teak

[trainmanjess]

hello all

I got my new to me Kittiwake sailboat home yesterday... I parked it at the marina... soon I will be bringing it home to start my winter project of restoring it... the teak on the boat shows weathering... I am wanting to recondition it, and make it look good again... the teak tiller has deteriorated, so I will need to replace it...

in the spring, I will repaint the boat waterline and below in black, the top deck white, and the inside of the cabin white...

I have some work inside the cabin... water got above the bilge and weakened the board under the fiberglass in the floor... all other fiberglass is strong and solid... I will cut out the old floor and glass in a new one in the spring... and I will put in an automatic bilge pump to keep it dry inside... the cockpit has it's own drains (2)... the outboard motor mounts inside the boat, so I will set it up with electric start and cockpit controls for speed and directions(f-r)... it will not turn, I will use the tiller and rudder to steer with... the bunk boards need to be replaced on the trailer, and so does the board under the keel...

I will also have to rewire the boat and install navigation lights... this sailboat has been sitting for almost 10 years with nothing done to it... it looks great for sitting that long... no real major problems with it

I need to find new sails for it... I need to check out the standing rigging, and evaluate it... the running rigging is almost non existant... needs all new ropes...

but I will have fun restoring it, sailing it, and staying on it with my wife...

sincerely
Jess

 

[shemandr]

Pictures Please! Congrads. Keep us updated on your progress.

 

[31seahorse]

Hello Jess,

Congratulations on your choice and best wishes on the project. From the length of your "to do" list it sounds as though you have done this type of restoration before and know what is involved. Best wishes for success. Pictures: Before, During, and After would help us pass the winter!

Phil

 

[Dave Groshong]

We have great prices and fast service for running rigging replacement:

http://shop.sailboatowners.com/detail-rigging.htm

Let me know if you need any help at all.

 

[trainmanjess]

hello all

I have all the running rigging I need.... what I need most is advice of how to deal with teak wood

here are picture of the boat when we picked it up...

sincerely
Jess

 

[Merlin Clark]

For me it just doesn't get much nicer than varnished teak.
That said, the last pieces of teak on my boat are the crib boards and the tiller. Couldn't justify over $800 for rough teak to replace everything so went with PVC lumber.
I scraped and sanded all (crib boards and tiller) about the same time but put a couple coats of epoxy on the tiller before the varnish and bought a cover for it from Lee Sail Covers.
The tiller still looks great and the crib boards look like cra.......
It's probably the cover more than the epoxy so if you're handy with a sewing machine....

 

[trainmanjess]

hello

I have a tiller... it is off an old Mac25 I am scrapping... I will alter it a little at the end to fit the brass attachment to the rudder...

I did some work on the sailboat today.... got new soft rubber hoses to attach to the cockpit drains, so they will drain properly... the old one had hardened up over time, and kinked to stop draining... this helped to drain the cockpit much better....

if I am still home tomorrow, I will go work on it some more... and I might go sailing on my buddies boat too, if it is warm enough... I might try and drop the boat in the water while I work on the trailer... I need to put on new bunk boards, new bow winch, new board for the keel to sit on, then wrap everything in outdoor carpeting... also I need to design and build an extension for the tongue to put the trailer further down in the water to release the boat in the water...

sincerely
Jess

 

[Freedom77]

Hi Trainmanjess, Beautiful, classic boat. Do you know what year she is? You say you're scrapping a Mac-25. There are a lot of us Venture/Mac owners who are always looking for parts. If you need to get rid of anything useful please go to the MacGregor forum and let us know what ya got. All boats run on used parts.

 

[CalebD]

Love the lines of the Kittewake!
Reminds me a bit of my Tartan 27'.

After 10 years of owning a boat with exterior teak I can tell you what I think I know.
You can really go to town with your teak or do nothing about it.
I happen to like the finished look.
Varnish did not last long enough for me to justify continuing to use it.
I now coat with Cetol Natural Teak & it looks good.

Basic prep for me is:
- light sanding (#220 or so)
- teak oil
- let sit a few days
- wipe oiled surface with Acetone
- apply finish of your choice with as many coats as recommended on the can (3-5 with Cetol, 6 - 12 with varnish)

Finished teak can look really gorgeous, IMHO.

 

[hewebb]

When I bought our boat the outside teak was all weathered and a couple were cracked/broken. I removed all the outside teak. The good pieces I sanded to natural wood and used teak oil to finish. I replaced the damaged pieces. Once a year I use a cloth and rub on some teak oil. This works for me. Recently I had a boat cover made that covers all the wood when not sailing. I may not have to add a coat of teak oil next year.

 

[Indysailor]

I refinished some of the teak on my boat a couple years ago. It was very weathered, but I found that 100 grit sandpaper worked well enough to bring it back to a nice and smooth golden color. It's amazing to me how resilient teak is, which may have something to do with its tendency to shed any finish applied to it. Mine is over thirty years old and when it was sanded, the oils in the wood could still be felt in the dust.

Since then I've let mine go back to gray, satisfied that the wood is fine enough without me intervening. More time sailing or drinking beer in the cockpit, less time refinishing the bright work.

 

[Joe2954]

I used bristol finish on previous boat - about 6 coats on stripped and sanded teak then light sanding and two coats every other year. However BF changed formulation about 8 years ago and was not as good.
Now on the companionway doors i just use spar varnish after a light sanding each year. If the varnish has cracked I strip and sand to bare wood.
For the cockpit seats and grab rails I used to just clean each year but they started getting checked so have used Semco for the last three with good luck.
The step pad on the stern gets kind of beat up from foot traffic so clean and brighten each year before a couple coats of Semco.