using Oil or varnish on teak gunwale capping ?

[BartW]

We will have completely new Teac capping of the new gate doors.
and a few small changes on the gunwale capping on the cockpit.

And the old capping needs to be varnished again.

it is not too difficult to remove all the SST stanchions from the handrails,
so I was considering to sand the capping completely, till blank wood.

what would you advice as a treatment for teak gunwale capping ?

For the Teac floor I am 200% convinced of natural wood without treatment,
but for the capping, its better to have a protection (I believe)

actually I prefer a good quality oil, but swmbo is afraid that seawater spray will get the oil off on some spots, so make it look ugly.
She prefers varnish again.

what does the experienced forum advice ?

 

[longjohnsilver]

Bart, do NOT use oil of any sort, it will look great for a few days and then go black, sticky and horrible. Don't ask how I know......

Since then I've used Sikkens which has been much better, this year plan to use Semco but what would look really great is good old fashioned varnish, but I just can't face the ongoing work involved with varnish.

Before buying Eos we looked at a Hatteras which had all the capping rails varnished and they looked magnificent. But they were all protected by canvas covers and looked a real pain to take off and put back on each time you used the boat. The first owner of Eos also varnished the rails. When I met him he explained that it was the effort of trying to keep on top of the varnishing which caused him to sell the boat...........

 

[Tugw]

Bart, do NOT use oil of any sort, it will look great for a few days and then go black, sticky and horrible.

+1

 

[fracman]

Bart,

I have a 1974 Cheoy Lee 40 LRC, over the past 12 years of ownership I have tried all manner of varnishes and oils on my cappings and window frames, 18 months ago I stripped all the teak back and applied the following, http://www.marinemegastore.com/product.asp?pf_id=BUR_402050&src=GBASE&gb_exvat=1

Since my intial application of three coats I have found no cracks, flaking or peeling, I am so pleased with the results.

I was told some six months ago that Sikkens was bought out by International and that this Cetol product would cease production, having just tried a quick search in Google it would appear to be readily available.

My trawler is moored in Southern tip of Spain where winter temps are mild but as you probably know the summer months can get pretty hot, 40+.

Hope this helps

 

[omega2]

Teak Cappings

Gunnel capping What to use???

We ave used the lot on our Aquabell, Sikkens, Cetol, International, Ronseal, and all manner of garden furniture finishes, all of them end up being sanded back to the blank wood over time as they just build up and look horrible. We started using oil last year, but failed to keep on top of it this was the result

I have just re oiled them last week and now they look like this,

as you can see not a great deal better. One slight advantage of using oil is that it is easier to apply, I rub the old surface with scotch bright pad to remove the surface dirt and apply the oil. As she is only a fishing machine we get away with it.

 

[Mad Pad]

Go for Coelan,expensive but will last at least 5 years without attention if correctly applied.Ours has in Greece.

 

[Swordfish]

Hello Bart,

I used " Sika " teak oil on the new wood in my cockpit, it has not lasted very well, on the capping and handrail the oil seems to be water soluble, runs onto the GRP and leaves a stain.

I have been following your very good thread re the works to Blue Angel.

Paul

 

[vas]

slightly confused,

Bart, since you don't even need to touch it (it's not a handrail!) and since it's teak, why not leave it as god intended?

V.

 

[jfm]

Bart, do NOT use oil of any sort, it will look great for a few days and then go black, sticky and horrible. Don't ask how I know......

BartW, the two real choices are teak oil or varnish, and it's up to you which. I wouldn't leave them bare teak - that just wont look right imho

I completely dont understand LJS's comment quoted above. I have had my capping rails and my deck furniture oiled since day one and never had a problem. Looks beautiful golden brown. My crew girl cleans the teak with soap and water and applies a top-up coat of teak oil every month or so, or whenever she thinks it is needed, and it is always beautiful golden brown looking. I use starbrite teak oil or whatever similar product and can only think LJS has used a bad product. Don't use Sika "teak oil" in the blue bottle; it's horrible, as someone said above

The teak is much better if sanded really smooth before oiling it.

The pic below show my rails and table, taken summer 2011. This is bare teak + oil, and nothing else

This pic shows my capping rail 3 weeks ago, and it needs a pre-season sand and new oil so you're seeing it at its very worst. The last time it was oiled and sanded was September 2011, and it has been uncovered since then (I keep meaning to get covers made; never got around to it)

This is my table, a year old, taken 3 weeks ago, again no treatment except oil and it is beautifully smooth when you rub your hands on it. The rail and sofa arms are also oiled teak and need a refresh (which was done last week actually)

Gloss varnish would also look great, but higher maintenance. A refresh wipe with teak oil takes just 20 minutes

 

[MapisM]

She prefers varnish again.
what does the experienced forum advice ?

