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cburger · 11-02-2010, 06:47

Quote:

Originally Posted by s/v Geneve

Amytom: I'm sorry, I don't mean to highjack your thread.

CB: how many coats of the Bristol are you using on the brightwork?

gonesail: you're right!

I don't wish to malign anyones prochedures, but I just don't prefer heat guns for stripping old finish off brightwork, just too many potential problems that could be disasterous, especially if you haven't done this before!. When you are dealing wih cabin soles, many are a thin veneer plywood and if you happen to scorch it with the gun or gouge it through to aggressive scraping, your done.

A method I prefer is to use chemical stripper to take off the old coatings.
I have used fairly agressives strippers "Zip Strip" to the more benign types of so called environmenatlly friendlly types sold at Home Depot. Depending on teperature it may take several applications of stripper to get most of the origional product off. You want to use a small cheap plastic scraper to remove the "First" coat of stripper when ready, the idea is to prevent scratching the veneers with anything sharp. Apply another coat of stripper and this time use a medium to fine grit steel wool back and forth with the grain to remove additional finish not gotten with the first coat of stripper, use medium rubbing preswsure and be careful not to tear out any of the surface veneer. Next get pails of warm water and a good scrubby sponge and with the grain wash any residual stripper from the wood. Continue to wash the woodwork until the sponge rinses clean thus showing no more chemicals on the wood. Allow the wood to dry thoroughly, a small heater left running on the sole overnight will usually expidite this stage. After the floor has dried inspect the wood closely to see if there are any areas left with finish if so repeat step two, apply stripper to that area and remove with steel wool and wash with sponge and warm water.

If you find that you have issues with stains and black marks, (Often midue) you can try a washing the wood with a 50% bleach to water solution and a green scrubby sponge, alway with the grain. The idea being to let the bleach work on the wood util you get results, usually abaout four hours. If you have to do this step come back and rewash the wood with warm water before any finishing is done. If you follow these prochedures as outlined you should usually have a nice even toned surface ready for what ever finish you wish to apply. After all is said an done if the tones of the wood are a little uneven you can sand the areas with 220 sand paper on a rubber sanding block, (always with the grain). Remember it is advisable to try any new prochedure on a small inconspicuous area if possible.

Regarding how many coats of Bristol finish on my boat that was done to the "Tropical" standard as aoutlined in their instructions, i.e. 7 coats.

Chris

Anzo · 11-02-2010, 06:58

My solid mahogany floorboards look and feel just fine without any finish other than a bit of stain I put on a few years ago. As for brightwork, I'd never again use anything other than Honey Teak, a 2 part finish that's durable as hell and is the simplest thing to touch up I can imagine.

pkabel66 · 28-06-2013, 07:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by s/v Geneve

I will only strip using a heat gun and putty knife or similar tool. It is very easy and allows you to get to the bare wood without over-sanding or chemicals. Once you get used to it you can move quite quickly across the surface. I'm sure others have methods they like as well, but this is the best way IMO.

DB

I have seen videos where the entire sole plate is removed from the boat and refinished using a heat gun. Do you recommend the use of a heat gun and stripping tool in closed quarters where the sole boards cannot be lifted from the boat?