"Yacht finished" wood work?

[chowdan]

Hey everyone,

The girlfriend and I have been wanting to do some remodeling aboard our '76 Bristol 27. The table in the settee and the counter tops are a god aweful yellow laminate(or formica?).

We are wanting to redo the counter tops with something different. I was thinking of just redoing with just a laminate.

The base of the counters, the bulkhead walls are all wood, but the varnish on them is very bad looking and the cabin sole also needs refinishing.

We are wanting to get that "yacht finish" look to our wood aboard, the smooth, high shine appearance.

As for the cabin sole, we were thinking since the wood is very stained and dark, we'll clean it up and sand it down and then we'll have to apply some sort of clear coat to protect it as its its teak over marine ply.

Anyone ahve any recommendations on where we should look or guides on how to redo the wood to get it to shine like new?

[Reefmagnet]

Heat gun and cabinet scraper / steel wool for the wood to remove old varnish. You can use oxalic acid - wood bleach - to clean up water staining on the wood itself.

When varnishing, you can apply gloss using a foam brush. Your sole is probably best done in a product specific for floors for hard wearing and anti-skid properties.

Sent from my SGP521 using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[jimfj]

Wow, takes me back to boats from my past.......

I have used many different products but you need to do some shopping before you decide. I have had many good results from Interlux products. I love the gloss from their polyurethane 1 part stuff. It can take up to 10 coats to get to the finish you want. Schooner Varnish is highly recommended. Visit their website and read up.
Bristol Finish is another product that is very high build but is a two part and gives off a dangerous odor. Again read up.

I can tell you from past experience that going to the local home center and buying cheap coatings will just leave you pissed off! The stuff made for marine use is that way for a reason. If you are going to spend the time and effort, don't skimp on the coating.

My humble .02

[chowdan]

Much appreciated everyone!

I have been reading about Interlux however haven't heard of the Schooner Varnish or Bristol Finish. Will read up on these guys.

Since we dont live onboard, i'm not worried about odors. I can apply with a mask on and then leave the boat. We typically only work on the boat on Saturday/Sunday so they'd have a lovely week for drying/airing out.

Is polyurethane better than epoxy? Or just different?

For the first few coats, would we want to use a clear coat varnish or epoxy, then paint over with something like Interlux polyurethane? Do we need to add anything as we move through levels of coating?

[Steadman Uhlich]

Originally Posted by chowdan

Hey everyone,

The girlfriend and I have been wanting to do some remodeling aboard our '76 Bristol 27. The table in the settee and the counter tops are a god aweful yellow laminate(or formica?).

We are wanting to redo the counter tops with something different. I was thinking of just redoing with just a laminate.

The base of the counters, the bulkhead walls are all wood, but the varnish on them is very bad looking and the cabin sole also needs refinishing.

We are wanting to get that "yacht finish" look to our wood aboard, the smooth, high shine appearance.

As for the cabin sole, we were thinking since the wood is very stained and dark, we'll clean it up and sand it down and then we'll have to apply some sort of clear coat to protect it as its its teak over marine ply.

Anyone ahve any recommendations on where we should look or guides on how to redo the wood to get it to shine like new?

Here is a link to extensive comments on the subjects of varnishing and refinishing interior wood on boats. The link is to many threads on CF forum, so you will see the advice and examples of our CF members, on boats. Many hours of good reading.

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011403...ior&gsc.page=1

If I bought a boat with old cheesy looking Formica, I would take that surface off, lay down some hardwood or cedar, sand and shape to taste. Then cover with a satin polyurethane. I also like maple butcher blocks inset. But I like wood.

[JPA Cate]

Hi, chowdan,

If your cabin sole comes up, in sections, it is way easier to deal with it on a workbench, or even sawhorses in your garage or workshop. We have had those on our boats. The stuff used on our cabin sole is the same as used on gymnasium floors, but is matte finish, which I prefer for the sole.

I think the hardest part of the prep is getting the corners really clean, free of old varnish, and ready for the new coat. There are special scrapers for this part of the job.

Our rosewood saloon table was sprayed with 2 pot polyurethane, still shiny and bright now, after 23 yrs.

Friends replaced their galley laminate with white Corian. It looks okay, but not "shippy."
Our galley is old laminate, and the edges are starting to look less than perfect. It is really a high wear area, and I think I'd go with laminate for it again if we were to get stuck into that project.

In fact, I probably would use laminate also on your saloon table, as well. You can probably get away with buying just one sheet, and suit it to your taste. This would be the time to add a drop leaf to expand your table, as well, if you have wished for more space on it.

All in all, a good spring project. Enjoy.

Ann

[chowdan]

Originally Posted by Steady Hand

Here is a link to extensive comments on the subjects of varnishing and refinishing interior wood on boats.

https://cse.google.com/cse?cx=011403...ior&gsc.page=1

If I bought a boat with old cheesy looking Formica, I would take that surface off, lay down some hardwood or cedar, sand and shape to taste. Then cover with a satin polyurethane. I also like maple butcher blocks inset. But I like wood.

