Ok woodworkers - what the heck is on this teak?

[Chris & Lenore]

The pic shows where the finish stops. I want the bare teak to look like the finished teak. I have tried about a dozen products on a piece of scrap teak and nothing darkened it down to the reddish tone of the finished wood.
The previous owner "thinks" it was varnish with a top coat of rubbed on clear urethane. I have not found a varnish that gives the darker reddish look.

Any suggestions?

Chris

 

[Dennis Kitchen]

I have noticed that as varnish ages in the can it begins to impart a darker hue. Even newer varnish seems to darken on the wood after it is cured for several months.
You could try a stain and then varnish over the top. If you like high gloss then be sure to use "gloss" varnish. After you have enough coats to level the surface with light sanding between coats with 220 to 320, begin buffing between coats with 0000 steel wool to enhance gloss. You'll need 24 hours between coats if you're going to sand or buff. I have only used Helmsman Spar Varnish or tongue oil.
Be sure to sand all the previous finish off first.
EDIT: In my photos the trim is teak and the ply panel is Ribbon Sapele.

 

[rbringle]

There are different stains that can go on the wood prior to varnishing. Teak varies in its natural color. Try to find a scrap of teak that is close in color to what is on your boat, then experiment with stains on the scraps (maybe one or two swipes of stain), then the coating, which you think is varnish.

 

[woodster]

try mission oak stain it may do what you want ...just google it ...i used a lot in my cabinet work and got very good results ...you may have to use a little orange or red alcohol dye on the wood first to get what you want ...just mist the dye on with a sprayer ...or you can sponge it on .....then coat that with the stain .....you always have to experiment with these things ....

 

[Ukeluthier]

The wood in the third picture isn't teak. Looks like sapele veneer to me, which would have a redder tone than teak.

The unfinished wood in the first pic isn't teak either. It appears to just be unfinished marine plywood... okuome maybe?

 

[centerline]

the varathane brand of polyurathane finishes come in different "tones", so you can shade the color of the wood your working with to suit your taste better... it is probably something very similar....

 

[Charlie Jones s/v Tehani]

Chris- the plywood in your pic looks very much like Okume. Lord knows I've cut a bunch of that

You're gonna have to stain it as has been suggested earlier

Congrats on the relaunch by the way

 

[Chris & Lenore]

That's what I figured. When I took a closer look it transistions to teak under the trim (in the pic). Makes sense that it wouldn't be teak behind the setee cushions.
I'll be happy to get the top couple inches even close to the teak colour - that's all you see when the cushions are in place.
At least I can try various stains where nobody will see.

Thanks CJ - wish the relaunch was closer to your neck of the woods. Still too cold here.

 

[centerline]

Makes sense that it wouldn't be teak behind the setee cushions.
I'll be happy to get the top couple inches even close to the teak colour - that's all you see when the cushions are in place.
At least I can try various stains where nobody will see.

Chris, its highly probable that the upper wood as shown in your photo is not teak either... it looks very much like mahogany, which is used more commonly on boat interiors than teak because its usually a more beautiful wood and holds a finish better.... finished mahogany has a rich reddish color like shown in your photo, where as teak is a brown wood, and unless a stain has been applied to make it look like mahogany, it will come out a darker brown when a finish has been applied.
not that it matters so much, but one way to tell is to find an obscure spot out of eyesight or behind a piece of trim and try hard to poke a sharp scratch awl into it an eighth or three sixteenths of an inch.... if you can its mahogany, if you cant its teak.... true teak is about as hard as red oak, but due to its oils is far easier and more fun to work than the dry splintery wood of oak.... you cant drive a screw into teak without drilling a pilot hole, but you can with mahogany.