Refinish wood

[opto55]

I have a 1988 Campion that I want to refinish the wood on. I have sanded it down to bare wood and it looks good. What would you use to fill the holes and what products should I use to protect and finish the wood. Type of wood? would it by chance be teak?
Thank you for your help.

 

[rockyrude]

Re: Refinish wood

It is most likely teak, the only thing that will stick to it is an oil made for it. Any marine or really good wood finish supplier can get you everything you need.

 

[buellwinkle]

Re: Refinish wood

Depends on the look you are going after. Most people do oil their teak because it's the easiest thing to do but it's a flat look. Teak is an oily wood so you need to apply a sealer made for this purpose. Here is one at the link below, but your local marine supply store probably has a good sealer for this purpose. If you don't seal the wood, it will make gooey mess that may take weeks to dry. Then apply a few coats of spar vanish.

UV Cure Insulator Sealer - Oily Wood - 1 Quart

The other way to go is with a clear 2-part epoxy varnish. Since it's not oil based, it won't react to the oil in the wood to prevent curing. Frankly, I like 2 part expoxy finish because it's guaranteed to dry. Just do it on a warmer day, like 70F as it cures with heat. I had to do this on my house with a 2 part primer to make it stick and last a long time because I had oily wood shingles.

https://epifanes.com/na/store/varnishes-and-clear-finishes/pp-varnish-extra/

 

[jayhanig]

Re: Refinish wood

I had a bunch of plastic trim strips that I replaced with genuine mahogany this past year. I just used West System Epoxy Resin to give it a nice color and gloss. Everything wood was sanded down and several thin coats of resin were applied with light sanding as required. It turned out pretty nice. If you do this, you can just fill holes with wood filler before you epoxy it up. I doubt the holes will be noticeable

.

 

[Auger01]

Re: Refinish wood

The West system epoxy is great stuff, but it doesnt have much UV protection, a good varnish will protect the epoxy from the sun:

 

[25thmustang]

Re: Refinish wood

Do you want it shiny or matte finished? Do you mind reoiling it every 3-6 months? Do you want it to last a season and then have to scuff and add a coat or two of varnish?

I've used a few techniques before and my latest has been an epoxy base with a varnish top coat. I will say I do have a small area on one piece where the varnish has started to bubble. I will sand and reapply a coat in the spring and see where I stand with it.

 

[Another retired guy]

Re: Refinish wood

There was some well weathered (grey color) teak trim on my boat when I first got it, and previous owner had just used teak oil over the years (the stains can still be seen on the vinyl!).
I sanded it down, wiped some Mahogany stain on it (just using a cloth), then applied 3 coats of marine spar varnish.
Looks great, and no problems at all so far.

 

[opto55]

Re: Refinish wood

Thank you to all who responded. I will try the two part epoxy and use the spar varnish to finish.