Care of Wood on Old Roof Racks?
 

I was ecstatic to get my hands on this roof rack 8 months ago. Perfect, shiny and new (reproduction).

Unfortunately here we are just 8 months later and...something's not right. The polyurethane "Minwax" finish the seller applied is destroyed and flaking. Unfortunately for the rack, the car is a daily driver and endured a long, cold, salty winter, with no garage to retreat to.

Is this wood toast? If not, what is the best way to refinish this wood and then maintain it in the future?

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1524441926

https://www.volvoforums.org.uk/attac...1&d=1524441926

Hello , I would remove the rack , sand off the polyurathane finish & treat bare wood with boiled linseed oil . You could even apply a wood stain before the oil to alter its colour if you wished .

You simply pour some oil into a rag & rub onto wood until it is absorbed , repeat as often as you feel necessary

One word of advice , DO NOT leave any cloth used to apply the oil scrunched up as it can auto ignite ,

The black in the wood grain might be difficult to remove. As said above I'd remove the wooden slats and sand them.

If you want a fit and forget solution I would use a heavy duty yacht varnish especially if you are not going to garage the car / keep it covered over the next winter. Don't forget about the summer too though UV resistant varnish as well as good stuff for the winter is best.

I could recommend some Dutch products but I have the feeling these would not be available on your side of the pond.

Or just replace the wooden slats with actual hardwood with a natural danish oil applied every now and then to freshen up

Kind regards
Robert.w

Agree. I'd ditch the wood that's there and replace with something else that you can keep oiled. Varnish is horrible stuff.

I agree that plasticy varnish doesn't look the best but for the purpose of the intended use I reckon it is the best solution: Otherwise the OP will spend most of his (or her) life re-oiling wood and wiping the drips off paintwork throughout the winter.

If the wood turns out to be dead I'd even consider some of that dodgy fake wood you put on decking as a practical fix!

(Oh my goodness I'm sure that's going to be an upset - perhaps an all metal roof rack would be best all things considered)

I'd be surprised if that was a repro rack. Looks real to me. I have one.They were originally galvanised and yours looks painted or powder coated. Mine is powder coated. Pine slats look original too. Remove all varnish and start again. You'll probably have to redo them yearly if it is out in all weathers. Black stains can be much reduced with decking bleach (oxalic acid) which will remove most of the blacking. Wash thoroughly and allow to dry. The second time I did mine I used pine coloured Danish oil, three coats, each one left for a few minutes before wiping off the excess. Looks nicer than the clear oil I used for the first refurb. Danish oil absorbs well but the wood will only absorb so much. Any excess will just weather off. If like mine it's more of a status accessory than a working rack, the finish will last longer. Keep it washed down in winter or take it off and find a corner for it.
Interestingly, mine needs a longer bolt in the centre position too. If you haven't got the original rubber buffers under the mounts, they are hard to find. at least get a few turns of tape around the clamps to reduce the damage to the gutter trim.
Nice one.

Maver1ck;

Welcome home!

Nice Rack! (did I just say that?) ...except for the wood part (I'd have some words with constructor!) I expect that rack would be beautiful for a long time on a garaged car, but your requirements are a bit beyond that...

It doesn't look like that wood, or its finish, are really outdoor rated (it probably looked good for about a year after it was new, and that's it)...you could refinish it, as others have suggested, but I expect this might be a loosing proposition... rather than mucking around with further attempts to turn it into something that it is not (and will likely never be!) I might recommend removing it (it looks like this could be done without too much difficulty) and replacing it with teakwood (which is used on boats, and well-known for standing up well to the terrible, and continuous insult of sea conditions (being walked on, wet from salt water, UV attack, etc.)...it will require some annual maintenance, as it does on boats...teak turns gray, but has a nice grain, natural oils, and so does not otherwise deteriorate after that...I think this would be a good long-term solution...but just in case, you might have a boatbuilder look at the wood and tell you if it is already teak...!...in that case it just would need some heavy maintenance by a boatshop!

I hope your family is well...I suggest and recommend another face-to-face at Ninos when you're in the state!

Cheers

Thanks all, I appreciate the feedback and recommendations.

Army, Dutch product recommendations may or may not help me, but others searching this topic in the future might benefit.

I and the car will be making the move across the big pond...and then a colder pond, all the way to Lithuania in just a few months. I have high aspirations of driving from Vilnius to Nordkapp at some point during our three year stint there. Luckily it looks like our housing in Vilnius will have a garage, at least.

Ron, I don't think I'll make it to your neck of the woods before this departure, but I'll certainly be back at some point and will touch base when that happens. Lots to catch up on!

The chap next to my workshop is enthusiastic about Coelan and Epifanes on his boat - I've used Ruwa stuff and Rambo stuff before around the house and it has been OK for a few years (The last two are more of the DIY shop type stuff whereas the first two are more specialist paint shop stuff)