Refurbishing dark, flakey interior wood. Advice needed?

[frlrubett]

Have a Mirage 28 which has a number of issues with the interior wood. There are scorch marks, flaking, discoloration, peeling, water staining and there are bits which are perfect. Do not know what sort of wood it is, but it looks like the standard 70/80s family cruiser type.

Would a varnish/paint stripper work on this sort of job? Or should I just sand everything? Any product recomendation?
After varnish, a light sand?
Is it possible to bleach the wood to lighten the interior?
Afterwards is there a varnish which is recommended?

Thanks!

 

[wallacebob]

Removing wood from boat is easier, if possible, to fully dry. Scrape old varnish off, then sand with orbital sander. I used dek oil, and it revived wood nicely. A wipe with thinners will show you what finish will be like. Still had some imperfections/staining, but it’s not a perfect boat. There a two pack varnishes available if you want a new-like finish, and are good with a brush.

 

[Stemar]

To state the obvious, fix the causes of water staining first!

Personally, I'd be inclined to use a chemical or hot air stripper to get old finishes off and keep sanding to the minimum. It's all too easy to sand right through the veneer on plywood, and that's something that can never be fixed or hidden except with paint. As for the finish, I have used a water-based satin varnish for a fairly flat finish which looked good and lasted well, or le Tonkinois for a hard wearing, high gloss, though you can get a matting agent to reduce the shine. This has the advantage that, if the surface is damaged and water gets underneath, it doesn't lift like ordinary varnish, so you don't have to strip it all off, just dry out, rub down and put a few new coats on.

 

[wonkywinch]

I follow this guy on You Tube, he might have some tips in his series - https://www.youtube.com/@NewBritWorkshop

 

[Plum]

I have used a water-based satin varnish for a fairly flat finish which looked good and lasted well.

would appreciate knowing exactly which varnish you used as the water based one i tried was not good

 

[Stemar]

It was a few years ago, so the memory's a bit hazy, but I think it was Ronseal Diamond Hard Floor Varnish.

 

[Concerto]

You might find this article of mine worth reading. Very few boats have a varnished interior originally, but were lacquered - but looks like varnish. My prefered method of removal is a 1½" chisel sharpened on an electric diamond ginding wheel, but not removing the back burr. The burr acts in a similar way to the cabinet scrapper and is much simpler to create and redo for quick working.
https://wiki.westerly-owners.co.uk/images/2/25/Interior_Woodwork_Concerto_PowerPoint.pdf

If the wood is badly damaged then it might be worth forgetting the wood look and to paint white the plywood and just finish any solid wood trin. This looks quite fresh and may be your simplest way forward.

 

[Tranona]

would appreciate knowing exactly which varnish you used as the water based one i tried was not good

Ronseal Satin is excellent for internal work.