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Chief Engineer · 24-06-2009, 18:43

I saw a guy doing this today.......

I winced......I am no expert, but I don' tink that eez a berry goot idea, Lucy

Ocean Girl · 24-06-2009, 19:40

Why was he epoxing?

Chief Engineer · 24-06-2009, 19:46

"this epoxy is better than 6 coats of varnish"

Pardon me, but I have done more than my share of toe rails, hand rails, doors, etc.....If that was they way to do it...I think I would have done it by now.

Oceansandmts · 24-06-2009, 20:21

Epoxy on teak. The CPES epoxy is followed by a 2 part urethane, "five year clear". Top rated by Practical Sailor about 10 years ago.

Smith & Co. - Restoration Products

You learn something new every day.

Ocean Girl · 24-06-2009, 20:29

Smith's is fabulous, I've done the Smith's with 5 ish coats of varnish, which did better than the West System with 5 coats of varnish.
Never used the two part urethanes, what happens when it breaks down? does it get cloudy? it doesn't sound like it wears away like varnish.
Oceansandmts-Chuck Paine Sarah 32, one of my dream boats!
Erika

**Wotname** · 25-06-2009, 02:17

Really depends if it is interior or exterior. For exterior, the epoxy MUST have a UV stabilized hardner and then be overcoated with a UV stabilized 2 pack poly. Then it IS good

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Strygaldwir · 25-06-2009, 05:00

Actually, what is recommended is several coats of epoxy(5-6?), followed by several coats of varnish (6). This mitigates the problem with UV. The varnish protects the epoxy from UV the epoxy protects the wood from everything else. This approach seems to last several years with minimal ongoing maintenance. They use this extensively in wooden canoe and kayaks.

Oceansandmts · 25-06-2009, 05:29

Ocean Girl, Morris Yachts has my old Sarah 32 listed in its brokerage section, you could move up from your CD 30 for a little $. Not that there is anything wrong with a Cape Dory, great designer, traditional look, very seaworthy....I think I just described the Sarah 32 as well.

The two part urethanes don't wear off, and shouldn't get cloudy if you keep adding a coat or two every year or so, just like regular varnish only longer time before a re-coat. A little tougher to strip, even with a heat gun, but it can be done. Several years in the tropics before a re-coat beats regular varnish and means more time to sail, snorkel and hit the beach bars.

Strygaldwir · 25-06-2009, 06:16

I tried the two part polyurethane (Bristol finish). It was expensive and I did not put on enough coats, I think. After 1 year, it started to fail at the joints of my teak. I have lattice work in all the teak I have. I took them apart, sanded, apply 1 coat of Bristol, put them back together applied 2 additional coats. I probably should have applied 3 coats when they were disassembled, 3 coats when they were assembled, and followed up with varnish. But, that gets VERY expensive. I have since found this Raka epoxy. There were several (2 I think) LONG term test comparing it to other epoxy solutions. I am using that to recoat all my teak.

But, taking care of teak is like anchoring, there will be LOTS of opinions. The multi-coats epoxy/varnish/polyurethane/oil/cetol/leave it/ ... debate is extensive. I only have a little of it. I want to do it once and not do it again for a LONG time!

gonesail · 25-06-2009, 06:17

varnish over epoxy .. nice .. god help you if you ever need to strip it down to the teak again.

Maren · 25-06-2009, 07:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chief Engineer

I saw a guy doing this today.......

I winced......I am no expert, but I don' tink that eez a berry goot idea, Lucy

I think Roy has done some finish work on teak using epoxy as a bottom layer with a UV resistant layer above it. Perhaps you guy is planning to put something on top.

Thread 1 ; Thread 2

As far as I'm concerned, if Roy says it's good, it's good.

Roy M · 25-06-2009, 08:41

Thanks Maren, here's the update: I used West System 207 hardener with 105 resin to coat my handrails, as an experiment. I had used it previously on a wooden car body, a 1922 Rolls Royce, designed by Olin Stephens before he passed away last year. The finish was hand rubbed to give it a more textured appearance. It held up well to a tour, by the owner, of Scotland during its rainiest summer in memory. I decided to see how well it held up to San Diego sunlight. I sanded my thirty-some year old teak handrails back to original color, then applied three coats of the above mix, with light sanding between coats. The finish was extraordinary. Knowing that no clear finish lasts forever, I decided to test it to destruction. The high gloss began to slightly dull after five months, and then thin cracks, along the grain, began to yellow, then peel slightly, NINE MONTHS LATER. I am quite satisfied with this performance, knowing that, as I get back to restoring it, the results will be equally fabulous. This time, however, after sanding back to solid epoxy and/or teak, and recoating with the 207 hardener mix, I will be able to top-coat with (probably) Sterling clear linear polyurethane. When I take off for my cruise I will top coat with a surface coat of paint (also LPU) to protect the base against UV degradation. Should I wish to show off the wood, at some point in the future, it is simply a matter of sanding the top coat lightly to reveal the clear LPU base, or even the epoxy sub-base. Those of you who have done any LP painting know how this goes. There is NO permanent coating on earth. This technique seems to be the most enduring combination I've encountered so far. Since I value my time more than the cost of high quality materials, it seems to have given extraordinary value for the investment of mere money. I'll send some pictures in coming days to show the details.