Of course not. Such nonsense is only uttered by someone who doesn't know the ancient varnish system of brightwork care.
Some boats, like Irian, have a lot of varnish to take care of. Built in 1959, she's about to turn 60. I notice in her history, the first buyer owned her for one season(not unusual for new boats) - the second for two seasons - the third for 10 or so...
The present owners have owned her since 1980(I think they still do). That's not unusual either; the older boats get - if they are good old boats - they are often kept long term. They become family members that outlive the owners.
With the present 38 year owners, the boat gets a lot of use. Irian is always one of the first boats launched, and the last hauled. In between, she is sailed a lot along the Maine coast and the Canadian Maritimes. She never misses a minute of sailing due to varnishing.
Irian looked stunning in the afternoon sun yesterday. I could tell she had been 'wooded' and new varnish coats built up. These owners know varnish and pay the pro's to care for it. Irian gets a maintenance coat each off season.
I don't know how long she was last wooded, I would guess 15 years ago. I'm used to the boat being more blonde, as in this photo a few years ago.
In this photo (above), you can see a varnish failure repair at the stem(dark area). You can defer brightwork with repairs like this - only for so long. Then it has to come off and the system started all over again.
'It's not a piano', is another phrase I hear uttered. There's wisdom in this one: Properly applied - to last, varnish looks like a finish that belongs on a piano, not a boat that could (might) sail to Newfoundland.
But in fact, after 15 or so years on this bright boat, it's a time tested and proven wood preservation system, that hasn't been improved on.
This finish is one part spar varnish, rolled on and tipped with a brush.
Addendum: This is the oldest photo I could find of IRIAN. Taken in 2008 in Rockport. Her brightwork hull is not too faded. I would guess by the half blonde look and a repair or two, it had been at least 5 years since the hull was 'wooded'.
Some boats, like Irian, have a lot of varnish to take care of. Built in 1959, she's about to turn 60. I notice in her history, the first buyer owned her for one season(not unusual for new boats) - the second for two seasons - the third for 10 or so...
The present owners have owned her since 1980(I think they still do). That's not unusual either; the older boats get - if they are good old boats - they are often kept long term. They become family members that outlive the owners.
With the present 38 year owners, the boat gets a lot of use. Irian is always one of the first boats launched, and the last hauled. In between, she is sailed a lot along the Maine coast and the Canadian Maritimes. She never misses a minute of sailing due to varnishing.
Irian looked stunning in the afternoon sun yesterday. I could tell she had been 'wooded' and new varnish coats built up. These owners know varnish and pay the pro's to care for it. Irian gets a maintenance coat each off season.
I don't know how long she was last wooded, I would guess 15 years ago. I'm used to the boat being more blonde, as in this photo a few years ago.
In this photo (above), you can see a varnish failure repair at the stem(dark area). You can defer brightwork with repairs like this - only for so long. Then it has to come off and the system started all over again.
'It's not a piano', is another phrase I hear uttered. There's wisdom in this one: Properly applied - to last, varnish looks like a finish that belongs on a piano, not a boat that could (might) sail to Newfoundland.
But in fact, after 15 or so years on this bright boat, it's a time tested and proven wood preservation system, that hasn't been improved on.
This finish is one part spar varnish, rolled on and tipped with a brush.
Addendum: This is the oldest photo I could find of IRIAN. Taken in 2008 in Rockport. Her brightwork hull is not too faded. I would guess by the half blonde look and a repair or two, it had been at least 5 years since the hull was 'wooded'.
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