Teak oil - what a difference!

[tegwilym]

As I wait for good sailing weather here in Seattle, I continue to work on my "new" boat. My wood trim and door were completely gray and looked like a chunk of driftwood. I sanded them down and removed the remaining flakes of varnish and then put a couple layers of teak oil on the wood parts. Wow! That's a huge improvement. I figure that maybe I won't bother with varnish, and just oil it now end then when things start to fade. The boat will be stored in my backyard, so it's easy to keep an eye on things. I also smeared some rubbery goo around the power connector plug on the roof near the mast step. I was getting leaks on the seat in the cabin. I have a few other pesky leaks to track down, but overall the old boat seems fairly tight.Tom Catalina 22 - #880

 

[John24107]

re-bed

Some might say the weathered gray look is how teak is supposed to look. I'm not one of them however.As to the leaks, you might re-think your "rubbery goo". You should really re-bed your through-deck fittings. Water is your boats worst enemy (man, that sounds wierd) But, you don't want to get water into the wooden core of your deck. Unless you used a marine sealant, the "goo" is likely not to last. A trick to help you locate the source of leaks is to draw lines with chalk under the suspected areas. If they leak, the chalk will wash away as the water heads for the bilge.

 

[tegwilym]

Chalk

Hey, now that's a good idea I didn't think of. Thanks for that tip!Actually, I did seal that part with some marine sealant/goo. It was from a tube and was that white looking stuff. I think I only have 2 other leaks in the boat that are making puddles that I need to track down. I'm pretty sure they are coming from some of the deck fittings, one of them is probably the stanchion - it does have some old looking goo around it that should probably be re-done. For a 1971 boat, I think it's doing pretty well leak-wise. When I was looking to buy a boat I looked at a 1975-ish Macgregor that probably had 40+ gallons of water in the bilge. Tom

 

[Big Windy]

Cetol

If you get tired of using teak oil, try Cetol...it will last years.

 

[tamallan]

thanks for asking the questions!

Tegwilym,This isn't directly related to the post, but thanks for asking a lot of questions. We just bought our 'new' C22 #6716 and are just starting on the learning curve. I've learned a great deal from your questions and the responses to them.Thanks to anyone who has responded as well. We've just managed to get the boat home and get the mast up - single handed using some neat props described in Sail. Once we get to really working on the boat, we'll stop lurking here and start asking questions as well. This seems like a great forum. Keep up the good work and here's wishing you smooth sailing!

 

[tegwilym]

Helpful

Glad to hear that my embarrassingly stupid questions help others too. I'm just not too afraid to ask a lot I guess. The internet forum makes me feel fairly safe and isolated from the pointing and laughing. One hint for you on the mast raising. Build an a-frame type of gin-pole. I tried a single pole on the mast and it did work, but it frightened me badly when the thing flipped to one side with the mast following it off to the side also. The a-frame is stress-free and easy to use single handed. Tom

 

[tamallan]

A frame gin pole - more info

Where can I get a picture or description of the a frame gin pole? We've got one support attached to the transom to rest the head of the mast, then one pole attached to the trailer at the fore to use the winch strap to pull the mast up. It works pretty well, but like you said, there is a tricky moment when the mast sways.Thanks for the info.Tamara

 

[Bilbo]

Gin pole

Here's one method:https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/rwahlfel/www/BobConway01.htmOne point about raising the mast is to watch out for the main stays and lower back stays that you don't bend the t-bolts just before it's all the way in the up position. You can position them with some Duct tape before raising. Here's another with a gin pole and includes a short video in the description:http://catalina22fleet20.home.comcast.net/news/rpts/200603/200603.htmAS a matter of fact, lots of good stuff here:http://catalina22fleet20.home.comcast.net/techtips/index.htmThanks to Fleet 20 and Dale Mack

 

[Ken]

A Frame /Gin pole

Not to confuse you, but there is a A Frame and a Gin pole they are two different things. The "A Frame uses two poles while the "Gin Pole" uses only one.  I use a gin pole and hold the mast as I raise and lower the mast.(my gin pole is a 6' piece of aluminum tubing) Using the A frame keeps the mast centered by the A Frame. The cheapest "A Frame can be made using 1 1/4" top rail of a chain link fence. Cut to length a bolt on one end and two shackles at the other. The swivel shackle would be idea, attach it to the forward chain plate eyes. Main sheet (if four to one) or Vang could be used to raise the stick!

 

[tegwilym]

a-frame

yep. This one was pretty much the type that I copied when I made mine https://netfiles.uiuc.edu/rwahlfel/www/BobConway01.htmI used a couple of 10 foot electrical conduit pieces cut to about 6 feet. I cut my wood blocks to fit on the stanchions rather than the halyard like in this photo. I can put the mast up and down alone with no sweat now!

 

[Windwalker]

Teak Oil in Seattle

A few years ago I did the same brightwork with my "new" boat & spent the year wiping the exterior with teak oil instead of varnish (or cetol). I did it about every other month or more, in the nicer months where I was actually on the boat. I admit, it looked great the first few months! BUT...I noticed it began to lack the initial luster, & became a bit darker over the summer. One day I gave it a good scrub down & found out why it was that way. Loads of dirt! All that great looking oil attracted the particles in the air & I ended up with a dirty mess... My lesson: no easy way to protect your teak, even with oil. Maybe alternating soapy scrubbing & oiling would have worked. Good luck!