Teak Trim

Ralph Johnstone · May 17, 2015

Absolutely, Positively .............................

Alan said:
Instead of installing the resealed teak I bought recycled plastic 'teak' look alike lumber and made replacement teak.

........................... a fantastic, 100% permanent (for all time), replacement for the teak strips on the transom seats.

Kills me to say so, but this may even beat out my epoxy treatment of the real teak strips on mine. The one problem with the epoxy finish is that you're always on the lookout for small dings as once water gets under the epoxy, things get nasty if they're not quickly sealed.

kloudie1 · May 17, 2015

Very nice looking.
Where did you buy the stuff, Alan?

LittleCreek · May 17, 2015

I am doing the Teak on mine right now. I think I see synthetic in my future.

DannyS · May 17, 2015

I did the same thing 5 or 6 years ago. Our boat has teak strips on the toerails and I replaced them with synthetic. After that much time, they still look new. Great upgrade! I used a product called Timbertech. The sides of the material are not the same color as the top surface after machining them to proper size so I experimented and wiped a little teak oil on them to unify the color. I haven't had to touch them since.

ALNims · May 18, 2015

Re: Absolutely, Positively .............................

Your seats look great. It is hard to beat the look of real wood!

Anonymous 121765 · May 18, 2015

Alan,

I always tell folks that, " Life is too short for having to re-do your own teak".

I went with synthetic teak a few years back, then it was called Sensibuilt. I was able to order 1x5 1/2 x 12' long strips & fascia board 12" w x 5/8" thk. x 12' lg. I was painting my deck & removed all my teak.

I matched-cut all the wood & the look was close to teak. Here is what mine looked like pal.........Luckily, Catalina's don't have alot of deck teak.

CR

thomas.dargan · May 18, 2015

Nope

The beauty of a thiing is a reflection of the care and love and labor you put into it. That's why they call the stuff Epifanes.

Anonymous 121765 · May 18, 2015

Thomas,

I never posted about Epithanes varnish or other brands. However, I do use this varnish below & love the stuff.

I spoke of an alternative for topside wood which was what this thread was about. If you like varnishing, that's fine but, I thought this thread was about using alternatives.

If you would rather spend your dockside hours RE-varnishing, so be it. I on the other hand, would rather be out there sailing. To each his own I guess pal...........

Again, I would rather go sailing, varnished or weathered wood will not slow your boat.

CR

CloudDiver · May 18, 2015

I gotta think about this and maybe shop some material... all the teak is off my boat right now too. Considering the price of epoxy & Epifanes plus the sweat equity involved I might be saving myself some money by doing this and then selling my original teak crib boards, rails, and trim on eBay or whatever. Hmmmm....

captnron said:
Alan,

I always tell folks that, " Life is too short for having to re-do your own teak".

I went with synthetic teak a few years back, then it was called Sensibuilt. I was able to order 1x5 1/2 x 12' long strips & fascia board 12" w x 5/8" thk. x 12' lg. I was painting my deck & removed all my teak.

I matched-cut all the wood & the look was close to teak. Here is what mine looked like pal.........Luckily, Catalina's don't have alot of deck teak.

CR

Anonymous 121765 · May 18, 2015

Cloud,

It's a simple choice, do you want to keep & redo or, is there a better synthetic way? Let's face it man, our boats will never show up in Home & Garden magazine so, we will never be famous.

I LOVE varnished teak but topside, you can't keep fighting mother nature or the sun's UV damage. However, if your wood is more important than sailing your boat, maybe this is your calling. Me however, I like to spend my time sailing.

So, knowing these options, Waddya want to do? Keep your teak or change it out?
Would you rather re-varnish your topside teak every six months or spend that time out on the water sailing?

It's a simple choice pal...............Maybe my option does not fit well with you & then again, maybe it does. Yea, it's not as illustrious but, it lasts.

I don't know about you but I, would rather spend my time flying sideways rather than re-doing my topside teak at the dock.

CR

CloudDiver · May 18, 2015

I'm giving it some serious thought... depends on on the material cost and my ability to cut/shape it. I have a good table saw but the fence isn't the best. I have a band saw that does not have a good fence yet, and don't have a router/table... need to consider my equipment and my ability to make the parts properly.

captnron said:
Cloud,

It's a simple choice, do you want to keep & redo or, is there a better synthetic way? Let's face it man, our boats will never show up in Home & Garden magazine so, we will never be famous.

I LOVE varnished teak but topside, you can't keep fighting mother nature or the sun's UV damage. However, if your wood is more important than sailing your boat, maybe this is your calling. Me however, I like to spend my time sailing.

So, knowing these options, Waddya want to do? Keep your teak or change it out?
Would you rather re-varnish your topside teak every six months or spend that time out on the water sailing?

It's a simple choice pal...............Maybe my option does not fit well with you & then again, maybe it does. Yea, it's not as illustrious but, it lasts.

I don't know about you but I, would rather spend my time flying sideways rather than re-doing my topside teak at the dock.

CR

Ken Cross · May 19, 2015

Where do you find this stuff. I'd like to look at some locally. I just haven't seen any that resembles teak around here.

Ken

Anonymous 121765 · May 20, 2015

Ken,

That's why we have the internet pal. Start out searching for decorative faux wood products. add in "teak look" to some searches, you will surprised by what you find.

Remember, knowledge is power, use it.

CR

Capt jgw · May 20, 2015

I just replaced some of my old teak with Plasteak (plasteak.com). It's recycled milk jugs tinted to look like freshly cut teak. Up close out doesn't look muck like wood but from 20 feet it looks real nice.
Cuts and machines easily with regular woodworking tools, but cannot be glued or painted. Nothing will stick to it.
It is quite flexible so it can be bent quite a bit without heat. The eyebrows on my Columbia 36 have an S bend in them, I was able to form this easily.
Don't know how well it holds up yet, we'll have to see about that.

ggrizzard · May 20, 2015

I used a 55 inch run of plasteak for the base of my traveler. It has held up well for 13 years in color, but it cracked all the way through the 1 1/4 inch thick piece near the middle. Since it's bolted through every 8 inches, it's just a cosmetic problem.

Capt jgw · May 20, 2015

I'll have to watch out for that. Don't think I'll own this one another 13 years though.

Anonymous 121765 · May 20, 2015

I remember some years ago when talking to Plasteak, they sent me a sample piece & I didn't like the look of it.

I found Sensibuilt (now under a new name & ownership) that had decorative decking boards & fascia.

It was a close color match to teak but some years later, I'm sure there are more teak-like looking products out there. You just have to hunt them down.

CR

Dan_Y · May 20, 2015

I thought the same of plasteak, although their decking look good. I'm hoping Alan comes back to this thread and lets us know what he used. The sensibuilt and timbertech look good too. The bigbox stores have nice looking snap together faux teak decking squares that might work for small trim.

njlarry · May 20, 2015

DannyS said:
I did the same thing 5 or 6 years ago. Our boat has teak strips on the toerails and I replaced them with synthetic. After that much time, they still look new. Great upgrade! I used a product called Timbertech. The sides of the material are not the same color as the top surface after machining them to proper size so I experimented and wiped a little teak oil on them to unify the color. I haven't had to touch them since.

I like the idea of wiping with teak oil. The piece in the upper part of your picture looks great. How well does the material accept the oil and how frequently do you redo it?
Great work.

Teak Trim

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