Time to think about the wood.

[Mike Davis]

The wood on the rails and coamings is in need of refinishing. I started removing the old varnish on the coamings with a heat gun and scraper. I would like to purchase another heat gun. Any recommendations would be welcomed. I'm not sure about varnishing for the finish, since that would require 7 or more coats for a proper varnish job.I would like your alternative suggestions other than cetol. Also would like a finish that would last more than one season.

[casampson]

Here's something I read online:

"Another approach to achieving a natural look is the application of a sealer. Durability and ease of application have made some sealers very popular with boat owners.

Sealers don't feed the wood but, as the name suggests, they seal out moisture and dirt, and seal in natural oils and resins. Unfortunately, the oils and resins may already be lost, so the first step in applying a sealer to old teak is to restore the oil content with a thorough application of teak oil. Clean and bleach the wood to a uniform color, then oil it until it refuses to accept more. Now wait at least two weeks to let the resins dry before you apply the sealer.

After two weeks, wash the wood and let it dry completely. Sealers need an oil-free surface to attach to, so wipe the wood heavily with a rag soaked in acetone to remove all oil from the surface. The oil the wood has absorbed will be unaffected by this quick-flashing solvent. Unless the can instructs you otherwise, apply sealer exactly like oil. A throw-away brush is adequate for the job, and brushing technique is not a concern. Wipe away all excess with a cloth. Apply additional coats until the surface shows a uniform matte finish.

Maintain sealed wood by washing it and applying a fresh coat of sealer every two to three months."

[mgphl52]

Maintain sealed wood by washing it and applying a fresh coat of sealer every two to three months."

Being the lazy old fart I am, I reckon this is why I leave my teak bare...

[Frenchy]

I too am a member of the lazy man's club. Years ago, I put Semco on the boat vowing to renew every two months. The boat
looked really smart. I broke my vow and realized I'm lazier than I thought.
Now I use cetol and renew the gloss topcoat every spring. It looks "okay" - Jean

[John Stone]

I’m not an expert, but I have applied many many gallons of varnish to the Far Reach. I’m skeptical of applying “teak” oil (which does not come from teak trees by the way—it’s primary ingredient is boiled linseed oil which is made from flax seed) to teak and think you are going to reliably dry it enough to get a good adhesion to a sealer coat of varnish. Even if you did get it dry it may be incompatible with your varnish. Not saying it can’t happen but I am saying I doubt it with a capital “D.” The best source for how to treat and protect teak is Rebecca Whitman’s Book “Brightwork: The Art of Finishing Wood.”

The best way to seal teak is to apply varnish mixed 1:1 (cut 50 percent) with the appropriate thinner to bare teak. The thinned varnish penetrates the wood and provides a compatible layer for the follow on coats of varnish. If you oiled it first then you defeat the whole purpose of the sealer coat. In my case I use Epifanes High Gloss Varnish that contains UV inhibitors. We apply the first coat 1:1 as described above. The next coat gets cut 25 percent. Then sand and apply the third coat cut 10 percent. From now on sand between every coat and apply full strength varnish cut only enough to make is flow properly base on ambient temperature and humidity. Apply as many coats as necessary to fill the grain. Usually 7-8 depending on the wood. If you are restoring older wood she will describe how to do it. There is no ”oiling it first” technique. I can almost guarantee doing that will cause adhesion failure with subsequent coats of varnish.

If you don’t want to varnish there are others on the forum that have products they like to apply.

Let me add another thing. To apply any product and do it right is work. Any product no matter how “easy” it is claimed it can be applied will not look good if it is not properly taped off. Tapping off the work is what takes the most time...not sanding. The other problem area for varnish is it gets applied to wood that get either very high traffic like interior bulkhead trim (we keep ours bare) or exterior horizontal surfaces that receive direct vertical sunlight. We have saved ourselves a ton of work by installing a bare teak cap rail on our varnished coamings. We can step on them drag luggage over them and run lines across them and that bare teak cap protects the vertical varnished sides every time.

[MHBsailor]

Outstanding explication as always John - I love reading your posts! After you have applied the three base coats, are you using 200-something grit sandpaper or 300-something grit sandpaper between coats? I recall in another of your posts that you just minimally scuff the surface - I always seem to be too aggressive and end up taking the last coat off lol so apparently it takes a light touch. Properly cared for, the "brightwork" really makes a Cape Dory look classy

I am fortunate that the previous owner of my vessel had the yard take care of everything so the varnish (Pettit Flagship) is in pretty good shape and I aim to keep it that way. JD

[John Stone]

JD
Thanks for the kind words. Very nice boat.

I normally sand with 220 for the first of two maintenance coats. Then go 320 for the finish coat. When I am building coats I will sand aggressively every third or fourth coat to knock down any unevenness and keep the finish flat. It’s also really important to sand effectively into any inside corners. People that know varnish always look into the corners as a mark of your skill level. We use a putty knife, among other implements, wrapped with sand paper to sand into the corners not only to remove any excess varnish build up, but also to ensure the surface is roughed up for the next coat to have good adhesion.

