bowsprit finish

C

Canadian Sailor

.
Jun 25, 2004
3
Pacific Seacraft Orion 27 Bellingham Wa
Hey all. New here.

Bought a boat last year that has a bowsprit. The previous owner had a new one built from spruce. Not my choice material but it was done already when I came across the boat and the guy doing the work did a really nice job of it. They put a preserver on the wood but left it unfinished past that. There is a teak pulpit mounted also unfinished.

My question is...what is best for the bowsprit. Leave it with just the wood preserver or should I be looking at painting or varnishing it. I know spruce can go south in a hurry if it is not taken care of. I am not so much worried about the cosmetic side of it as much as I want to take care of it the best I can so it lasts.

let me know what you think.

Cheers,

Lonny
 
E

Eddie7045

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Aug 16, 2006
281
Ericson 32 Oregon coast
An oil based paint would be the most durable

finish. Secondly, would be an oil based marine spar if you wanted a natural finish.
 
Steady1

Steady1

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Jul 11, 2013
9
Com-Pac 27/2 Mathews, Virginia
Roger the varnish. Pain in the...can to keep it up but looks smart, i.e., bristol. Use a good product, build solid base, it's not that hard to maintain.

But...s'all good. Just an opinion.
 
Stu Jackson

Stu Jackson

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Feb 26, 2004
23,112
Catalina 34 224 Maple Bay, BC, Canada
Uhm, every time "varnish" comes up, some WAG, like me, suggests CETOL.

If you do a search on this forum you could be reading for months...:)
 
zeehag

zeehag

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Mar 26, 2009
3,198
1976 formosa 41 yankee clipper santa barbara. ca.(not there)
varnish. niiiice n slick.

i keep the grate on my sprit natural so crew doesnt slip n fall . as for spruce..
my original made in1976 spruce masts are just fine and rot free. is why it has been used for centuries in boat building.
 
bletso

bletso

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Aug 20, 2013
106
Globe 38 PCB
Stu Jackson said:
Uhm, every time "varnish" comes up, some WAG, like me, suggests CETOL.

If you do a search on this forum you could be reading for months...:)
Click to expand
Second on the Cetol. From a few feet you can't tell from varnish anyway. Easy to apply, easy to repair, easy to maintain, +++
 
Chuckbear

Chuckbear

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Jan 3, 2009
821
Marine Trader 34 Where Ever I am
We did a lot cruising and out bowsprit took quite a beating. Varnish lasted about a week and leaving it unfinished was not an option. We painted the bowsprit with Awlgrip, did it ourselves, and 22 years later, it has been repainted once and still looks great. The teak platform was allowed to gray naturally, to eliminate maintaining the finish, and to keep it from being slippery. We had two anchors and chain hanging on the sprit and it spent a lot of time getting wet while underway. Chuck
 
capta

capta

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Jun 4, 2009
4,964
Pearson 530 Admiralty Bay, Bequia SVG
Spruce is and has been the traditional yacht spar material for over 100 years, so I would be most interested in what your first choice for a spar material would be. As for finishing it, I would do it just like a wooden mast; clear wood sealer, then numerous coats of varnish. If you choose not to maintain the varnish, you can paint over the varnish, but the paint can be easily stripped off the varnish, should you ever wish to have the varnish again. If you paint it directly, you will never be able to varnish it.
 
C

Canadian Sailor

.
Jun 25, 2004
3
Pacific Seacraft Orion 27 Bellingham Wa
Thanks all for your input...varnish it is. My only thoughts on spruce come from the cabinet makers I know that curse the wood up and down. It is a soft wood that can be very unpredictable around moisture. I would have relied heavily on what the wood guy had said but I would have thought fir or another more densely fibre wood would be a better choice. As a few of you pointed out, spruce has been used for many years and so it would come as no surprise if my concerns were not founded.

Cheers,

Lonny
 
zeehag

zeehag

.
Mar 26, 2009
3,198
1976 formosa 41 yankee clipper santa barbara. ca.(not there)
there have been many formosa/ct masts that have been varnished after painting... no problem.....paint chips off mine reallll nice....
now, what kind of spruce are you hearing described.... is like pine..many qualities.....my sitka spruce masts are not soft...no rot.... paint chipping off nicely.....only made in 1976.
my booms and sprit are also in decent condition without rot. also original 1976. paint chipped even worse....
 
Chenega

Chenega

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Feb 3, 2012
72
Corbin 39 Pilothouse Cutter Lyme, CT
Canadian Sailor said:
Thanks all for your input...varnish it is. My only thoughts on spruce come from the cabinet makers I know that curse the wood up and down. It is a soft wood that can be very unpredictable around moisture. I would have relied heavily on what the wood guy had said but I would have thought fir or another more densely fibre wood would be a better choice. As a few of you pointed out, spruce has been used for many years and so it would come as no surprise if my concerns were not founded. Cheers, Lonny
Click to expand
Varnish is the way to go... You want to be able to see any deteriorating wood issues. I've seen painted spars hiding serious damage. Re coat with a good quality varnish annually (after the first six to eight initial coats). Not that big a deal!
 
Charlie Jones s/v Tehani

Charlie Jones s/v Tehani

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Mar 1, 2012
2,182
1961 Rhodes Meridian 25 Texas coast
Stu Jackson said:
Uhm, every time "varnish" comes up, some WAG, like me, suggests CETOL.

If you do a search on this forum you could be reading for months...:)
Click to expand
Still have a brand new can of Cetol out in my shop- been trying to GIVE it away for 4 years now- no takers around here;)

Oh- and my spruce mast is 52 years old now
 

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