Wood...what is it? Zebrano....Burl etc

[Andrew280SEL]

No, not "what is wood"...

This thread is about the wood trim in the w116.

I'm a bit confused about it. Is most "wood" in the 116 fake lookalike stuff? or is it all some sort of wood?

In any case, how do you tell what wood you have? Or how distinctive are the different types?

[James R]

As far as I know, there are two types and they are actually wood, not fake.

Zebrano - came in all models except for late model 6.9s. Early model 6.9s did not have any wood on the gearstick console.

Burl - only on late model 6.9s.

[BJ]

I think it's real wood actually.

If I had to hazard a guess, I would say that Zebrano is the wood with the straight grain (sp?) that looks like Zebra stripes?

Burr walnut is very distinctive as it has a lot of circular patterns and it's used in most modern Mercedes. My mom's W210 E240 had it.

[Andrew280SEL]

Thanks guys, so far so good. 

[Brian Crump]

My understanding is as follows;
Zebrano for all except 6.9
Burl Walnut for 6.9.
Zebrano grows in Gabon and the Cameroons and is a very hard wood making it suitable for veneers. It can be from very pale gold to dark in colour and usually carries banding so it has interest when polished. It is hard enough to be belt sanded so is durable in a car.
Burr Walnut is also hard but is becoming rare and is usually swirled in its pattern. Often from Italy.
Remember, as today M-B would use whatever you asked for in trim so there are individual variations.
Regards,
BC

[nathan]

BC,
i like that info on where its from, i never knew this...
Andrew,top pic is of my mates former 450se with zebrano and below is the burr in the 6.9...


this is genuine wood, unlike the crap which passes nowadays in most cars...even my dads w163 ML had what i think is the wood plasticy crap on the doors!

[Andrew280SEL]

Ah, yep thanks Nathan. Mine's definately Zebrano, after seeing that pic.

But tell me, is there some clear substance over the wood, plastic or otherwise? The stuffs very smooth...

[oscar]

Nathan,  Man!! They're lush pics.

Andrew, there's a clear coat on top of the wood.  I can't remember what they (MB) used or uses now.  On a few tips pages I resourced a while back they said use polyurethane spray.  It's what I used in the following bunch of pics.

19 pics all up.  Made plenty of mistakes but you gotta start somewhere.

Enter Album Here

[Brian Crump]

Clear lacquer is always used over Zebrano but a tint may be given to Burr Walnut before it is lacquered.
Burr walnut is not the same an burled walnut which carries a pattern that looks like a walnut that has been cut open.
The wood in the Ml is burr walnut. M-B has perfected tha art of making wood look like plastic because of safety considerations and also to protect it against U-V rays. Currently a wood veneer is bonded to a sheet of aluminium to prevent splinters in an accident and after sanding is coated with 50 layers of super thin lacquer which hold in any stray splinets and locks out the U-V. The current lacquer should not crack like the lacquer over the wood in a 116.
You can you tell plastic from real wood when side by side and anyway, real wood has a different temperature to touch and a much deeper look to it. The wood in my CLK was a special order of lined walnut but it too looks like plastic becuase of the way it is so precisely finished and lacquered  - put it beside a Toyota though, and the Benz is poles apart.
Even the wood in my R-R looks a bit like plastic. I took out the fascia compartment lock to get the key number for a new key and was stunned to see that the fascia is solid walnut 3/4" thick...
Your dad is safe with his wood in the ML - I'm not sure how the R-R wood would handle a severe smash.
Regards,
BC
(Wood merchant).

[Martin 280s]

Nathan,  Man!! They're lush pics.

Andrew, there's a clear coat on top of the wood.  I can't remember what they (MB) used or uses now.  On a few tips pages I resourced a while back they said use polyurethane spray.  It's what I used in the following bunch of pics.

19 pics all up.  Made plenty of mistakes but you gotta start somewhere.

Enter Album Here

Well done Oscar!, I sent the gearbox console to be reveneered and finished by a cabinetmaker. I eventually had to strip of the varnish he used and the polish the wood the a fine wire scouring pad (Brillo) I got the silky smooth finish using furniture oil and elbow grease. It doesn't look as good as your efforts. However, the result is passable if you don't look too close!

[nathan]

i agree oscar,
thats bloody good what you have done...
i think we need you to do a long winded post on how to do this...
PS did you get the window switches included with the wood? score!

[oscar]

I thought we did do a post on refinishing wood.  Must admit I couldn't find it though.  I'll look again.

I think all my pics in the album above have a description but only when you view each image on it's own.  Hopefully the pics are in order.  The A/C wood I got off styria with a bunch of other parts, the ashtray and lower console were from US Ebay, landed in Aus for about $40US.

I did get all switches, though I really only wanted the fader switch.  I don't have electric windows and the chrome on the switches is lifting.  So they're not the prettiest.  I'm really after a lower zebrano console with no extra holes other than hazard switch and gear selector.  They're very rare but I have seen them on US ebay before I was interested in buying one.

That lower console is a real mess and it's what I practiced on.  It's bowed and a look at it in the album you'll see where I stuffed up by sanding it too far.  The ashtray is pretty good though and will be used.  The A/C console just got touched up and it's good to use too.

The deep gloss glass like appearance comes about by many individual thin coats of polyurethane spray, ample drying time of at least 24hrs, dustless environs, occasional very light sanding if needed, warm ambient temp to warm and thin and help set the polyurethane, and a lot of patience.  After staining, it took about 12 days of spraying each day to get what I got.  I'd love to have another go on the pieces I swap out of the 350.

[s class]

Parks,

What 2-pak clear are you using - is it the same clear coat used over metallic paint, or is it a product intended for wood use?  My concern with normal polyurethane type wood varnishes is they do yellow and discolour over time.

Ryan

[oscar]

Hi parks, I wish you told me about the heatgun beforehand.  The only reason I resorted to sanding is because the stripper didn't work.  Which by the sounds of it, doesn't surprise you.   What is the old stuff BTW? 

However, this is the link I used as reference to start the job:
http://www.diymbrepair.com/Wood/ But I gave up on the stripper.  It just wouldn't react.

Now I know about the heatgun method, I'd have no hessitation to try again one day.   I've got plenty of spares to practice on.  I also had to stain the wood with a jarrah and walnut mix.  I came very close to matching to the point where if those pieces were in a car, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference.  Next time, I'll do a whole set and paint it all the same stain.

It would be great to see pics Parks.  Especially the finish the twopack achieves. 

I hope the polyurethane doesn't yellow.  Below is the products that I used.  The Gelclear, a gel polyurethane was painful to work with.  Couldn't get it to settle flat and it's more suited to outdoor furniture.  The spray is the only way to go, and the paint stripper was a waste.  Though it worked really well on the airfilter housing before I repainted the cover and snorkel.

[gregdeklerk]

I wish I had the patience to do this but I usually send it to a polisher I know. He does a good job and will only charge about ZAR 500 to redo a console piece. He has the E220's console with him at the moment.