Replacing fake wood with real wood

[webspinner]

Originally Posted by vswingfield

I'm guessing alansd means a bulkhead rather than an exterior wall.

That's what I meant, too. For any of those posts about plywood, insert "bulkhead" instead of "wall." I'm replacing the room dividers, not the inner skin of the trailer.

[Mikec1231]

Not to highjack this post but I might be able to add a little bit about the veneer and plywood. I am new to the forum but live in Oregon and work in sales for the 2nd largest hardwood plywood manufacturer in the States.
There are a number of companies that sell "raw" veneer in mainly 4 x 8 sheets that have a paper back glued to the wood. This is to make it flexible and also so it will not tear. I will speak with some friends in the business and see if they have any interest in selling (maybe listing their specie availability, etc) for the group. They normally roll the veneer in cardboard tubes and then UPS them to the customers. This is usually veneer that is about 1/42" thick before adding the paper back. As far as plywood, at most retail stores like HD, Lowe's and Menards in the US, the 1/4" (nominal) plywood is usually only stocked in a good 1 side. It can be made in any configuration and in specialty wholesalers is frequently stocked. Because of the size, it would be very difficult to figure out a way to sell plywood in this dimension and get it shipped. I will let the group know what I find out.

[Mikec1231]

I spoke with a couple of companies. They are not really set up to sell to individuals Here is a list of companies that will sell the sheet veneers with the paper backing;


NameLinkPhone Number Cabinetparts.com
www.cabinetparts.com800 857 8721Capital City Lumber
www.capitalcitylumber.com800 244 6492Constantines
www.constantines.com800 443 9667Custom Service Hardware
www.cshardware.com800 882 0009Homecraft Veneer
www.homecraftveneer.com800 796 6348Outwater Industries
www.outwater.com800 631 8375Rockler
www.rockler.com800 279 4441VeneerSupplies.com
www.veneersupplies.com
888 598 3633Woodcraft Supply
www.woodcraft.com800 225 1153Woodworkers Supply
www.woodworker.com800 645 9292I am not endorsing any of them, just a list I found that might help.

[webspinner]

We've had good luck with the birch ply we buy at the local independent hardware store as far as fitting into the original channel. I used to be able to buy two sided birch, but that place went out of business. Now I special order the two sided birch with only a few days' delay.

[ALANSD]

Originally Posted by webspinner

ALANSD - what kind of damage did the your veneer get? Is it discolored or is it bubbling away from the underlayment? Can you tell if the core is actual wood or is it pressboard/masonite type of stuff?

There is plywood beneath the veneer. The venner layer is cracking and pulled away from the plywood due the water leaking from above. It is restricted to one area that could be replaced with veneer about 2X2 feet or so. The box that covers the vent pipe that leaked, also needs it.

I have fixed the leak and bought a new mushroom type cap to go on the outside over the pipe.

I would have to pull out the overhead cabinet that runs from the bedroom thru into the bathroom, the wall behind the kitchen and more to repair this small area. I will post a picture.

[webspinner]

I'd love to see a picture. Without seeing it, I wonder if it would be possible to inject some glue behind where it has pulled away and re-stick it to the wall. It would still need sanding and refinishing, but the wood would match.

[webspinner]

I've been making steady progress, mostly sanding, varnishing, sanding, varnishing, so not much to show. I did treat myself to a really nice, natural bristle brush. It's much smoother to use than the Chinese ones that come in a bag, and it sheds almost no hairs. Yay!

Clean air standards seem to have changed recently in California, so the formulas for finishes that I got when we started redoing the trailer aren't the same as the ones now. Sometimes the one I want can be hard to find. And sometimes I just plain grab the wrong can.

So I've read up and learned about traditional varnishes and urethanes, gloss and satin. Traditional spar varnishes (one "wrong" can I grabbed), are meant to go on sailboat spars that bend. Such varnishes are more flexible and less likely to crack in a collision with something hard. But they need renewal more frequently than the synthetic urethanes. The traditional varnishes apparently bond better with bare wood than the urethanes.

