Teak treatment.

[Bluesbrother]

Hello everyone.
I figured I'd post some teak experience for everyone who is redoing or going to redo theirs. I rebuild my 19-6 over the last year and included some teak items because I like the classy look. The teak I used was imported straight from Indonesia and cut to fit here. I did the research on what treatments and brands were the best. I ultimately chose CEMCO, teak sealer (honey) The instructions on the website were very clear and I followed them strictly. To make a long story short, the stuff doesn't perform like they promise.  After applying as directed you should only have to redo once a season. Maybe the seasons here are only three weeks, the stuff just rubs off. I had to redo everything 3 times over a 8 week period (4-5 coats each time) Finally last week I gave up, sanded it down again and applied Epifanes high gloss. I am now at 3 coats of about 7 that I want, and it looks awesome.

[JimCt]

Teak needs at least 12-14 coats minimum, especially at your lattitude.  Have used Z-Spar 1015 for years with excellent results.  No experience with Epifane's



 Very high UV protection, good leveling and flows well with a decent badger brush.  You can apply 3-4 coats in a day with no intermediate sanding.  Before the last two coats, let the varnish dry for several days then wet sand with very fine paper.  Its a bit of work, but the payoff is a great finish with good durability.

[Bluesbrother]

Well, Epifanes suggests 24hrs dry period between coats, light sanding in between so I figure I keep going till the can is empty. I should be about a month away from that and I'll end up with about 15 coats. At least it is much better than the SEMCO stuff. Even with only 2 coats. The SEMCO just seemed to wash off. Jim, I have used the spar varnish you mentioned, it is indeed very good. The Epifanes seems to be much thicker though, the directions said to thin 50% first coat and 25% the second one so I haven't used the "pure stuff" yet. 8)

[GoneFission]

I agree with Jim - some of the real fanatics will take exception, but unless you are using the teak to cut on, varnish is the way to go.  I have also had good luck with Interlux Schooner Varnish.  It also has nice leveling, an ability to get several coats down in a day, and also has very good UV protection, so it will not be peeling off in a year.  

I did my console/instrument panel with the Schooner varnish early this year, and went with 3 coats with no sanding between coats.  This gives a good finish, but still looks like teak and lets the grain show through.  It looks like a fresh oil finish, but will last for years.  The more coats you do, the smoother the surface and more glossy, but you lose the "teak look."  Here's what it looks like: http://www.classicaquasport.com/gallery ... 500/page/1  

If you have oiled your teak, you will need to sand it and clean it to remove the surface oil.  Lacquer thinner or denatured alcohol work well to clean oil off - keep rubbing until the cloth rubs clean.

[Seadog]

WOW - 15 coats!  

Would you recommend this same type of varnish and application for Mahogany?  I've got a bunch of it and was going to use it for some finish work.  Can't beat the look and piz-azz of finely crafted wood on a boat.

[GoneFission]

For mahogany, you can save a lot of time and trouble by using a filler and sanding before the varnish.  The big paint/varnish companies (Petit, Interlux, etc.) offer mahogany filler/stains.  You brush it on, then use a cloth to rub the excess off across the grain and let it dry.  Once dry,  finish sand with the grain.  This cuts the number of varnish coats required.  You can get a very nice finish with 4-5 varnish coats.  If you don't use a filler, the porosity of mahogany will require many more coats to get a nice, even gloss (or even satin) finish.  

You are right, nothing looks better on a boat than a nicely finished piece of wood, but nothing looks worse than poorly finished wood!

[JimCt]

Everyone has their own way of doing things but this system has worked for me:

Mahogany was made for a varnish finish.  Build up 15 coats with a wet sand prior to the next to the last coat and a superfine bronze wool rubdown before the last coat and you will have a matchless finish.  Mahogany, as mentioned, will bleach out or yellow over time with UV exposure.  Way to defeat that is to prep your raw mahogny with progressively finer grit paper by hand & with the grain, wipe down and vacuum thoroughly then brush on a coat of sealer.  Follow that with Interlux filler/stain (I use the Red Mahogany color).  Rub down thoroughly.  I do not sand at this point.  Reason for staining after sealing is that mahogany does not take stain consistently.  Depending on the tightness of the grain, one area may take up little stain (color).  An area 4" away may be more open and suck the stain in like crazy... and thereby make that area much darker.

 Apply  5-6 coats of thinned varnish then sand thjoroughly with very fine open-coat paper (the white stuff) to remove dust bumps bug tracks etc.  Be very careful not sand through the varnish layer down to the stain.  Vacuum & wipe thoroughly and start stacking on the varnish.  I put in maybe a cap full of Penetrol to help the flow, hold the wet edge and yield a "springy-er", more flexible finish.

Sounds wasteful, but never pour any unused varnish back into the can.  It will ruin the whole can.  And don't scrimp on the brush.  A "budget" brush won't give you acceptable results.  Best varnishing days are overcast & slightly humid.

[Seadog]

Hey Bluesbro - thanks for starting this thread and I hope I'm not derailing it - but look at the wealth of info Gonefission and Jim have.

Thanks guys for taking the time to write all that down. Think I'll try a couple of test pieces first and apply both your suggestions to see how they turn out - when the time comes, I'm not quite there yet.

[Bluesbrother]

No Seadog, I was pretty sure someone here would have experience. As I said I'll take some pictures of what I have. I have to say I had to use the boat last weekend and I have my rear cleats on the teak in the back (through bolted with backing), after using the cleats three days solid with only three layers of Epifanes, there are no signs of rubbing or anything. The SEMCO had rub marks after 15 minutes!