We both love the wood as well. I just am not a fan of it when it looks like crap, is stained and dull. I truly love the high gloss and smooth feeling and rich colors when well cared for.

Being on a 27ft mono, i'm concerned on weight. Ill have to look into weight of butcher blocks(galley on the starboard side) and at how to build a nice countertop out of wood. Its definitely something I have been thinking about recently so I'm glad you did mention it.

[jimfj]

Again you will find your answers more in depth as you research but yes, epoxy is much different than poly.

Epoxy is a great undercoat for varnish. Epoxy is typically clear with no added uv stabilization. Would be good to "build" first with epoxy, let cure, sand, then apply the varnish. I have done that several times on cockpit tables and tillers. cabin soles would benefit from that too. If you ever wore down through the varnish you wouldn't have to resand the wood, just add coats of varnish.

[chowdan]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Hi, chowdan,

If your cabin sole comes up, in sections, it is way easier to deal with it on a workbench, or even sawhorses in your garage or workshop. We have had those on our boats. The stuff used on our cabin sole is the same as used on gymnasium floors, but is matte finish, which I prefer for the sole.

I think the hardest part of the prep is getting the corners really clean, free of old varnish, and ready for the new coat. There are special scrapers for this part of the job.

Our rosewood saloon table was sprayed with 2 pot polyurethane, still shiny and bright now, after 23 yrs.

Friends replaced their galley laminate with white Corian. It looks okay, but not "shippy."
Our galley is old laminate, and the edges are starting to look less than perfect. It is really a high wear area, and I think I'd go with laminate for it again if we were to get stuck into that project.

In fact, I probably would use laminate also on your saloon table, as well. You can probably get away with buying just one sheet, and suit it to your taste. This would be the time to add a drop leaf to expand your table, as well, if you have wished for more space on it.

All in all, a good spring project. Enjoy.

Ann

Much appreciated! I have been back and forth between counter top materials. Corian is definitely out of the picture(weight). I've been back and forth between just new laminate/formica and a layer of hardwood covered with epoxy/polyurethane. I would love Corian(last home had it), but i feel weight might be too much.

I haven't looked, but i believe the sole can be removed, we definitely dont have that much to do on the sole. Our table currently has a drop leaf already, so we just need to redo it, maybe we'll do the table with hardwood and counter tops with laminate. So many options, so many choices.

The girlfriend had and idea to redo our table, placing a map on it then doing an epoxy/poly covering to protect it. So thats also an option we are considering....

I need to dig through other peoples projects to see what they did and how the result turned out. We'll probably start with the small things, cabinet doors, the bilge access hatches and go from there.

[chowdan]

Originally Posted by jimfj

Again you will find your answers more in depth as you research but yes, epoxy is much different than poly.

Epoxy is a great undercoat for varnish. Epoxy is typically clear with no added uv stabilization. Would be good to "build" first with epoxy, let cure, sand, then apply the varnish. I have done that several times on cockpit tables and tillers. cabin soles would benefit from that too. If you ever wore down through the varnish you wouldn't have to resand the wood, just add coats of varnish.

Much appreciated Will dig through everyones work and go from

[TrekTech]

I watched all of this guy's videos. Amazing stuff and seems to be what you are asking about. He covers epoxy and varnishing.

https://www.youtube.com/user/boatworkstoday

[chowdan]

Originally Posted by TrekTech

I watched all of this guy's videos. Amazing stuff and seems to be what you are asking about. He covers epoxy and varnishing.

https://www.youtube.com/user/boatworkstoday

Ooo perfect! This guy definitely will be able to help me!

[msrcal36]

I like LeTonkinois Varnish.It is VERY easy to use:
//www.tarsmell.com/letonkinois_original.html

[Tessellate]

Pick up Don Casey's Sailboat Maintenance Manual and read the chapter on wood refinishing. It'll only take 10 minutes and covers the basics of all your questions. If you need more in-depth reading there are entire books on this, but I'd start with this one - there's no reason not to have Casey's book since it costs less than one can of paint, and will probably save you that much in terms of costly mistakes.

Since you want that shiny "yacht finished" wood look I think you probably want varnish over teak, not paint.

[reed1v]

Most of our previous boats had lots of teak. Walls, floors, decks, trims, etc. We used old fashion tung oil for down below. Sets up hard,applied with a rag, and has that deep luster of bygone yachts

Outside trim was done in old fashion varnish(Wilbos) that would turn dull when needing a touch up. Never chipped. When dull, we wiped the trim down with a tack rag saturated in acetone, slowly. Then applied a layer of varnish with a foam brush. Good as new, no sanding, and held up in the tropics for 6 months of blazing sun. Key is to apply a layer of varnish when the old layer got dull. Start with 5 to 6 layers of varnish to begin with.

The poly stuff will crack and let water migrate into the wood, requiring a lot of work to redo the wood. We did apply poly to the wooden hatches since the seams fillings would otherwise react with the varnish. We then varnished over the poly coating.