The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Making a Stovebolt Bed Purple Heart Bed Apply finish or leave bare?

I'm almost done rebuilding by bed.
I made new joists out of Honduran Mahogany, which I coated with Spar Urethane.
I'm using purple heart deck boards which I have in 1 1/8" x 5" ship lap. I am about halfway done screwing done the purple heart boards.
I am trying to decide if I want to put on a finish, oil, or urethane on the purple heart, or to leave it bare.
I think that the way purple heart looks after it has turned brown by being in the sun, looks better with my green truck.
This is a work truck. I would like to hear from others who have used their beds to carry toll boxes, lumber, etc.

Does the Urethane win used on the deck get scuffed up a lot?

Should I just oil it every year, to keep the wood from drying out?
Or leave it bare?

Thanks,
chris ioakimedes
Fairfax, California

I used purple heart in my bed. I wanted to keep the purple look though. I first used Watco Oil to seal the color in, a trick used by boat builders. I then put 6 coats of spar urethane on it. Take a look at the sites below, lots of pictures building the bed. Coach Frank

I was looking for a good post to add these pics of a truck I saw last weekend. It's a show truck, but I loved the finish they have put on their bed wood. They stained the wood to match the color of the truck. Some may not like it, but I think it's sharp.

The truck

The wood in the bed

I decided to use Watco Exterior Oil. I have decided against putting urethane on top of the oil. I finished assembling and oiling the bed today, I will post pictures tomorrow.
Chris

Chris, good call on oiling the purple heat. It is not very stable, and will crack the urethane varnish. But, thats assuming you are getting you truck wet, like driving in the rain, or keeping it in an unheated garage, in a climate where the humidity makes big changes through the year. I see you are in cali, so that might not be a problem for you!!! Just clean and oil it a couple times a year. It will turn brown no matter what you do, as it oxidises, and is exposed to the sun. The good news is though, your bed won't rot if it gets, and stays wet for months. The bed in my truck is douglas fir, as I had it on hand, and it's lighter in weight. I just keep it fresh looking with linseed oil, but only sanded to 60 grit. That keeps my junk, I mean quality tools from sliding around too much. Plus, urethane tends to flake and chip if you drop stuff on it. I think you made a good call on the oil, if you are using you truck for what it's intended. I did varnish the stake sides on my truck, as that makes everyone ooooh and ahhhhh. But with real varnish, more flexable, easier to touch up.

[IMG]http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd45/HomeCrafter/IMGP0950.jpg[/IMG]

Say, that's blurry.

[IMG]http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd45/HomeCrafter/IMGP0995.jpg[/IMG]

oh, I meant to say, NICE TRUCK !!!!! I like it.

I finished the bed!!! I'm really happy with the way it turned out.
[img]http://home.comcast.net/~chriseye/images/bed6.jpg[/img]
More photos can be seen on the link below.

That is great! You'll be hauling and getting loaded with a forklift in no time.

I realized that I made a mistake in my description. I used Philippine Mahogany, not Honduran Mahogany for my joists. I am now considering buying more Philippine Mahogany for the back boards.
Chris

Off the topic, it is preferred that you link pix in, rather than direct post them. hat helps cut down on bandwidth and site operating costs.
Nice job on your bed, though!

The headache rack is now done. I made it out of Philippine Mahogany, and coated it with Watco Exterior oil. Click on the link below.
Chris