What goes between the bed and the frame? Wood? rubber, ect?

[LAWFISH]

I took the bed off of the 67 as it was hammered and I think there was some old wood in between the bed and frame? When putting it back togethere, what do I need to consider and can I use somethign else that better than wood?

what have you done?

Dave

[Hobcobble]

Use white oak blocks.
John

[LAWFISH]

Use white oak blocks.
John

can you buy them or do I have to make them and if so, what size, ect?

Thanks Dave

[Hobcobble]

Use white oak blocks.
John

can you buy them or do I have to make them and if so, what size, ect?

Thanks Dave

Ben Simons & Russ Ashley have been through this..... hopefully one or both will see
this thread and get you squared away.
John

[RussRoth]

I cut them with a table saw. If you want your body lines to match up you might need to cut them differently at each position. I had to do that with mine and still had to shim with some UHMW plastic at one of them. I used one of the old ones as a pattern and made adjustments off that in the direction I needed to go.

[MountainMoparRobin]

I did mine in 2000, found like Russ you need the table saw for the correct angle, also found 2x4 won't work, unless you shim, I used 4x4 and came out perfect, lines all matched first time, I used treated lumber, last longer than Oak

[CSS-Registry]

i did mine and like Russ said you may need to cut different lengths to make the body line match up...









if you search my threads i think i gave the specs i used to make them. i think i used Maple or Ash to cut them from - you need a really tangled up type wood that is hard and doesn't split easy. white oak will work fine. i also cut them long and used a belt sander to fine tune them.

either way here is my resto thread for more info if you need - http://cssregistry.com/css/64d100Resto/index.html

Jim sells a great resto CD - i highly recommend.

[RussRoth]

i did mine and like Russ said you may need to cut different lengths to make the body line match up...



if you search my threads i think i gave the specs i used to make them. i think i used Maple or Ash to cut them from - you need a really tangled up type wood that is hard and doesn't split easy. white oak will work fine. i also cut them long and used a belt sander to fine tune them.

Jim sells a great resto CD - i highly recommend.

Thems is downright purdy!

[LAWFISH]

I think I will try treated as well. Whats the BASIC size, any ideas, so I can start out close?

Dave

[CSS-Registry]

treated lumber is usually pine or some other soft wood and it could compress or split over time - there's a reason Dodge used a hard wood... you could always treat it before putting it in place.

the basic size is:

the ones with the holes in it are 1 7/8 wide by 2 1/2 long by 2 1/2 high

the angled ones are 1 7/8 wide by 2 1/2 long by and angle of (2 1/4 tall side and 1 7/8 short side).

i used R/V leveling stands and a jack to get the lines right with four bolts in place (two front and two back). once i got the measure ments for the backs i rough fit my back 2 blocks and then did the front two blocks constantly checking the lines. once i got the front and back pairs i then did the 2nd row of pairs and saved the 4 angled blocks for last...

you'll figure it out - send an email if you have questions or if you want my 'prison' cell number if you want to talk in real time...

simonsben at gmail dot com

Ben

[MountainMoparRobin]

The important part is the angle's their not just cut flat, when you pull the bed you'll see the frame isn't flat and the wood has to be cut at angle's that sit on the frame, and then the top has to be flat to the bed, that will be the reason the lines may not line up or you have to do alot of sanding to make them fit, another reason why the 4x4 was used is so that when cut it will fill the rails on the bed with no gap as the one's from the factory do, so it won't have an opportunity to move. the treated wood won't split as you probably already know, for the treated wood is made to be used in the elements where moisture could be an issue

[CSS-Registry]

treated wood is usually a soft species such as southern pine or douglas fir... by the very nature of pine or fir it will split much easier than a tangled up hardwood - treated or not.

http://www.strongtie.com/productuse/ptwoodfaqs.html - scroll down to "What types of wood can be pressure treated and what are the differences in corrosion rates? ".

i have split both types for my fireplace and hardwood like maple or oak is my vote for bed blocks hands down... my maul will go thru pine like a warm knife goes thru butter but bounces off oak like it is a rock.

if you're concerned about it handling the elements then paint the blocks but realize that the hard wood blocks were on many of our trucks for 40+ years with no treatment and they held up fine. beside i have sunk hundred of fence posts for my horse pasture and i can show you a few PT poles that have only lasted 5 years...

it's your choice but ma mopar used hardwood for a reason...

