For those of you owing an older Catalina, this post is for you. Having purchased an older Catalina 27 of 72 vintage, I have been sanding and teaking like crazy. I don't know about your boats but I have found the finish on the early Cats to be almost too dark. I have also discovered that the finish they applied was often done poorly, with no sanding in some cases. For example, my companionway ladder was looking dark, dirty and an eye sore. After I sanded it and teaked it with four coats of Daly's, the wood is great and the sanding makes the grain patterns stand out. The wood used on the old boat is great wood hidden by a finish that is too dark; the grain shows up poorly. I have been sanding and teaking my old drawers - I apply the teak everywhere including the plywood insides - and have found the outside visible drawer panel to have a very poor finish, like no one at Catalina wanted to sand anything before applying their finish. By the way, what is the finish they used - mahogany? So if you have an older boat, are willing to spend lots of time sanding and teaking, the good news is there is some beautiful wood being covered over by the dreary dark interior finish Catalina used in those early years and it really responds to being sanded. You will also discover the wood is "thirsty" and really slurp up the teak at first. Cheers, Rick Nicholson