Butyl tape to rebed teak toe rail?

[berner73]

It's been great for our deck hardware, but I'm looking to rebed the toe rail next as I work my way through the topsides of the boat (teak rail on fiberglass).

Reports on some wooden boat forums advise against it for this application saying that the teak will absorb components (oils) from the butyl tape, causing it to dry out prematurely.

Varnish/epoxy on the bottom of the toe rail and then butyl might be an option, but I'd like to avoid doing that as I prefer to leave the toe rail natural and not sure if sealing just the bottom would be effective. Is Sikaflex 291 a better solution?

 

[Maine Sail]

It's been great for our deck hardware, but I'm looking to rebed the toe rail next as I work my way through the topsides of the boat (teak rail on fiberglass).

Reports on some wooden boat forums advise against it for this application saying that the teak will absorb components (oils) from the butyl tape, causing it to dry out prematurely.

Varnish/epoxy on the bottom of the toe rail and then butyl might be an option, but I'd like to avoid doing that as I prefer to leave the toe rail natural and not sure if sealing just the bottom would be effective. Is Sikaflex 291 a better solution?

Bed-It will not "dry out" it is not a cheap solvent rich product like many butyls.That said the best approach is to epoxy seal the mating base. This prevents the wood saturating out from above and mold forming. It will also have a better bond to the epoxy..

 

[gettinthere]

And sealing the teak 360 will help minimize swelling from changes in humidity. The slight swelling can cause varnish to lift. Soaking the entire wood with epoxy stabilizes the wood and helps stop varnish from lifting or cracking.