Rippled Veneer finish - how to fix?

[EllesBelles]

On a 2011 boat, the veneer on a cabin door has rippled. Does anyone know how to get such a wrinkle fixed? It's visible at the top, right of the door in the attached photo.

Thanks

[Tropic Cat]

That appears to be an air pocket. If you push it and it tries to lay down, I would slice the center with an exacto knife with the grain, get some glue behind it and then clamp it through a wood block and wax paper.

It's all in the technique and is definitely better to hire someone who does this sort of thing often.

[JPA Cate]

I can tell you what I'd try, but it's way hard with thin veneers. I would demount the door, and have a really close look at the "ripple". If it is not cracked, I would try ironing it, hoping that the gentle heat would soften the underlying glue, and you could smooth it out. Using only medium heat, you should do no harm.

If it is cracked, then I would epoxy it down with drops from the tip of a sharp toothpick, one of the round ones, very carefully, then let it sit with a heavy weight on it till the epoxy is cured. Or you could try super glue. Anyway, after that, sand and varnish it.

Or learn to not look at it. Little imperfections like that can really aggravate. And it's all too easy to turn a little job into a giant one.

Finally, you could sand it smooth and put a door skin on it, but that's really a big-ish job, and you'd have to ensure first that you'd have clearance for the new veneer.

Ann

[Nicholson58]

I go with getting glue in and clamping. I sometimes use a hypodermic needle, the big kind used for drainage etc. Try a medical supply store or your doctor.

[Delancey]

Looks like cherry to me. In the business that's what you call "the natural beauty of wood"

I just built myself a new nav station. Personally laid up the veneer myself. Vacuum bagged it pretty damn close to an atmosphere. No voids. Still ended up with a ripple.

It's the nature of the beast. This stuff grow on trees, it's not perfect, it's wood.

Either learn to live with it, or find a skilled cabinet maker to sand off the existing and apply new veneer, then refinish. If you are serious about fixing it I wouldn't bother with a fix-it solution and I also wouldn't expect to find anyone worthwhile to touch it for less than about $600, but you may find otherwise.

Surprised it didn't get punch-listed during building. Total builder fail.

[Terra Nova]

Originally Posted by Tropic Cat

...I would slice the center with an exacto knife with the grain, get some glue behind it and then clamp it through a wood block and wax paper...

This should do it.

[Delancey]

Typical builder response. Never works.

If there is a void you need to cut two holes to allow the air you are displacing to escape when you inject the glue, which no one ever does. One season after they "fixed it" it looks like crap, only worse because someone tried to fix it. If it's not a void, then there is nothing you can do about it.

If you want it "perfect" re-veneer it, if you want to "fix it" don't expect paradise.

[Delancey]

What the heck. Here's my nav station.

They way your door was constructed was that the builder cut out the shape from some plywood before applying an edge-banding to the cut plywood edge.

Once this is completed, the faces of the plywood are veneered, the veneer overlay edges are trimmed off, the end product is sanded, and then finished.

The defect in your door is readily identified as a face veneer defect by it's location within the wood grain pattern. However theoretically possible it is for a substrate defect to coincide with the appearance of the face grain, it just doesn't happen.

If the builder did his lay-up with a typical aliphatic resin and bagged it properly, then I doubt highly there is a void. I say this again because you don't just randomly fail to apply sufficient glue in a spot that happens to coincide with the face grain as would be the case if there was a glue-starved void in that location. Just doesn't happen.

I understand this is a new-to-you boat but I believe this is not a new-to-the-boat problem based on looking at other photos of your boats woodwork and is instead a condition that has existed since commissioning.

I have the same flaw in the top of my nav station, but a lot less severe. It just happens sometimes and you miss it when you are laying it up. In my case when I saw it afterwards I decided I could live with it. In your case your builder saw it and decided you could live with it.

Most people wouldn't notice it, but I know it's there. You guys look like you have a nice boat, and it seems important to you to keep it that way, and that can be a challenge sometimes.

Good luck with your project!

[sparrowhawk1]

I agree to first try ironing it out. But if that doesn't work it's basically because there's too much wood. To solve that you use a straight edge, slice it with a razor blade(the thinner the better), overlap the slice, then follow the top overlap edge with the razor blade and remove the part that's under the top overlap. I would think the easiest way to glue it is to re-varnish or polyurethane the whole board. Doing the slices first and lift up the edges to let some get underneath.. Edit: it would probably be easier just to force the finish into the cut with your brush

[sparrowhawk1]

I just remembered it's actually better to slice the overlap cutting through both pieces instead of trying to follow the edge of the top piece

[Jesse]

Most fiberglass/epoxy outlets will carry larger hypodermics, farm supply stores too.

[Terra Nova]

After slitting the veneer, a hypodermic needle is unnecessary. Just drizzle some epoxy into the joint until it won't take any more. If you mask, first, there should be very little cleanup required.

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Tropic Cat

That appears to be an air pocket. If you push it and it tries to lay down, I would slice the center with an exacto knife with the grain, get some glue behind it and then clamp it through a wood block and wax paper.

It's all in the technique and is definitely better to hire someone who does this sort of thing often.

[abelungu]

Veneer is laid down with contact adhesive. So if you inject any glue or epoxy it will not adhere. Sand the varnish very gently until wood is exposed, now with steam iron slowly push the veneer down. Lots of heat is needed to release the veneer from the contact. Once you see that it's starting to lay down stop the steam and use only dry iron eventually it will fill in. Now you need to get it to stay down cut the heat completely and keep firm preasure without movement for extended time.
Good luck
Abelungu


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[herculesboat]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

I can tell you what I'd try, but it's way hard with thin veneers. I would demount the door, and have a really close look at the "ripple". If it is not cracked, I would try ironing it, hoping that the gentle heat would soften the underlying glue, and you could smooth it out. Using only medium heat, you should do no harm.

If it is cracked, then I would epoxy it down with drops from the tip of a sharp toothpick, one of the round ones, very carefully, then let it sit with a heavy weight on it till the epoxy is cured. Or you could try super glue. Anyway, after that, sand and varnish it.

Or learn to not look at it. Little imperfections like that can really aggravate. And it's all too easy to turn a little job into a giant one.

Finally, you could sand it smooth and put a door skin on it, but that's really a big-ish job, and you'd have to ensure first that you'd have clearance for the new veneer.

Ann

I agree about it..it"s the best way