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Wood Care

Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2022 9:53 pm
by NYMCAH
I think the wood on my 1983 SUPER SPORT 13 needs care. I'm not as worried about looks as I am about avoiding rot.

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Fig.1.
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Q1: does the wood need to be sanded and re-varnished?

Q2: does the wood just need the holes drilled out and sealed?

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2022 9:13 am
by jimh
NYMCAH wrote:Q1: does the wood need to be sanded and re-varnished?
Yes.

NYMCAH wrote:Q2: does the wood just need the holes drilled out and sealed?
No. More care is needed.

Holes for screw fasteners that are no longer necessary should be filled with a bung cut from similar wood using a plug cutting saw. Small bungs or plugs can also be found pre-cut and sold at ship chandleries.

For advice about wood care please read the article in the REFERENCE section at

Wood Care and the Boston Whaler Boat
https://continuouswave.com/whaler/refer ... rWood.html

Also read the other resources linked at the end of the article.

NYMCAH wrote:I'm not as worried about looks as I am about avoiding rot.
Generally the attraction of classic Boston Whaler boats is their use of fine marine woods. To ignore the appearance of the wood is not a good approach to maintenance of a classic Boston Whaler boat. Proper wood care maintains both the appearance and the integrity of the wood.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2022 1:39 pm
by Foamboat
I recommend to strip that varnish by using a quality scraper and a heat gun.

[I believe a step is missing here. An elaboration would be helpful—Moderator.]

Then apply three coats of Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy.

[I believe the author here intends to allow ample time to cure and may also want to perform some additional preparation before the next step. An elaboration would be helpful—Moderator.]

Then follow with five coats of TotalBoat Lust Rapid Recoat Marine Spar Varnish.

TotalBoat Lust Rapid Recoat Marine Spar Varnish can be recoated without sanding. [Read manufacturer’s advice regarding applying quick re-coats for best guidance—Moderator]

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2022 11:23 am
by Foamboat
After scraping old varnish off with the heat gun and a quality scraper only a light sanding is needed before applying the Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer (CPES) if the wood is in good condition. Multiple coats of CPES can be applied without sanding if applied within 12 hours.

I like to do light sand before starting to apply varnish.

Varnishes like TotalBoat Lust Rapid Recoat Marine Spar Varnish can be applied without sanding in between. I find this gives a very good result.

If I were doing a showboat I would use many coats of Epiphanes with sanding between, but not in a boat that will be used in real life.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Fri Sep 02, 2022 12:47 am
by NYMCAH
Thanks so much guys. This is all so helpful.

Q3: are teak oils recommended?

Q4: will just the varnish and epoxy do a good job?

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Fri Sep 02, 2022 9:19 am
by Foamboat
I have no experience using teak oil on mahogany.

When I have used teak oil on teak on various boats I ended up cleaning it off and refinishing with varnish.

Those choices may be a personal taste.

On one boat that had a ton of teak trim I took off the teak oil and used just three coats of Cetol gloss top coat sanding in between. When I sold the boat after eight New York summers it still looked great.

My current boat has the CPES and varnish.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2022 8:41 am
by jimh
There is a long standing difference of opinion about teak finishing between three states:
  • natural bleached out teak seen in decks of saltwater working boats
  • oiled teak seen on non-working boats
  • high-gloss multiple coat varnished teak seen on show boats

The high-gloss multiple-coat varnish requires a lot of patience and work to achieve. Fans of this claim the finish is more durable and needs only occasional refinishing.

The oiled teak is a nice natural finish, but in freshwater and with dew the wood grain tends to become dark with mildew. Repeated oiling can keep this degrading at bay for a while. If neglected then the oil must be removed and the wood will need to be re-sanded.

Really, this topic is discussed at length in many prior discussions.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2022 8:43 am
by jimh
NYMCAH wrote:Q: will just the varnish and epoxy do a good job?
Not if you apply them in that order.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2022 8:50 am
by jimh
To see an example to teak refinishing with oil, read this thread from 15-years ago:

https://continuouswave.com/ubb/Forum3/HTML/014322.html

That is my boat shown in the thread. I have just now,15-years later, decided that the finish has degraded to the point where it needs to be redone. I think that refinishing the oiled wood once every 15-years is not too onerous a task.

At some point I changed to using WATCO TEAK OIL. I found that product was a better and more durable teak oil.

There are many prior threads on these topics.

The most interesting element of this current thread is the mention of the penetrating epoxy sealer product. But that method seems only useful if you switch to a varnish finish FOREVER. Once the epoxy resin gets into the wood it won’t ever come out. Keep that in mind before heading down that path to your wood care.

With a high-gloss varnish finish there is a loss of utility. For example, on a real show-boat full of glossy varnished wood, the owner only allows people to come aboard barefoot. That is a bit crazy, if you ask me. A wet glossy varnish surface will be slippery.

Yes, I know real old-time sailor men worked in bare feet—but not an varnished wood surfaces.

Re: Wood Care

Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2022 7:15 pm
by jimh
The wood shown in Figure is not teak. The wood shown in Figure 1 is mahogany.

No one in the history of boats has ever used teak oil on mahogany and lived to tell about it.