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One of the nicest looking beds I have ever seen made use of stainless steel rod for the strips. The edges of the bed boards were routered to quarter round corners so that when the boards were mounted the mating corners formed a semi circle. The stainless rod fit down into this semi circle which left half of the rod embedded in the wood and half exposed above the wood. I thought that I had some photos but I haven't been able to find them yet. This technique is not possible if you are starting with pre-made bed wood boards however since the "gaps" between the boards are not the same.
I could see how that would look, you could use a cove bit to cut the 1/4 round into the boards. Pretty slick. I'm thinking of maybe using a contrast wood as a "T" which would give the maple a chance to move. There are folks that sell bed strips but haven't found to many that are 96" long and don't want a lot for them along with high shipping cost. I have a while to figure out what to do, lumber is being shipped. I do like the idea of the tube but wonder how it expanse and contracts?
Thanks for the insight
Don52M3
I don't see the "T" bolts but it is a very clean install. My problem is I need 96" strips and they are hard to find and expensive to ship Bob Drake has some that are short but looks to be at a good price.
Thanks for the share
Don52M3
Pro's Pick has the hidden fastener T bolt strips in longer lengths. They call them Wow strips. There's a picture of how the hidden fastener thing works in the link above. They are a special item, not the ordinary strips with no holes others sell. Check with Carpenter, but I believe you'll need to drill holes to make them work.
Don, When I did my bed, I had a custom installation. "54 F750 fire truck. I used Mar-k Mar-K Manufacturing. this place was awesome. they can custom length, custom punch holes. Great to work with. I had cypress milled to the width I wanted and groved for the strips.I will post some pictures. Good luck in your search. I used polished SS
Looks great, I like the cypress. have used cypress to build out door chairs and it holdup pretty well outside. I have that same Delta Unisaw.
Thanks for sharing
Don52M3
Since I'm a make use of what you have guy, I used old barn wood off a barn that was destroyed when a big tree decided to flatten it. My divider strips are also barn wood stained a different color for contrast.
Most of the wood on the barn was white oak. After it was planed, it wasn't perfect, but as my wife said, it had character. Divider strips were cut to allow movement of the main boards. My wife stained the divider strips.
I like the wood slats, I was thinking about that and made a mess of my shop making a prototype. Looks good. What are you all using for finish Poly?
Thanks
Don52M3
I like the wood slats, I was thinking about that and made a mess of my shop making a prototype. Looks good. What are you all using for finish Poly?
Thanks
Don52M3
I had a gallon of automotive clear urethane that a paint rep gave me several years back that I decided to try. It's been on for several years now. Admittedly I don't use the the truck for hauling stuff that would damage the finish, but it has held up better than I thought it would.
Wow...while looking for something else I actually came across the photo of the bed with the stainless rods in the bed floor. Wood looks pretty nice too!