I'm afraid that the first of the two lines above rules out any answer to the second...
Purely in aesthetic terms, nothing can beat a well done varnish job, period.
So, if that's what your wife likes, she won't be equally pleased by anything else.
That said, if I had teak on my boat (which has iroko instead, with teak only on deck), I would definitely go for the least elegant option and keep it natural.
Life's too short to waste money and/or time on purely aesthetic issues. But that's me, of course.

 

[longjohnsilver]

That's interesting jfm, can't remember which oil I used but your results look impressive, so much so that I will give it another go in the next few weeks.

I'll be knocking on your door if it doesn't work....

 

[DougH]

BartW,

Gloss varnish would also look great, but higher maintenance. A refresh wipe with teak oil takes just 20 minutes

Hi John,

My boat is shortly going down to Adriano to have all the antifouling and servicing items etc carried out by the Sunseeker official service centre for Mallorca.

One of the items is for partial sanding of the fore deck and sanding of both flybridge and cockpit tables.

Whilst there will be no treatment applied to the decking I did ask for the tables to be Teak Oiled after sanding.

They advised that in their experience the teak oil would stain clothes if they come into contact with the table.

Do you have any experience of such a nature?

Doug

 

[jfm]

They advised that in their experience the teak oil would stain clothes if they come into contact with the table.

Do you have any experience of such a nature?

Doug

It's weird there are so many stories about the age old practice of teak oiling. There must be some bad products on the market I guess. I use old fashioned teak oil which is an almost clear or light brown oil, I think linseed or tung oil or something like that. Slightly viscous, has the consistency almost of washing up liquid. Starbrite brand is in many chandleries, €18 per litre at cote D'Azur prices. I do NOT use the modern staining coatings like the Sika "teak oil" in the blue bottle which isn't teak oil at all in my book and belongs on fences

Mine doesn't stain. It's touch dry in 5 mins and after half an hour it feels completely dry, like a silk varnish only much easier to apply and reapply (wipe with a cloth). I definitely get no staining - if you rubbed a white cloth along my table 15mins after oiling it the cloth would be 100% clear - I guarantee it

 

[DougH]

Thanks John, I will definitely give it a go.

 

[PaulGooch]

<snip>I do NOT use the modern staining coatings like the Sika "teak oil" in the blue bottle which isn't teak oil at all in my book and belongs on fences

<snip>

This is indeed crapola. Did your cockpit cappings and the ladder to the "sun bridge" with this last year. It washed off of the ladder onto the cockpit floor, which i now have the task of scrubbing. Also didn't last five minutes on the cockpit capping.

 

[BartW]

I didn't expect to get so much totally contradicting sugestions
at least 4 different opions on that.

The conclusion is very simple,
I wil think it over thorrowly, consider all pro's and cons,...

and then after a while asc swmbo what it's going to be.

Life's too short to waste money and/or time on purely aesthetic issues. But that's me, of course.

I don't agree,
and i can't beleeve you mean that,

after having seen many pictures and details of your beautifully maintained CNA

 

[burgundyben]

Interesting discussion.

Last year I varnished my cabin sole for the first time, it had always been bare teak.

It looked so much nicer that I decided to do the entire cockpit, it under the tonneau cover most of the time and only exposed when we are on board.

I'm not sure whether to go with oil, Owatrol, Cetol or varnish.

I like the idea of the quickness of oil.

Apart from the look, one thing I really want to acheive is a wipe clean surface. If we drop a tiny bit of cheese of a bit of potato crisp on the bare teak you get little grease marks and it drives me mad.

 

[jfm]

If you're talking outside Ben, just behind the helm, it's gotta be bare teak surely? With K2R spray to remove the greasy stains. Varnish is great inside for the cabin sole

 

[Croc]

Any views on Danish oil....not for decks but for tables etc?

 

[vas]

slightly off as it's not boaty, but I do treat the kitchen worktop and table as well as the garden furniture (which are all bare oak or teak) with danish oil using an old t-shirt. No other treatment from the beginning.

They never ever stained anything, they have been burnt, oiled, stained, you name it, it's just brilliant. I'd never use anything else.
Ah, I'm talking about cheap danish oil or the stuff you get for less than 5euro a can from IKEA...