Bristol Teak

[Woody]

For years I have used Interlux 95 polyurthane for my teak. A couple of years ago, I took it down and applied Ephithanes (sp?) varnish. It was horrible and did not last long at all. Has anybody out there used Bristol Teak and if so, what are your thoughts. Thanks.

Woody
s/v Amazing Grace
CD 36 #108
Lake Superior



ewood29289@aol.com

[Clay Stalker]

For years I have used Interlux 95 polyurthane for my teak. A couple of years ago, I took it down and applied Ephithanes (sp?) varnish. It was horrible and did not last long at all. Has anybody out there used Bristol Teak and if so, what are your thoughts. Thanks.

Woody
s/v Amazing Grace
CD 36 #108
Lake Superior

Woody:

Have not had any experience with Bristol Teak, but if you check to archives there has been quite a bit of discussion about it. I use satin varnish on the interior and it holds up real well...had not had good luck with previous boats using varnish on the exterior...looks great but takes a lot of attention. I am now using Armada gloss on the exterior and it holds up better than varnish and looks pretty good. The only drawback is it takes a couple of days to dry, and real problem if you can't predict the weather.....

Clay Stalker



cstalker@cheshire.net

[Jim S]

I tried Bristol Finish on my teak and was not at all satisfied. Even though I picked non-windy days to apply, I got tiny bubbles referred to as solvent pops. I tried adding more reducer and got the same results. I ended up roughing up the surface with sandpaper and applied Cetol. I put on one coat of Cetol 1, followed by three coats of Cetol TGL. It worked out well. I had good success in past years with Cetol so ended up going back to using it. The Cetol that I used this time was recommended by someone on this board as better than the Cetol Marine. I have found it less orangey than marine formulation. Good luck.

For years I have used Interlux 95 polyurthane for my teak. A couple of years ago, I took it down and applied Ephithanes (sp?) varnish. It was horrible and did not last long at all. Has anybody out there used Bristol Teak and if so, what are your thoughts. Thanks.

Woody
s/v Amazing Grace
CD 36 #108
Lake Superior

atea@att.net

[Ed Haley]

I also tried Bristol Finish and after religiously folowing the preparation directions I was disappointed at the results. The finish was hard and durable but gave a slightly milky appearance under the finish. It also took 8 coats to protect the wood from oxidizing. I applied Bristol Finish to my bowsprit to see if I liked it. The rest of the teak on deck received 3 coats of Cetol Marine and then 3 coats of Cetol Gloss, I couldn't be more pleased with Cetol. I've used it for years.

I used the Bristol Finish only because of the way some people praised it. I wouldn't use it again. Each time I try a different finish that someone else recommends I find it can never equal the beautiful results of using Cetol, at least to my eyes. But that's the rub. The effect has to please you and no one else. You should look at the finished teak on other boats to find the effect you like. Then choose the finish.

Ed Haley
s/v Mokita
CD330 #1
Kingston, ON



eghaleyNOSPAM@twcny.rr.com

[john]

For years I have used Interlux 95 polyurthane for my teak. A couple of years ago, I took it down and applied Ephithanes (sp?) varnish. It was horrible and did not last long at all. Has anybody out there used Bristol Teak and if so, what are your thoughts. Thanks.

Woody
s/v Amazing Grace
CD 36 #108
Lake Superior

Woody:

Have not had any experience with Bristol Teak, but if you check to archives there has been quite a bit of discussion about it. I use satin varnish on the interior and it holds up real well...had not had good luck with previous boats using varnish on the exterior...looks great but takes a lot of attention. I am now using Armada gloss on the exterior and it holds up better than varnish and looks pretty good. The only drawback is it takes a couple of days to dry, and real problem if you can't predict the weather.....

Clay Stalker

Just a quick follow-up on Armada - I tried it on my coaming boards last spring and have not been terribly happy with it. I took them down to bare wood and applied 3 coats of Armada gloss. Some areas have held up well and remain nice and shiny, though that's only one season in the north (Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin), other spots have gone pale grey, and did so within a month or so. I think that someone on the site noted that the gloss did not hold up as well as the semi-gloss, which I may try for the rest of the trim - and to re-do the coamings.

John



john.hoft-march@appleton.org

[Steve Laume]

I tried Bristol Finish on my teak and was not at all satisfied. Even though I picked non-windy days to apply, I got tiny bubbles referred to as solvent pops. I tried adding more reducer and got the same results.

