wood fading

getting close to purchase time and i notice many have faded rear panel and around sink. very noticeable with back doors open.
Has anyone rectified this?

I asked the same question a while back, see this thread for suggestions....

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One of the first things we did on our Duetto was to have the back windows tinted.
Had 3 benefits
1) Kept the wood from fading
2) Made it harder for people to see in.
3) It looked really good.

We were sad and made blinds to slot into each window when sittting on the drive. From those windscreen blinds from the £1 shop. I unpicked the binding, cut them to size and sewed the binding back on. The things you do. We also kept throws over the seats and had a seat of internal front blinds to use on the drive too.

New throws over the Stratfords seats too. Keeping my eye on the cab seat covers thread with interest but I want a toning set not a matching one.

Rather than post a similar topic, I have resurrected this thread which is relevant to the bit of work I had done the other day.

My back panel (light golden wood) had faded too. Whilst I was having some batteries fitted at Roadtrippin I asked about a replacement. No messin' - screws out, panel off, cut round original, marked same screw holes and back on.

Rather than get wood, with a possible mismatch, I have had off-white leather effect which is same colour as the van. Price of the panel - few quid and half hour added to labour cost. I ummed and ah'ed about having white on the sink side too (also visible when doors open) but it actually appears quite OK as it is. They put back the wood colour screw covers and it looks a bit art deco!

If I was skint (and believe me I have been there) it would be a very easy job to do at home. As I am getting on a bit and have slowed up on the squandering, it was nice to stand and watch someone else do it.

Then the exhaust fell to bits.

The cost of which has come out of a little savings on one side for a bit of cosmetic surgery (for me) heigh- ho, at least the van looks good.......

Oh, and they found an embarrassing manky stiff fossilized face flannel down the sink drain. At least it was obviously so old it could not have been mine. It was really filthy!

Vardy wrote:.......

If I was skint (and believe me I have been there) it would be a very easy job to do at home. As I am getting on a bit and have slowed up on the squandering, it was nice to stand and watch someone else do it. ...........

....... Oh, and they found an embarrassing manky stiff fossilized face flannel down the sink drain. At least it was obviously so old it could not have been mine. It was really filthy!

I'm definitely an "oil-man" rather than varnish! Sand the wood very lightly and then apply the oil (linseed, danish etc) very, very thinly (thin it with a bit of turps if needed) and use a few coats rather than just lathering it on.

The problem with NOT being skint and hiring "skilled" labour is that you then have to watch someone else make the mistakes that you could have made at half the price!! A good craftsman is worth his/her weight in gold - but a bad one ......... ! Lord please stop me from strangling them!

Just loved the manky flannel!! In my case it was a pound of herrings that I had taken as dead-bait for pike when I borrowed my Dad's car for a weekend. I left the herring in the glove compartment when I returned the car and my Dad then went to work away from home and parked the car in a nice sunny place for the week!!!

We had a great father/son relationship but it was mightily strained the next weekend!

Best regards,

Woo-hoo! - love the kipper story!

I know it's not exactly the right place to tell this but I can't resist it after the above.

Years ago when an aquaintance suddenly died, I took her youngest teenage boys. The 12 year old was a Machiavellian b*ll busting little horror. So I set about trying to civilize him, with gentle guidance in manners and treats in smart restaurants.

We sat down with a really nice quiet couple after divesting him of his posh new 'puff' jacket, which we hung on a coat stand next to the lady's head. Well ya know how you don't listen to kids all the time? He is prattling on about something 'are they going to be alright???' - Repeated a few times. I finally said 'WHO???' And he said with a little frown 'MY MAGGOTS!' Realisation dawned as I watched this pleasant lady slowly turn.

The pocket of his jacket was bulging, writhing and making a shushing noise. And out of the stuffed paper sweetie bag, creamy fat maggots were spilling down onto her shoulder and into her meal.

We never went back. But I still love him dearly and he comes back and forth with his own kids now. Justice has been done too, as his youngest is a positive ringer for Blackadder!

Brilliant!

There is something quite heart-stopping as you watch a line of maggots, escaped from their tin overnight, slowly marching in Indian file along the fascia of a hired motor-cruiser on The Broads and disappearing into the cockpit lining!

The joy is that when you hand the boat over at the end of the week the maggots have all temporarily disappeared; to return as flies the week after you have left!

Best regards,

Wrong post

For years I've used a light coating of teak oil to freshen up tired AS wood work. Just rub some on sparingly with a rag once or twice a year. When it's soaked in and dried I use a wax polish on top.

Thank you so much. I shall indeed give my solid wood a little TLC following the advice off the link.

marian innis wrote:Thank you so much. I shall indeed give my solid wood a little TLC following the advice off the link.

Just an after thought Marian: Choose the lightest shade of teak oil you can find. It's easy to make it darker later but you will have to wait for it to fade if you start too dark and don't like it. If your wood looks dirty clean it with white spirit on a rag. This will also give some idea of what it will look like after oiling. Of course the white spirit will evaporate and leave the wood looking a bit cloudy. The cloudiness will disappear when you use the oil.

Good luck,
Jon

My 2005 Symbol seems not to have any real wood in it all the large surfaces are plastic foils which have faded to pink, when  did they cease to use veneers?

crosgor wrote:My 2005 Symbol seems not to have any real wood in it all the large surfaces are plastic foils which have faded to pink, when  did they cease to use veneers?

I think it was with the Boxer facelift in 2004. I had a 2004 Symbol and almost all the flat surfaces were plasticised. The carcases were wooden with varnished / sealed so more or less maintenance free other than a quick squirt of spray polish now and again.

Hi

Having just bought a Topaz the inside was looking a bit tired. So I am busy going through things to do to smarting it up, and one of them will be the wooden edges of the cabinets and doors.  I did this in my previous  Exclusive, but I used varnish and it was too shiny so I decided to use Rustins oil and it is much easier on th eye..

So tomorrow,  the forecast is bad so I shall crack on with the edges,  keeps me from getting bored, booze and their toys.

My Montana wardrobe panel that faces the rear door had more holes in it than a used dart board and had a small area of fading caused by direct sunlight, basically a bit of a mess. Having owned A/S before I had a rummage round in my garage and found a half used roll of blue ribbed carpet that was a perfect match for the carpet used around the seat bases, blinds and cabinet infill panels. Some heat resistant trim spray glue and job done and looks very  original  do you think I should do the other side to even it up?[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

I like the look of it just the way it is. However I can see the left panel may have suffered some sun bleaching so I can see why you might want to cover it. I'd oil it if it's the right material.

Vinyl or polyvinyl chloride was used to face 1/8 ply wood sheets of 8'x4' which was used to make draw, door and end panels on A/S 'vans from the eighties right up to the early 00's.  so I don't think treating it as you would wood would do it much good. It is only the edging of the work tops, draws, doors and cabinet frames that have real wood of light oak and other wood for the frames. The vinyl finish tends to go a light pinkish colour when exposed to long periods of ultra violet light. There is slight discolouring just above the towel rail on my van but not bad for a '98 'van. I am tempted to carpet the left side as well. The edge was treated with Nitromores and wire wool and re varnished with Ronseal clear satin finish so looks just like it left the factory

That looks great biffobear! Can you remember where you bought your carpet, and the details of it? I'd like to do the same in my Harmony