Ben

[RussRoth]

I am 100% with Ben on the type of wood to use. Soft woods won't cut it (IMHO) long term for this application. Take it for what it's worth.

[surfnuke9]

Some info found online. As you can see, Oak and Maple are stronger in every regard and shrink less than a typical soft wood (treated woods are softwoods)

Air-Dry Volumetric Side Splitting Crushing
Density Shrinkage Hardness Strength Strength

Sugar Maple 740 9.30% 7290 110 56.4

White Oak 750 9.60% 7130 122 60.1

Douglas-fir 540 7.0% 2990 38.9 50.01

Western Hemlock 480 8.1% 2740 37.5 46.7

[MountainMoparRobin]

Use whatever wood you prefer, however the fact is the wood is treated so that it won't split, compress, or shrink, that is the whole purpose of treating wood with the chemicals they use, it also gives it a lifespan twice as long as untreated wood, so every reason your saying not to use treated wood is exactly why it should be used, every reason you state is why the woold is treated to give you exact results all of you have mentioned almost as if you guys are selling treated wood

[CSS-Registry]

treating wood does not change its inherent properties of the base tree species grain and how it splits - sure it is glued together thru pressure treating and chemicals but it still splits along the grain under a load.

sure, treated pine or fir may last 5 to 10 years or more than un-treated pine or fir but will it last as long as ma mopar intended when she used a hardwood...

if it was my time and effort i would use the stuff that you can confidently state that will last a lifetime.

40+ years for an untreated hardwood in my humid FLORIDA truck is a long time in my book - shoot the bed rusted out before all the blocks rotted out...

Ben

[Hobcobble]

Use whatever wood you prefer, however the fact is the wood is treated so that it won't split, compress, or shrink, that is the whole purpose of treating wood with the chemicals they use, it also gives it a lifespan twice as long as untreated wood, so every reason your saying not to use treated wood is exactly why it should be used, every reason you state is why the woold is treated to give you exact results all of you have mentioned almost as if you guys are selling treated wood

Then pressure treated balsa wood should work
John

[RussRoth]

Use whatever wood you prefer, however the fact is the wood is treated so that it won't split, compress, or shrink, that is the whole purpose of treating wood with the chemicals they use, it also gives it a lifespan twice as long as untreated wood, so every reason your saying not to use treated wood is exactly why it should be used, every reason you state is why the woold is treated to give you exact results all of you have mentioned almost as if you guys are selling treated wood

Robin,

Pressure treating does not change character of the wood one iota. It is only to prevent rot and the latest stuff used doesn't do a very good job of that.

[MountainMoparRobin]

The original wood behind the wheels feel apart when I took off the bed, and others I had to be very careful with to have for the remaking of new bed wood, and that was a Texas bought truck and it had lived its entire life in the humidity of Texas, I never stated any wood properties were changed that is not in any of my post, and as the people read this that have the knowledge of using the wood know it doesn't split, and you cannot run it through your table saw like butter, its already been over 7 yrs and their isn't one line that is off, once the chemically treated wood is dry, the chemical will fill any space and will not shrink, granted I try not to work my truck but I have had to use it a few times to hual furniture, tools, and etc. and not one line is off, I really get a kick out of this for on the radio they are advertising the treated lumber and every reason that you have posted on why not to use it is exactly what they say is the advantage of it, because it doesn't have those traits.

[MountainMoparRobin]

seems the life exspectancy of white oak is 7=15 yrs, why? because its not treated so it gets attacked by fungis and other microorganism, especially in humid weather, read the stastics http://extension.missouri.edu/publicati ... px?P=G5501 3/4 of the way down the page, you'll see that the lumber your recomending will last 1/3 the amount of time as treated lumber.