Satin finishes are more forgiving of imperfect surfaces. When you are doing your finishing inside an Airstream that is under construction, you don't have an entirely dust free environment. I think I'm keeping most of the dust off, but in any case, I'm far happier with the way the satin finish looks. I also learned that satin finishes are not glossy because of something added to the varnish. Regular stirring during the varnishing process keeps these evenly mixed. That would explain why the can of urethane I tried to use from last summer that had developed a dull crust produced glossy finish instead of the satin it was supposed to be. That can got retired.

I'm left with a can of traditional spar varnish (all I could find while the urethanes were being reformulated or something - the hardware store shelves were nearly bare) in a gloss (total oops on my part) and I have a can of urethane satin.

Rather than let the spar varnish go to waste, I'm using it as a base coat. That way I get the benefit of the deeper wood penetration and flexibility at a deep level. It also means that any dust it gathers during its interminable 24 hour drying time (even with the heater on out there) will be sanded away and smoothed over by later coats. Then I top coat with two or three coats of urethane satin clear (I think Helmsman is what they had in stock). It looks really nice when I don't miss any spots.

One of the other tradeoffs in the traditional varnish vs urethane tug of war is that traditional varnish will slightly dissolve the finished coat below it, no matter how long that coat has dried. This means no sanding between coats and that spot touch ups are possible. But then there's that 24 hour drying time...

Have I mentioned that finishing wood is finicky work?

[perryg114]

It is hard to beat urathanes for water resistance. Some varnishes are not that great and will stain and peal if exposed to water and sunlight for long periods of time. I think the two part epoxy varnishes are probably best but more of a pain to deal with. The satin does have some solids in it that are responsible for the satin finish. If you don't stir the can you will get glossy. I have never used the water based urathanes and don't plan to.

Perry

[webspinner]

I'm only using oil based finishes. I'm going for durability and ease of use. It's a camping trailer and I want to be able to use it without worrying about the finish.

[webspinner]

Spent today wrestling apart the upper cabinet above the closet so that I can replace the bottom of it with birch. Had to use a rubber mallet and wood block to get the front frame to slide sideways off the particle board. Those clips inside the channel are tenacious.

I did manage to get the new veneer in the closet trim. You can see that the "red birch" trim is darker than the yellow parts of the "red birch" plywood wall of the bathroom. The grayish brown wood closet doors just don't have the same glow. Don't know what we'll put in those instead - the veneer won't work, unfortunately.

[ALANSD]

not trying to take over this thread but here are two shots, you can see the wood is pretty shot. this is looking up at the bottom of the overhead bin.

[webspinner]

Alan, I think that original veneer is beyond salvaging. What you do to fix it depends on how much other renovation you're thinking of, if any. It will be tricky to match the aged wood color. You can try to match with stains, but then the color will diverge over the years as the two wood treatments (original and stain) age differently.

The easiest fix would be to clear out the old wood, level the gaps with wood putty, sand and paint. You could try to match the walls or pick a contrasting color that accents the trailer. The next option would be to put on layer of veneer instead of paint. I haven't tried gluing veneer in place, but I believe the hot ticket is contact cement - very evenly applied and very carefully lined up and rolled out with a roller to get rid or air bubbles and lumps. It's a bit finicky, but it would look better than what you have now.

The most thorough solution is to take apart all affected cabinets and replace the damaged wood with new plywood. It might be tricky to track down matching plywood.

I wish you luck! Whatever you decide to do, start a thread about it and let us watch your progress! Meanwhile, I'm happy to share my thread for Q&A about woodworking. We're all learning here.

[ALANSD]

Thanks- the other wood is very nice, and I refinished it so its even prettier. I will try the veneer in place with brush on contact cement and see how it goes.Even if I piece it together it will look better than what I now have. Luckily its on a wall that doesn't get much attention anyway.