I have had trouble with all sorts of things over many years of finishing woodwork on shop projects. The problem with the little gas bubbles may not be due to the type of finish you were using but rather due to weather conditions. If you get a nice early start so you have plenty of drying time you may find that the rising temps. will expand the minute pockets of traped air and cause the bubbles you describe. So it is better to start durring the hot part of the day with lowering temps. as time goes on. Just don't start so late that the dew sets and you wind up with blushing or a loss of gloss. Don't you just love this stuff?
Steve Laume
CD 14 #98 (project yet to be started)



slaume@yahoo.com

[Ben Thomas]

Woody,

This summer I removed the Bristol finish from my cd 30. It had turned milky in some areas and actually flaked off in others. I don't believe it was the product itself but my prep work on the teak. (that was a big slice of humble pie) I had sanded way to fine on the teak which left no tooth for the finish to bite into. Another mistake was wiping down teak with acetone. it left residual gasses which caused bubbles. The product looked great at first, it is still on my hatch boards which have held up really well. but due to my novice mistakes it didn't hold up anywhere else.
So now I've sanded everything down again (3rd. time) but only to 120 grit. and have tried the "Honey Teak". So far the results are wonderfull. All teak looks better than I imagined. Tom Fabula out of florida (the owner of Signature finish) was extremely helpfull. Their wed site is www. signaturefinish,com Good luck Ben



bt@benthomaslandscapers.com

[Tom]

When you say "re-do" I take it that you mean you're just re-doing the parts that turned gray. The advantage with Armada is that you can just do the spots that turn gray and it blends right in and doesn't show. You have to get the gray off first, of course. I use one of those little pull scrapers that is about an inch wide to knock the gray off, then dab the bare wood with acetone to dry the oils out and apply the Armada. One month is an incredibly short life. Mine usually goes 6 months anyway before it even starts to go bad then I just touch up the bad spots like the tops of the coaming edges where the most sun action occurs.

For years I have used Interlux 95 polyurthane for my teak. A couple of years ago, I took it down and applied Ephithanes (sp?) varnish. It was horrible and did not last long at all. Has anybody out there used Bristol Teak and if so, what are your thoughts. Thanks.

Woody
s/v Amazing Grace
CD 36 #108
Lake Superior

Woody:

Have not had any experience with Bristol Teak, but if you check to archives there has been quite a bit of discussion about it. I use satin varnish on the interior and it holds up real well...had not had good luck with previous boats using varnish on the exterior...looks great but takes a lot of attention. I am now using Armada gloss on the exterior and it holds up better than varnish and looks pretty good. The only drawback is it takes a couple of days to dry, and real problem if you can't predict the weather.....

Clay Stalker

Just a quick follow-up on Armada - I tried it on my coaming boards last spring and have not been terribly happy with it. I took them down to bare wood and applied 3 coats of Armada gloss. Some areas have held up well and remain nice and shiny, though that's only one season in the north (Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin), other spots have gone pale grey, and did so within a month or so. I think that someone on the site noted that the gloss did not hold up as well as the semi-gloss, which I may try for the rest of the trim - and to re-do the coamings.

John

TomCambria@mindspring.com

[Tom]

Tiny bubbles can also be the result of wiping your brush on the side of the can. You want to pour about a quarter of an inch into the bottom of a little can like a tuna fish can, dip it in and if there is excess tap gently on the side of the can, but do not pull the brush across the lip of the can. This can introduce bubbles as well. Never pour the unused varnish back into the original can. Work with tiny amounts and throw any that's left away.

I tried Bristol Finish on my teak and was not at all satisfied. Even though I picked non-windy days to apply, I got tiny bubbles referred to as solvent pops. I tried adding more reducer and got the same results.

I have had trouble with all sorts of things over many years of finishing woodwork on shop projects. The problem with the little gas bubbles may not be due to the type of finish you were using but rather due to weather conditions. If you get a nice early start so you have plenty of drying time you may find that the rising temps. will expand the minute pockets of traped air and cause the bubbles you describe. So it is better to start durring the hot part of the day with lowering temps. as time goes on. Just don't start so late that the dew sets and you wind up with blushing or a loss of gloss. Don't you just love this stuff?
Steve Laume
CD 14 #98 (project yet to be started)

TomCambria@mindspring.com