1952 Mercury Woodie Station Wagon - Where's the Wood?
In the 50's, car builders moved away from the use of actual
wood when making "woodies". People still liked the looks, though.
To save money, wood grain decals were used in conjuction with real wood
panels. Eventually the wood "trim" would be replaced by plastic
or fiberglass substitutes, and then phased out altogether in the early 70s.
Since they don't make those decals anymore, we have to rely on the skills
of people like Lyle Fisk, who is skilled in re-creating fake woodrain with
a brush. Ans as you can see in these pictures, he's a real master. The folks
at Mercury could only wish the originals looked this good.
Lyle Fisk is a true artist. The wood grain looks very natural
and far better than the decals used in the 50's.
Close up of faux wood-grain paint on sides.
The "real" wood trim pieces were restored/fabricated
by Iron Mountain Woodworks in Gardena, California.
Real wood trim over faux wood-grain paint.
Hot Rods & Custom Stuff, 2324 Auto Park Way, Escondido, CA.,
1-800-HOT-ROD-5.
Hot Rods & Custom Stuff - builds, restores, paints, services and sells
parts for classic autos, cars, trucks and street rods.