[jamesardis]

Just a thought about countertop options-this is the route I took last year on my 1971 safari. I used roofing copper that I heat treated to dead soft, then ran over with my truck [ on some gravel, both sides]. to make the surface slightly bumpy. As you can see I too put a few strips of shiney copper in some of the edges. Wanted to do the vertical strips but couldnt figure how to without tearing the bottom apart. Good luck!---jim

[webspinner]

Originally Posted by jamesardis

Just a thought about countertop options-this is the route I took last year on my 1971 safari. I used roofing copper that I heat treated to dead soft, then ran over with my truck [ on some gravel, both sides]. to make the surface slightly bumpy.

That is a really neat effect! What did you use to seal the copper?

A friend of mine just did the floor in his dining room with pennies, said it was cheaper than tile. He, like you, added a few odd items in - Canadian coins, the occasional nickel, etc.

Originally Posted by jamesardis

As you can see I too put a few strips of shiney copper in some of the edges. Wanted to do the vertical strips but couldnt figure how to without tearing the bottom apart. Good luck!---jim

The vertical strips come easily out the top once you take the counter off. The horizontal strips require disconnecting nearly everything.

[Suzzeee]

Wow - I love that copper effect - very cool!

[jamesardis]

I covered the copper with a UV lacquer, And my fav is the fact that I dont have to worry about scratches or dents because of the distressed surface! The coins and key were made with a rubber mallet and are in the countertop in the back bedrm. Ive often wished for the beauty of real wood as well!! Good luck with your project! This pic is of the copper and steel transom [sunflowers]

[barts]

Here's a quick update showing the panel we made for the solar controller & Trimetric battery monitor. This is mounted right next to the fridge vent... Once things get a little more finshed and cleaned up we can post more pictures - like one of the butcher block kitchen counter.

- Bart

[webspinner]

Whew! That was a push!

Progress has been made, but between work and home and birch-i-fying the Tin Pickle, I just haven't have time to take, sort and post pictures. Bart and I worked all last weekend and all this weekend and it's finally coming together.

One feature in the new Pickle is a desk for Bart to work at when he's "at work" in some scenic location. Last time we tried this, he crammed his knees into one side of the old two sided cabinet under the desk. The challenge was to make a comfortable desk with no wasted space at the sides that could also serve as clothing storage when the whole family travels together.

Here's the desk without its top with the new tambour closed:



And here it is in "shelf basket" mode:



The shelf will fold up to allow foot room when it's just a desk. There will also be a keyboard tray on drawer slides to put the keyboard at a more ergonomic height. The curved pieces on either side of the basket shelf are open topped storage boxes accessible in both desk and shelf basket configurations.

Here's a more clear picture of the battery monitor and solar panel indicator, in its new, birch wood setting. The counter is beech butcher block from Ikea. Yes, it adds a bit of poundage (about 60 pounds net gain), but we've saved weight by keeping the original aluminum framing (and reinforced it for the duty). We are loving the warmth of the wood tones.



Another big task has been the pantry. We wanted more organization, easily accessible, all within the original framework. I made the shelves a bit deeper and changed their spacing, but everything else is as it was, just with birch instead of brown plastic. I'll do a full pantry post later. Here's a sneak preview - borrowing some space from the pantry to make a headboard cubby for overnighters in our "guest room" when the back dinette serves as a single bed. It isn't finished here, obviously, but this gives an idea of how it goes together:




Last of all, something of an overview of the new effect of birch. I can't do any wider views because the trailer is still strewn with tools, construction materials and stuff that is waiting to go back into the pantry and cupboards.



I'll get more pictures up later this week as we tidy up loose ends.

I can't seem to delete these tipped versions I posted at first. Just ignore them.

[webspinner]

It's done!

Well, it's as done as it's going to be for a little while. Those last few % of a job can take twice as long to fall into place as the whole rest of the work.

It was so lovely to wake up inside a birch trailer after our first night on the geode trip. I hadn't realized just how much that beat up, old, dark, plastic wood bulkhead next to the door was coloring my view of the whole interior.