Lesson learnt - Teak and wood putty

[rsn48]

I purchased a 71 Catalina 27 footer and it needs lots of TLC. I have been sanding and sanding..... etc, and now have started some Teak finishing. I have just learnt the hard way not to use the usual wood putties - even if they say they take a stain - as they won't. Fortunately for me, the areas where I used the wood putty isn't easily seen, so no hissy fit on my part.What do people use to fill holes (like from screw holes that are no longer used) when refinishing interior teak and other woods?

 

[Rich]

match the putty color, use dye markers

RSN, you will get good results using putty fillers but you have to anticipate the darkening of the wood after oiling/staining by choosing a putty that dries to the darker color before you use the finish. First, avoid the trap of buying the putties that never harden--why they sell these I don't know, but it usually says so in tiny letters on the label. Second, forget about the putties that call themselves "teak"--these are usually a light color that imitates the tone of unfinished teak, not what you're looking for. I've gotten the closest using something like Minwax Mahogany, which dries dark brown, then using the Old English furniture scratch markers to layer on a little more color for the closest possible blend.For a large area if you have any scrap pieces of teak veneer plywood, try cutting and peeling off a piece of the veneer side and glue it in place as a patch.

 

[rsn48]

Boat store no help

Thanks for the tip. I was at a boat store today and asked the question, figuring thousands before me had asked the same thing, only to discover they didn't know the answer to it.

 

[Bob]

teak dus/ filler

Save all the teak dust from the sander, make a paste using the dust from your sander and gorilla glue. Pack it into the voids, and let it dry 24 hours, its hard sanding off, but its a real close match and indestruceble

 

[higgs]

Variation

Bob's method can also be used with epoxy.