Sanding and refinishing the tiller handle. I have had this boat 4 seasons,never been done. Looked all over this site,archives,past discussions, answers are all over the map, so let's do it all again tonight. Thanks.
Cetol, brush or rag
- Thread starter DAVA390
- Start date
The first coat or two of Cetol used by me personally and as a dealer now retired, I use to cut the first two coats by 50% with a thinner. This allows penetration into the smallest of pours or pores to be filled where applying a regular coat will not. Just one way to make darn sure water cannot penetrate into the wood learned from some old salty dogs in this industry who are well known.
+1 for Ken's comment and +1 for Crazy Dave's comment - sounds like a good idea (although I have not thinned the Cetol). I will try that next time. Personally, I do not like the look of the "gloss" type of Cetol. Cetol is a soft finish, and I don't think the shine will endure. Oh, wait a moment. My wife does all the refinishing of the bright work so my opinion probably does not really matter!
Carefully mask fiberglass and metal areas if you are refinishing wood that is not removed from the boat.
Carefully mask fiberglass and metal areas if you are refinishing wood that is not removed from the boat.
I did my tiller with the gloss. I just followed the instructions. The tiller was sanded smooth before applying. After 3 years I just did it again. I am very pleased with the results.
I've never thought of a rag for finishing. That said, I recommend the absolutely highest quality of bristle brush that you can get. Half of my 'oops moments' from finish painting / staining have been from bristles left behind or not spreading evenly. Don't save the $5 in your brushes.
I use cheap brushes and sand to a fine finish then apply multiple thin coats over several days. Let the coats dry completely before recoating. I do mine in the winter and will put 12 to 15 very light coats on. I will lightly sand between the coats if I get a buildup. I occasionally have a bristle come out, but just remove with my finger and redcoat and spread the catol thinly over the area while still wet. Just don’t leave a bristle caught in the finish.
I’m sure fine brushes will do a better job, but I get a very good finish and go through about 10 of those cheapest Lowes brushes. I re-coat from scratch about every 7 to 8 year’s. When I have a thin spot I use fine sandpaper to sand lightly and use the same technique over the smaller area carefully blending in and sanding everyb3=or 4 coats with very fine grit.
I’m sure fine brushes will do a better job, but I get a very good finish and go through about 10 of those cheapest Lowes brushes. I re-coat from scratch about every 7 to 8 year’s. When I have a thin spot I use fine sandpaper to sand lightly and use the same technique over the smaller area carefully blending in and sanding everyb3=or 4 coats with very fine grit.
Yeah,I badly messed up the reply trying to quote Phil about the wife doing the brightwork. I remembered a photo of his wife with a chainsaw doing yard work. VERY impressed!
Before finish is applied, you can wet and let dry then, sand, several times. This causes the loose grain to fur up. With 220 to 300 grit paper, knock the fuzzy grain down and re-wet to do it again. Don't sand when wet. The end result is a very smooth surface that won't fur when that first coat of finish is applied. I like the thinning of the finish for the first coat idea. Then sand to nearly bare grain again. This gives you tight filed pores upon which to build your coats. I also don't sand any finer than 300 grit until the second to last coat, that coat is 400 and up. The final coat doesn't get sanded unless the type of finish calls for it. Usually, there's no buffing as smooth as that last coat. A quality brush is absolutely necessary or the streaking may nor settle out. Oil finishes are best finished with a cloth. Seal the grain and sand between coats of oil.
I've been a cabinet maker most of my life and recently started making art enhanced wooden parts like doors and hatches. Check out my new wood burned hatch boards I made for my boat Dragonfly. It's my profile icon. My new art.
I don't know anything about Cetol but the water-based spar varnish I used is fantastic. It is called UltraGold. Been on my kitchen counter for about 10 years, nothing gets through it. Never added more coats, 5 on the countertop, 8 on my hatches. The makers claim it out performs oil-based vanished for UV protection. It sure is easy to clean up and doesn't smell.
I like the cheap brushes from Lowes because I just throw them away instead of cleaning them but, even if they don't leave bristles in my work, they don't lady down the finish as smoothly. Its a very noticeable difference.
- Will (Dragonfly)
I've been a cabinet maker most of my life and recently started making art enhanced wooden parts like doors and hatches. Check out my new wood burned hatch boards I made for my boat Dragonfly. It's my profile icon. My new art.
I don't know anything about Cetol but the water-based spar varnish I used is fantastic. It is called UltraGold. Been on my kitchen counter for about 10 years, nothing gets through it. Never added more coats, 5 on the countertop, 8 on my hatches. The makers claim it out performs oil-based vanished for UV protection. It sure is easy to clean up and doesn't smell.
I like the cheap brushes from Lowes because I just throw them away instead of cleaning them but, even if they don't leave bristles in my work, they don't lady down the finish as smoothly. Its a very noticeable difference.
- Will (Dragonfly)
Attachments
Very nice Art Work, and a load of valuable wood finishing information. Thanks Will.
Thanks for the compliment. I wrote up and posted the hatch board project on the mariner association web site. Didn't know how to get the pictures to post inline with the text so it turned into 9 pages of separate posts, just to keep the images associated with the right paragraphs. If I figure out how to do that here, maybe I'll repost it on SBO.
I think sailboat owners like projects more than other groups of people. More independent minded.
- Will (Dragonfly)
I think sailboat owners like projects more than other groups of people. More independent minded.
- Will (Dragonfly)
I always liked varnished tillers myself, but Cetol is easy to use. You can gloss it up with their gloss, but that is applied over their other Cetol products of your choice. Like varnish, the more gloss, the nicer it looks. I brush it on and then because I don't like the blotchyness (is that a word?) of Cetol that is just sitting there and not saturating into the wood grain, I then take a cloth and wipe it down some, which keeps the painted on look away. To each their own.