Real wood interior custom accents

[sick472]

Anybody add real wood accents to their truck's interior?

I am setting off to add red oak panels to the inner door panels, lower door kick area, radio delete, glove box face, gauge cluster, AND, maybe, the dash pad if I can figure out how to recreate it entirely out of wood.

I'd love to see some pics of any custom interior woodwork and hear of any tips, tricks, or concerns.

[C-ries]

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=790926

See post #13...I remembered seeing this one last summer. I thought it looked really cool!

[jmader]

I just ran across this wood dash bezel on eBay a couple days ago. I have no use for it but it’s so cool IMO.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/1967-72-Che...oAAOSwicteBUw2

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by sick472

Anybody add real wood accents to their truck's interior?

I am setting off to add red oak panels to the inner door panels, lower door kick area, radio delete, glove box face, gauge cluster, AND, maybe, the dash pad if I can figure out how to recreate it entirely out of wood.

I'd love to see some pics of any custom interior woodwork and hear of any tips, tricks, or concerns.

These are the only two threads I could find with a quick search:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=424004

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=289715

I know there are a couple more on here somewhere.

LockDoc

[OregonNed]

I've had the same idea, at least for the ashtray, radio delete and glove box door for some time. Last fall I purchased an original door and slider type ashtray to restore and add wood facing. My originals have custom pinstriping, so I wanted to keep them intact. In the end the wood will match my truck's bed wood - quartersawn red oak. However it has been taking a while for my friend to get them finished for me.

I also plan to add a chrome 54 Chevrolet script emblem to the door when competed. Hopefully soon I can show the finished products.

Original door:

[OregonNed]

After paint:

[OregonNed]

Progress so far:

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by OregonNed

Progress so far:

I love that quarter sawn oak....

LockDoc

[OregonNed]

I may have misread your post about all-wood - sorry about that. I am simply adding veneers to mine. The radio delete will be all wood though. There are lots of veneer choices that can be used.

[sick472]

Great stuff...thanks for playin' and keep it coming!

It appears that others are thinking in the same vein as I. I'm glad to see someone (plowro8) figured out how to do a dash pad in wood...there is hope. I'm no expert wood worker, but have managed to do my bed in wood with good results. I think the dash pad will be the toughest for me and may have to hire someone with the right equipment.

Veneer or board wood, either examples are great...thanks OregonNed for sharing. that glove box is going to look great with that quarter sawn and scrip badging!

I'll be starting off with 3/4" thick red oak, but that will be too thick for the door panels. I have 72 door latches and regulator (they have longer shafts) and the older steel inner door panels (not the later molded plastic ones), but the longer shafts will only allow for about 3/8" thick wood. It will look better with thinner wood anyhow...I just have to get it planed down.

[Steeveedee]

The dash is padded to save skulls in a crash. But if you're wearing a seat belt with a shoulder harness, you're unlikely to hit your head on the dash in a crash. Maybe you can find some wood grain vinyl to reupholster the dash? Also, to minimize cracking, I would only use quarter sawn wood, as it is the most dimensionally stable. Plus it almost always looks better, imo.

[OregonNed]

I finally received my parts back from my wood worker friend. All in all it turned out pretty well. The single wood piece is a panel to use as a radio delete mounted in a billet radio bezel

[sick472]

That's some nice work right there Ned!

I started the cardboard template process yesterday, but it will be a while before show off pics are available. I have to decide to cut the dash behind the gauge cluster OR try and hog out the wood to allow for the raised sections in the upper corners for the wipers and light switches. I hate to cut the dash for sacrilege reasons, but hogging out the wood may not be in my tool/skill set either.

Ned...get it installed and lets see some more pics...I'm loving the quarter-sawn wood grains!

Here is the look that I want to transfer to the interior. I plan to use button and flat head fasteners to secure the wood depending on the location, but I do not think I will incorporate the wood bed skid strips in the interior.

[OregonNed]

Originally Posted by sick472

That's some nice work right there Ned!

I started the cardboard template process yesterday, but it will be a while before show off pics are available. I have to decide to cut the dash behind the gauge cluster OR try and hog out the wood to allow for the raised sections in the upper corners for the wipers and light switches. I hate to cut the dash for sacrilege reasons, but hogging out the wood may not be in my tool/skill set either.

Ned...get it installed and lets see some more pics...I'm loving the quarter-sawn wood grains!

Here is the look that I want to transfer to the interior. I plan to use button and flat head fasteners to secure the wood depending on the location, but I do not think I will incorporate the wood bed skid strips in the interior.

Thank you, I will do that.. getting ready to do so before I put the bench seat back in. It was developing a separation between the cloth and vinyl on the driver side, and a local friend restitched it for me...

[sick472]

Some progress on the wood interior. It's coming along nicely. I ended up cutting the dash behind the gage cluster and where the radio delete gage panel will go. The gage cluster was getting such that there was less and less wood left and hoggin out the back side to accomodate the metal raised sections would have made even less...so it had to go. This required some fancy footwork on the backside of the cluster for the light and wiper swicth. A little freehand dremel work was needed after the holes were drilled and counterusnk to create releifs for the light switch bracket clearance and for the wiper tangs to live in.

I used weld nuts for the door panels by cutting and drilling the wood to fit then match drilling the metal panels for the weld nuts. I actually used the wood panels to postion the weld nuts during the spot welding process. The photo below shows the backside of the metal panels where the wednuts where welded on. I'll have to use an earlier model armrest becuase the 72 style is longer and would hang over the wood towards the back. I think it will look better anyhow.

Some progress pics...

[sick472]

A few more pics...

[68 P.O.S.]

Originally Posted by OregonNed

I finally received my parts back from my wood worker friend. All in all it turned out pretty well. The single wood piece is a panel to use as a radio delete mounted in a billet radio bezel

Now THAT is sexy!

[Steeveedee]

Indeed! Very nice! I wonder if anyone sells 85 MPH speedos. I'll never get my truck going 160 MPH.

[toolboxchev]

Sexy, wood and metal is always a great combo. Nice work!

[sick472]

Originally Posted by toolboxchev

Sexy, wood and metal is always a great combo. Nice work!

The same supplier had a 140 mph speedo that I would have preferred, but it had a digital odometer and that killed it for me. On top of that, it was a GPS unit at twice the cost. A lower mph speedo would balance better with the low rpm tach. It is what it is I guess.

Thanks for the compliments all, more pics as they get mounted,

[tjc]

you people who put real wood in your trucks are the same people who thought shag carpeting was kool.

[toolboxchev]

I like that really obnoxious multicolor orange stuff. Thinking of rubber cementing some of that stuff on my truck body!

[sick472]

Originally Posted by tjc

you people who put real wood in your trucks are the same people who thought shag carpeting was kool.

SHAG CARPETING"S NOT KOOL???

[toolboxchev]

I am going to do a 87 2 bolt TPI motor with my Shagging Wagon!

[sick472]

I just noticed that it has been a year since I started thinking about doing the interior in wood so I thought I'd post some progress show-off pics...it's getting close.