Rebecca Whittman describes all the necessary techniques far better than I can. The nice thing about varnish is that if it does not turn out perfect you get to try agin a few months later when you add more maintenance costs.

[Jim Walsh]

Outstanding explication as always John - I love reading your posts! After you have applied the three base coats, are you using 200-something grit sandpaper or 300-something grit sandpaper between coats? I recall in another of your posts that you just minimally scuff the surface - I always seem to be too aggressive and end up taking the last coat off lol so apparently it takes a light touch. Properly cared for, the "brightwork" really makes a Cape Dory look classy

I am fortunate that the previous owner of my vessel had the yard take care of everything so the varnish (Pettit Flagship) is in pretty good shape and I aim to keep it that way. JD

JD,
Your boat looks fantastic and your cowl vents could easily brought up to the same standard. I had cowl vents in the same state a few years ago when I became aware of a product used to restore the vinyl dashboards on automobiles.
https://duplicolor.com/product/vinyl-and-fabric-coating
Three light coats and the transformation is stunning. They will look great for a few seasons and are easily resprayed when necessary. I sprayed the interior red and the exterior white and they looked factory new.

[John Stone]

Excellent info Jim.

[swhfire21]

I’ve always had good luck with washing it and applying teak oil. That’s it, nice finish, simple and done in a few hours. If you want to keep it looking absolutely fresh touch up or redo mid summer.

[jen1722terry]

Great advice from John and Jim as always.

I'll add what little I can.

In my youth in the 1950s I spent my spring weekends and summers near a boat yard in southern NJ. I got a very-part-time gig helping a local sign painter apply/restore gold leaf lettering on mahogany transoms and name plates. He'd do the delicate leafing, I would varnish it in. I had to learn to varnish large vertical surfaces and do it well.

We would use good alkyd varnish. If you study the labels, you'll learn that better varnish has a bit more solids than cheaper brands. It's the solids that stay on the boat. The rest gasses off.

I would thin more or less to John's schedule, depending on weather, though always 25% or more. For me, thin coats were sure to dry faster in a wider variety of weather. We often had some time pressure from the owners and thinning ensured staying on schedule. I would also add a bit (tsp. or less) of lacquer thinner to the varnish to help prevent runs and sagging. I used a fairly stiff brush, loaded it up and applied a thin coat to a small section (thin is very important). Then I would quickly go right back over the wet varnish with firm circular strokes, almost making the varnish foam. This would stiffen the varnish a bit to further prevent sags. Then a quick horizontal tip-off to remove bubbles and flatten the varnish. Then leave it alone and go on to the next section.

I'd wear a respirator for indoor jobs and outdoors on still days. Once I got good with thinning, I could often do two coats in a day in good conditions. I even learned to varnish in hot sunshine and damp days (not recommended but possible if you work very fast and thin properly). Thin more on hot or damp days, less in cooler dry weather. Light sanding between coats was 220 then later 400 with a block.

The only coat we strained the varnish for was the last one. This last coat would be done in the still air of the morning or indoors to avoid dust and bugs, then wet-sanded with 800 then 1200 body shop sandpaper with a block, then, after a few days for curing, waxed. Some fussy owners would run their hands over all the work and reject it if it wasn't real smooth. Once I got good, I would get smiles and even cash tips.

If you're new to varnishing, maybe practice on a sheet of plywood in varying weather to learn how to thin for the weather, apply the varnish quickly and wet sand. Fast is good, but not so fast that the work is sloppy. It's pretty easy once you practice a bit.

Well prepared bright work is a joy and can last many seasons with annual maintenance coats (more often in the south).

Good luck!

Terry

[casampson]

This is all too complicated for me. I am thinking of trying a product called Star Brite Tropical Teak Oil Sealer. It is supposed to work well.

Has anyone out there used it?

[Steve Laume]

While John's solution of capping the cockpit combings with raw teak is elegant and effective, it would not work well with the original Spartan cleats. It will require additional masking and some sort of treatment when things get refreshed.

I have used brass, half oval, in a variety of locations where wear is a problem. I haven't done the combing tops, yet but do have the material. That means I have technically started to do it. A couple of advantages of using brass are that it can simply be removed when it is time to refinish the bright work and it wears very well. I have used it in different locations where the teak could see some chafe. It comes in different widths so you can get whatever size, suits the location it is intended to protect. It looks right on our boats. It is easy to work with and also easy on your lines and is probably cheaper than adding additional teak.

The teak cap certainly adds some strength to the combing boards and works well for John because he is using different cleats. It just might not work for all of us, Steve.

[mgphl52]

wow... I'm exhausted just reading all these details... KAYLA will definitely stay natural (sorta like me:) )!

[zekmeister]

Good info here.

On the topic of caulking. Do you caulk the joint between the toerail and the deck, then varnish?

Thanks in advance.