Beginner here. Want to re-do all exterior woodwork on my Cat 27. Appears that it was stained and then coated with polyurethane. Was hoping to be able to remove the woodwork but it seems to have been bedded in with some sort of bedding and plutonium, apparently. Cannot move the wood without fear of breaking it. Any recommendations for a polyurethane stripper (gel?) that could be used on the in-place woodwork without there being too much concern for damage to fiberglass if some gets on it?
Polyurethan Stripper?
- Thread starter WarrenJF
- Start date
I removed some teak trim on my O’Day 322 last week. i had to remove all the bungs (little pieces of dowel) covering each screw. The remove the screws. Then gently use a few screwdrivers and pry bars and putty knives to get under the teak. Gently lifting it up, while cutting the sealant. Move down a little and do it again.
i didn’t really care if I broke mine, as I was tired of sanding and varnishing it every few years...wanted something less “high maintenance”.
One came up in one 9 foot piece. I broke the other one in 3 pieces.
good Luck,
Greg
i didn’t really care if I broke mine, as I was tired of sanding and varnishing it every few years...wanted something less “high maintenance”.
One came up in one 9 foot piece. I broke the other one in 3 pieces.
good Luck,
Greg
I've been using Minwax' Helmsman Spar Urethane (exterior polyurethane) for my external bright work the last 15 years. You can find it at Home Depot. Before I got a new canvas cover, every 5 years or so I'll sand it down to bare wood and redo. Never have used stripper, but... I don't see why just regular Jasco stripper wouldn't work. The grab rails along the cabin top are easily removed by taking out the interior screws visible in the cabin. I'll take them home where I can hang them from the patio cover and put 5 or 6 coats. I can refinish the hatchboards dockside, or in the cockpit. You might put several coats on one week, then back for a couple more the next... I don't take them home cause I don't want to leave the boat unlocked. The trim around the hatch opening, the forward fascia on the sliding cover, and the coaming box trim are impractical to remove. Sand with 120, use stripper if you must, but try just a little at first. Teak is tough to damage...
Final comment... I highly recommend investing in a canvas cover for the hatch area. For the other woodwork also, if you can.. because even with the long lasting polyurethane protection the sun will damage it. I went without one for 7 or 8 years and needed to put on a refresher coat yearly.... since I installed a new cover three years ago the hatchboards still look brand new.
Oh.... interior wood... teak oil every 6 months... it's like a 15 minute job.
Final comment... I highly recommend investing in a canvas cover for the hatch area. For the other woodwork also, if you can.. because even with the long lasting polyurethane protection the sun will damage it. I went without one for 7 or 8 years and needed to put on a refresher coat yearly.... since I installed a new cover three years ago the hatchboards still look brand new.
Oh.... interior wood... teak oil every 6 months... it's like a 15 minute job.
You have given me some confidence to try prying a bit harder on the wood but to first check if there are bung-covered screws that I had not seen. It was a bit depressing to remove all of the screws that are accessible from inside the cabin and then find that the wood piece was still holding on tightly!
That's the sealant, and all the screws are the ones in the cabin ceiling, there are no other fasteners. There is a screw for each "foot" of the rail that touches the deck. You should be able to carefully pry it off unless a previous owner was stupid enough to use 5200! If so … fagettaboutit. If your are able to coax it off, reseal with Lifecaulk or some thing similar. If you're going to do a lot of re bedding... a roll of butyl tape is a good investment... that seems to be the most popular medium with this group for bedding non permanent fixtures. Do NOT use silicon based sealants for this type of work. You will regret it, it's really hard to clean up, you can't paint over it..etc…. there's a place for it I believe with glass and rubber.. but myself and most of the others here will tell you that the butyl tape or polysulfide sealants are for most jobs. 5200 is permanent... only used for jobs you'll never want to dismantle... like deck seams or perhaps through hulls.
The grab rails should be detachable because that's the only way to remove the hatch cover.... but if all else fails, you'll just have to tape them off best you can, be creative with your sanding... a flat stick or multi tool might work... and then use a 1" brush to get in there after you push the cover all the way forward. Man, I wish you luck.... the C27 is a neat boat.. but remember it was a "production level" boat back in the day.(as opposed to "custom level") Kind like the difference between a Chevy and a Cadillac of that era, so they did take a few short cuts to keep the price down. ( A brand new one in the late 70's ran about 12-15k.) Good luck, but have fun. You can private message me it you have other questions... I've had mine for over 20 years.... but I am not a retired former dealer. (Heh, heh sorry Crazy Dave)
I have been delayed in getting down to my boat to try the great suggestions I have been given but should be there on the weekend. I will keep you posted and hopefully you can us posted on your project. I have not seen a lot of ODays in the Vancouver area but there are definitely a lot of Catalina 27s.
Tell me more about your experience using a heat gun. I was considering using mine but I worried about damaging the gelcoat and fiberglass