I'm looking for patch panel for my '49 f1 steel bed floor? Need to repair my or replace it... Looking into either repair panel, flat steel, or aluminum... Don't want to use wood here in AZ, just doesn't hold up with the sun! What did you all use and how do you like it?

 

In my 53 I used the bed floor from a 94 F250, the center section was just the right size. I think BobbyT is using the floor from a Chebbie in his

 

49Willard replaced his steel floor with a stock original, contact him for how to do it. On my 48, I'm going to switch to a wood floor. The kits you see for the later trucks don't work on ours, so I'm going to buy the wood locally and do the wood work my self. I've also seen aluminium diamond plate used, and it looks good when polished.

 

Bed floors and front panel from a 2005 GMC (I love freebies)



Bobby

 

Freeby... I'm not that lucky!

 

Hit up a few large body shops in your area and ask them if they recently did any full bed replacements. Sometimes they'll buy a used bed assembly for a few parts and will have the floor left over. Or, the damaged bed may still have a good floor.

Most of the time, they just scrap the left overs.

 

or you can come to baker.we have some 5x8 sheets of thick metal...just need a lil sanding...its flat tho

 

Jeff that looks great; that's what I plan on doing in the spring I currently have wood & SS strips after only a few months I could see the wood deteriorating; Bobby I also like the fact that you used the front panel. I may also insert my SS strips in there somewhere I hate to not use them and paid all that money for them.

 

Thanks, I am a self employed mechanic, so my truck gets used. I just couldn't see putting a pretty wood bed in there and then throwing greasy parts on it

 

I too used the floor from a newer pickup.......

 

I am cutting my steel pan out in favor of a wood floor. My pan is pitted, but solid. Not sure if it is original or not, but it looks the part for sure! It has a lip on the 3 sides, tacked to the bed and bolted through the middle.

I too am going to make my own wood bed.

 

As rhopper posted, I replaced the steel floor in my 49 with a new original style repro floor stamping from Mack Hills. Not a job for the faint of heart. Unfortunately I got rid of the old floor which could have yielded patch panels for you. Installing patch panels will not be easy since the original wood is directly under the original steel floor will limit access to the the back side for welding and providing the potential for a minor fire of the wood from welding.
The original floors are spot welded to the front panel, the bedsides and the rear U cross section crossmember. I duplicated that in my installation after replacing the original wood.

 

Like Ilya mentioned, talk to the local body shops, thats where I got mine. Myt buddy works at a body shop. The truck came in where the guy had dropped his 5th wheel trailer on the bed sides so they replaced the whole bed. The bed set out back andwas used to store other dented body pieces. The company they had coming around to pick up the scrap never picked up the bed so my buddy gave it to me.

Jaye, Thanks, my front panel was pretty well beat up, and since I had this one I figured I'd make it work

Fordman49F1, the original bed floors on the 48-50 trucks is a wood floor with a sheet metal cover. From what you described it sounds original. In mid year 1950 when they changed the bed style from the raised bedsides and rounded stake pockets to the flat bed sides with the square stake pockets then they also went to the traditional wooden bed floor with the metal strips.

Bobby

 

in my 1935 model a bed there is wood in the underneath and metal on top...looks factory...and wood is in very good cond

 

Has anyone tried using thin wall rectangular steel tubing instead of wood? I'm pondering this as an option if the wood ever rots out in the bed of my F-2.