Wooden Wheels and my first YouTube Video

[ryanf1023]

Hello all,

I've set up a YouTube channel, mainly for my small woodworking business but also to showcase antique car musings that I think people will find interesting. I invite you to watch my first video, a montage/timelapse of finishing my brand new wooden wheels.

I welcome any and all feedback on the video production, as I plan to do more of this style and others on a regular basis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VTjnxth2JM

[Steve Jelf]

Well done, but they're supposed to be body color.

[Jeff5015]

Those are very nice spokes! What did you make them out of?

Don't mind Steve... A mahogany Model T would look silly!

Jeff

[John Codman]

I appreciate the fact that Steve doesn't like wheels that are painted any way except the way the factory did it, but I respectfully suggest that the correct way to finish wheels is the way the car's owner wants them.

[Steve Jelf]

...the correct way to finish wheels is the way the car's owner wants them.

Yes, of course. But I have to confess that I lean toward the conservative end of the purism scale.

[Original Smith]

I've never seen brown wheels! I guess that's what you like. A lot of work for nothing!

[RecklessKelly]

Also curious about your type of wood, I want to redo the spokes on my 16 Maxwell.
Were the spokes factory varnished clear for a 26 coupe? Mine are painted black and peeling but it looks like they were painted over existing varnish that was unpainted previously. Since my felloe is steel, It looks to be factory black. I want to redo them as a winter project, as factory.

[ryanf1023]

Thank you all for the comments.

As a long time follower of the MTFCA forum, I figured I would attract a few comments on the colour choice!

Truthfully, they turned out darker than I wanted. I was going for a plain varnished look with just a bit of brown stain to “age” them a hair. I still may paint the wheels, depending on how my body turns out. This is a speedster after all, so a bit of leeway is in order. On their own, I actually love the finished product. I may or may not hold that same sentiment when they are on the car.

The wheels are hickory and made by Calimer Wheel Shop.

[Norman Kling]

Good! The wheels are made out of the correct wood so they should be strong. I would prefer black, however, many younger folks think they are steel and the wood color emphasizes that they are wood. It's your car and you can paint any color you wish to! Just be sure it is for exterior use and will not absorb water. They look very good and if they were constructed correctly should be tight and not crooked When they are on the car, they should run straight.
Norm

[John Codman]

Good! The wheels are made out of the correct wood so they should be strong. I would prefer black, however, many younger folks think they are steel and the wood color emphasizes that they are wood. It's your car and you can paint any color you wish to! Just be sure it is for exterior use and will not absorb water. They look very good and if they were constructed correctly should be tight and not crooked When they are on the car, they should run straight.
Norm

Thank you for calling me "younger". I like the wood color and have managed to sand all of the black off of two. I then "painted" them with clear spar varnish. When I said "sanded the black", some previous custodian had done the same, but it was a horrible job. I have finished two, but I may just have the other two re-spoked - it was a bit more then 40 hours of labor each, to get the two that I have done to where I wanted them.

[Allan]

Wheels can be very labour intensive, or not. You can save a lot of tme by scraping the spokes back to bare timber and then sanding.

Controlling the depth of stain requires care. I use stain compatible with the clear being used. I mix the stain into the clear and it is applied just as you paint them. If the colour is not deep enough, a subsequent coat may do the trick, without adding more stain. If you like the colour first up, just brush on subsequent coats of the clear with no stain. This technique allows far greater control of the depth of colour of the stain.

Hope this helps someone.
Allan from down under.

[ryanf1023]

Allan, that’s exactly what I did. I found it worked very well. I did one coat of the stain/varnish mix, and the subsequent two coats of straight varnish.

I errored on the mixing. I was non-chalant and imprecise when mixing. What’s done was done for the first wheel, and I chose to carry on with the other three with the same mix that was darker than I thought.

I’m happy with the experience gained, and wouldn’t have done it different. Learning is almost more fun than getting it right the first time. Almost.

[DanTreace]

Ryan

Great video, thanks for sharing, your aged look on varnished spokes is appealing to me.

Were the spokes factory varnished clear for a 26 coupe? Mine are painted black and peeling but it looks like they were painted over existing varnish that was unpainted previously. Since my felloe is steel, It looks to be factory black. I want to redo them as a winter project, as factory.

Yes, Ford offered natural finished spokes wheels in 21" for the Improved cars, it was customer option and considered a classy look in the mid '20s to early '30s on many wood wheel autos.

These are factory photos of the Gray, a competitor to the Ford in the '20s, note the natural finished spokes. Finish was varnish.

[Art M]

I am wondering:
Type of varnish, water base or oil base
Sandpaper grit before each coating
Kind of brush, type bristle or foam.

Has anyone tried lacquer as a finish.

Art Mirtes

[RecklessKelly]

I have had wooden boats for years and built 3 of them. The varnish that held up the longest in constant summer sun and outdoor winter storage was Rustoleum clear spar varnish from Lowes. A good sanding to remove any gray wood up to 320 grit is fine. I usually vacuum or dust cloth between coats. A fine sanding before the last coat is all that Ive done, and usually apply 5-10 coats two days apart from each other with a basic oil paint rated brush.

[Allan]

Art, automotive lacquer is unforgiving of other than very stable substrates, like timber. As wood expands/contracts with temperature and moisture content, it causes cracking in lacquer finishes , right from the primer base. Oil based enamels offer a longer lasting finish and off the gun/brush gloss.

Allan from down under.

[ryanf1023]

Art,

I used spar varnish. 220 grit between coats. I chose spar varnish because a thread on here from a decade ago said that. I used 220 because that was the finest grit I had on hand. I figured that any shoddiness that may come from the wrong type of varnish or grit would not be noticeable by any shoddiness from the applicant.

I must say, despite the nasty runoff on my first wheel (I started on the outer side as in the video. All subsequent wheels started on the back to mitigate this), I’m quite pleased with the results. A closer inspection may reveal blotches of varnish and other imperfections.

[WatchDog]

Great job! (Don’t mind the condescending comments. Those folks just can’t help it.)

[John Codman]

I am wondering:
Type of varnish, water base or oil base
Sandpaper grit before each coating
Kind of brush, type bristle or foam.

Has anyone tried lacquer as a finish.

Art Mirtes

I used Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane Clear gloss. It was recommended to me by a friend who owns a sailboat with a lot of wood trim. I am very happy with it.

[DanTreace]

Have used best quality wood boat varnish. Thin first coat 50% to soak in the grain. Apply more coats, between each rub out brush strokes or air bubbles, runs, with bronze wool. Just like boat finishers do. Your work will last decades with best varnishes.

[ryanf1023]

Dan,

The aged look is something I was attempting almost as an “undercoat” to a potential paint job in the future. The 2:15 timestamp of me sanding is probably the best look I would have liked to preserve. I should have finished that with a matte/flat varnish, if such a thing exists. I do hope the gloss wears away a little with time to sell the aged look a little better.

[Allan]

Ryan, the gloss will wear away is quickly as you like with some rubbing with fine steel wool. You can manipulate the degree of matt you like. No need to wait.

Allan from down under

[Erik Johnson]

RE: satin, matte or flat finish

If you want a satin, matte or flat finish, use gloss varnish for all the undercoats and then use satin, matte or flat for the final coat.

Following the above procedure provides a clear finish. If you use a sheen other than gloss for all the undercoats, the finish will be cloudier.

Lightly sand or use steel wool between coats.