Needed to Replace Teak Handrails
- Thread starter JohnVTX
- Start date
Very interesting, John. What are they and where did you get them? Cetol or varnish? 
Just kiddin'...
Just kiddin'...
Cabinet door knobs. Great for hanging lines on. I watched myself for several sails and found I never used the handrails while going forward, I used the lifelines and stays 100% of the time. Only used the old worn handrails for hanging my lines on after use.
Great idea, but I will take the labor involved in my solution........Very frugal! Maybe not as much as my $20 Lowes pvc board handrails
My 35 year old teak is toast. Decided to replace with black pvc and Starboard. Crib boards will be white Starboard with black frame. It may give the old Cherubini a modern feel. Still keeping the interior teak.....that I could save anyway.
I was watching the following video the other day and kept thinking about some of the grab rail alternative modifications that some people have installed. While grab rails aren't always used while transiting fore to aft in moderate conditions, there may be times when you wish you had something stronger and easier to grab onto. Although cabinet door knobs may be great for hanging lines, they would be almost useless for keeping you on the boat, especially if you're being dragged through the water. It does happen, and most of the time it's when you least expect it. People have also used synthetic products like plastic or composite wood products to make handrails. They look good and are maintenance free, but some of those products can fail/break when loaded like you would expect in near man overboard situation. Just saying. Select your materials carefully and stay safe. Even wire lifelines are difficult to hold onto because they are so thin but at least they won't break. Check out the 3:20 minute mark and you'll see what I mean.
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When my wife and I lived aboard an Idylle 51, we replaced the life lines and the teak hand rails with 1" SS all around. The cabin top rails were one foot high. Combined with jack lines and harness, I was able to move around with complete confidence. Oat also had granny bars at the mast. Contemplating something similar for my old Catalina.
john you have some kind of pole being held to your stanchions with some kind of brackets, which seems might be perfect for my boat hook. what are the brackets and where did you get them?
Yeah my 38 year teak hand rails are toast too! We've refinished the companionway slats and trim, surprisingly similar to Kito's color scheme. Using a Minwax stain color called Jacobean its dark, but the grain of the original teak really pops. Once the spar varnish is added, I'll toss a few photos on SBO. It'll match the rest of the dark trim were gonna add this summer. The handrails are a concern, but it's not likely we'll ever broach beyond getting the toe rail wet. With three side stays, a dual cabled lifeline, and less than six steps to the mast from the cabin bulkhead, I think I could live without the handrails. I'm clearly going over the top of the cabin if needed. The coamings are really quite narrow as well. My plan is to leave the handrails mostly as decorations, with warnings to the crew, simply sanding, sealing, staining, and spar varnish. Thoughts?
Here you go. These are the pole mounts I have.
http://www.go2marine.com/product/20...ekTg0hjZc4NrX06jDXpfm27iRlEqWrk4-HhoCV8Xw_wcB