Cooler Cleats: Teak or Mahogany

[Beerspitnight]

Hello All,

I am getting a new pair of cooler cleats made for my 1989 MONTAUK 17. I am heading over to see the woodworker tomorrow and I am unsure if I should go with mahogany or teak for the cleats. The cost difference between teak and mahogany will not be significant in this case.

The wood on the boat was varnished when I bought it. I stripped off the varnish, sanded the wood, cleaned it, and then oiled it. I like the look of the oiled teak.

I was leaning towards getting the cleats made out of teak, and oil the wood as needed. However, as the cleats sit on the deck they will be exposed to water on a regular basis. I am wondering if I would be better off getting the cleats made out of mahogany and then varnishing them. The other option would be to varnish the teak.

I also plan to raise the RPS and console next year, so the same question applies: oiled teak or varnished teak/mahogany? I would like to be consistent with my wood choice and finish, but also want to engage in "best practice".

Thanks.
Brian

[Phil T]

The answer is teak.

Have you consulted Walt @ BlackDuck?

http://www.blackduckgallery.com/WOODPARTS.html

[Beerspitnight]

Thanks, Phil.
What about oiling the teak instead of varnishing it? Besides oiling the wood, are there any other considerations that I should be ware of when using unvarnished teak on the deck?
Brian

[Jefecinco]

A reason why teak wood trim on boats is more often oiled than varnished is that teak wood has a very high natural oil content. Teak wood furniture often used in Danish Modern designs is invariably oiled and is often sold with a teak oil kit to help new owners to properly maintain the stuff. We have a fair amount of the stuff in our home.

Generally when one asks about varnishing teak wood for marine use the advice is to first clean the wood as thoroughly as possible and then to use any one of several products to further clean the wood by "bleaching" it. Even then teak wood may fail to hold varnish well. From the late seventies through the late nineties I owned a SeaRay boat with a LOT of teak trim to include a vast solid teak swim platform. I will never again own a boat with a lot of teak attached. The boat was kept covered in a slip except the swim platform was not covered. I finally gave up on keeping the swim platform clean and well oiled and simply gave it good cleaning every few weeks using oxalic(sp?) acid with a very thorough rinsing. I use d DeksOlay(sp?) to keep the protected teak looking decent.

[Beerspitnight]

Thanks for the insight.

I will post a pic of the finished product once they are completed.

[Beerspitnight]

I decided to go with Blackduck's teak Montauk cooler cleats. They are beautiful pieces of wood and I am very happy with them.

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