about what was done originally. I wish we could be more help, but that information is not available to us.

Mar-Ktech

Thanks for responding tech guy. That really surprises me given all the research and attention into the details that you guys obviously apply to your products. I would have thought you would have a rather extensive collection of research material to validate the authenticity of your products. The are very well made and of the highest quality from what I’ve seen and I’m personally planning on using them when I get into my bed and the one I’m doing for a friend.
But thanks anyway.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

I stopped by a cruise night at the Golden Age of Trucking Museum, and a 1955 1st came in. It was driven by the daughter of the original owner. She said it had never been worked on, and the bed boards and bed strips were painted the body color and the bottom of the boards was unpainted.
This goes under the "for whatever it is worth" category.
Mike

AD trucks had black bed boards, that is definite. I was at Hershey a few years back and was amazed that there were trucks there with varnished bed boards that had already won a junior award and were trying for a senior. I am actually glad the AACA has instituted this rule.

I have a 1950 GMC which my father bought new from his brother who sold GMCs My father immediately installed a metal plate over the entire bed because he delivered fuel oil in barrels in those days, and wood would not stand up to barrels being handled on them. The original wood is still under the plate. I recently lifted a corner of the metal plate and there is no sign of ever having any paint. We also used heavier flatbed trailers with yellow pine floors. When we installed a new floor we moped it with linseed oil on a hot day. We would sometime pour a little paint in the linseed oil to give it a little color. I clearly remember new pickups smelling like linseed oil. My guess would be that GM put a little black paint in linseed oil and moped it on as a preservative and giving it a flat black color. GM may have done it, or it would be my guess they bought them already treated. It was definitely not creosote. I used to haul creosote posts to the electric coop here before it was discovered creosote causes cancer. Creosote has a distinct odor, and new pickups did not stink like creosote, but they did stink like linseed oil.

I was at a local lumber company today. No. 1 Southern yellow pine is still available in Texas. They don't keep much of it because it is much more expensive than fir and the guys that use nail guns don't like it.

But can you find it in clear though? I've heard that most of the treated lumber is Yellow Pine but all of that I've seen is loaded with knots.
Denny Graham
Sandwich, IL

It is not treated. It is like the lumber we used for shelving years ago. I have a 12' 1x12 in the garage that I wanted to use for a shelf a couple of years ago. It is #1 or clear, but I think it is expensive. When I remodeled 25 years ago, I used 2x6 #1yp for strength on my rafters and 1x6 #1yp center match for decking. It would probably be cost prohibitive now. The last bumper hitch trailer I put a floor in, I used Brazilian iron wood for strength. Our semi trailers now have aluminum floors with apitong nailing strips. But apitong is not what it is cracked up to be. 40 years ago we used 2x8 yp center match in our trailers and moped them with linseed oil on a hot day. We got very good service out of them.

"southern yellow pine" (SYP)is used a great deal here in house building. I've used it for years.

As for the treated stuff....Its just my opinion but over the many years I've used it very little has never cracked or warped. Even nailed, screwed down or what have you it seems it will always "move". Its just prone to crack. Maybe its just my location?
For years during my high school days I cut timber and hauled it to the local paper/plywood mill. The softest to cut was the Pine and Popular. The hardest and toughest on a chainsaw was Hickory.