F!TI[[JG I)";'! BY ANDREW BURTON A Spring Primer on Paintsand Varnish With so many brightwork. Here's a head start on the sorts of finishes that products on the are available, a few tips that shelf, do a little will make your project less painful, and some resources to homework and explore to learn more about products and techniques. find just the right one for your next Wood Treatments Different wood-fin- boatyard projects ishing products are more or less difficult to use and yield re- sults that tend to be IT'S SPRINGTIME, AND CHANCES proportional to the are that if your sailboat was effort exerted in hauled last fall, you're facing preparing the surface. at least one painting or var- Teak and mahogany nishing project before it goes are the most common back in the water. There are woods used externally basically four kinds of paint- on boats, with oak ing jobs: antifouling, topsides being evident every and decks, interiors, and now and again. Ma- 88 CRUISING WORLD APRIL 2007 HANDS-ON SAILOR hogany and oak must be have to do as much of it as sealed, or they'll blacken and you would were you to sand eventually rot; varnish is the off all the oxidation. best finish for these woods, al- When it's sanded and fin- though some may choose ished, teak takes on a gor- paint instead. geous luster that's a pleasure Teak is more flexible. Be- to behold. There are, in gener- cause of its natural oils, it can al, three finishes that can be be left unfinished, and it will applied to teak: natural oil, take on a silver color that synthetic sealers, and varnish. some cruisers prefer because Oils penetrate into the it requires no more attention wood and give it a rich glow than an occasional scrub when they're applied, but with soap and water. If you they're thin, so if you're not plan to put a finish on your very careful, they can end up teak, you have to get it look- making a mess of the sur- ing good first. If it's bare and rounding area. Most oils go has oxidized, you'll probably on clear, so any spills won't want to use one of the many show up until they've dried, teak cleaners before you and then they're hard to re- sand. Beware, though: All of move. Because most have few, these will damage the teak to if any, ultraviolet absorbers, some extent. Use them spar- the sun causes oil to deterio- ingly, and bear in mind that rate quickly,so the wood must you'll still have to sand the be recoated several times a wood after using a cleaner; season to keep it looking good. ---- you just won't Most natural oils Buy the Right Masking Tape en painting and several weeks, then use a less varnishing, you expensive tape and remove it Wcan achieve daily. Don't use the typical straight lines and eliminate light-tan stuff outside. The runs and drips if you take the sun's rays will make it adhere time to properly mask off the to the surface you've taped off, area on which you're working. and chances are that you'll If you plan to do the whole have a very hard time remov- z o.... job in one go, use a long-last- 0: ing it. It also has strong glue, :> CD ing masking tape. If you're so it'll often pull up the finish W;;: 0: going to spread the job over to which it adheres. o z « 90 CRUISING WORLO ArRll 2007 Some sealers must be recoated more often than varnish but don't require sanding between coats; others, such as Cetol, need to be roughed up and recoated seasonally stay sticky for some days after be roughed up with a scratch application-the more coats pad and recoated seasonally that are applied, the longer once base coats have been ap- they stay sticky-so they can plied. After several coats have attract dirt. been applied, the pigments Oils such as Deks Olje are incorporated in some of these thicker and, like varnish, have finishes will cause them to ap- driers in them. They don't re- pear muddy, and you'll have quire sanding between coats to remove them and start over and can be built up to an al- again. In the past year, Cetol most varnishlike finish. has come out with a new color Sealers-including Inter- that more closely mimics the lux's Sikkens Cetol, Teak look of natural teak. Semco, Wonder, and Semco Teak meanwhile, comes in five Sealer-are thin, solvent- tints, plus a clear. Many cruis- based finishes containing pig- ers swear by these products ments that actually color the because of the low mainte- wood to which they're ap- nance they require. (See "Our plied. They contain UV in- Favorite Upgrades:' page 82.) hibitors to block the sun's Many sailors consider var- Heed the Call. rays, so they last longer than nishes to be the prettiest fin- oils. Some of them must be ishes because of their clear Buy a brand new yacht in the SailTime fleet recoated more often than var- amber glow, which shows off nish, but they don't require the wood in all its grainy and SailTime will make your monthly payments sanding between coats. Some glory. Using a pretty basic for you. And we'll pay your marina fees. And sealers, such as Cetol, need to formula, which includes tur- all maintenance and repairs. And your insurance. The largest manufacturer of topsides and bottom paint, for And.. Sound too good to be true? It is good. masking tape in the United instance-but the tape can And it is true. As the world's leading fractional States is 3M. The tapes come only be left on for a maximum sailing program SailTimehas made the dream of in different grades, with the of five days. owning a yacht practical and affordable. You enjoy stuff that you can leave on the If you want a really crisp, longest being the most expen- clean paint line, then the best vitually unlimited access to your boat and SailTime sive. Trust me: It's worth tape is 3M's light-green num- manages, maintains, and pays for everything - even spending the money to avoid ber 218 Fine Line masking the fuel. It's simple - you do the sailing, we do the the torture of trying to re- tape; the downside with this move baked-on tape. The product is that if used outside, rest. Sailing couldn't be easier! company says its number 2090 it can only be left on for one blue tape can be left on for up day. With all tapes, make sure 1.1/1/11. ~~ to 14 days and still be re- you press the edge down thor- moved cleanly. This tape is oughly to prevent bleeding. probably the best for varnish Oh, and about that brown SAIL-TIME jobs, where a perfectly clean tape: If you went ahead and ~) tape line isn't necessary. The used it, 3M Adhesive Remover THEALTERNATIVETOTRADITIONALOWNERSHIP company's bright-green num- is a good solvent for removing ber 256 will be good if you the residue. need a clean line-between A.B. 877-SAILTIME WWW.SAILTIME.COM MORETHAN40LOCATIONSWORLDWIDE CRUISING WORLD APRIL 2007 IN ASSOCIATIONWITH 0 !:!...\I,,,.Il.:..ER' HANDS-ON SAILOR pentine, boiled linseed or tung oil, pine Captain's and Awlgrip's AwlSpar varnish or surfaces, toning down the brilliant tar, and a drier, varnishes have been used are popular as well. Well outside of the shineyou getfrom glossvarnish.They're to protect boats for centuries. All mod- tropics, in the middle and high latitudes, bestappliedoverseveralcoatsof glossbe- ern gloss varnishes contain UV in- you can expect varnish to last the whole causethey aren't asdurable asthe gloss; hibitors to help preserve the finish. The season-and longer, if you can keep it for this reason,theyaren'tsuitablefor ex- most popular varnishes are the easiest to out of the sun and if you don't let it sit terior use.Oils willlast better on interi- work, and with a few coats, they provide covered with salt. In warmer climes, you ors, too, as they won't break down as a deep, brilliant shine. Varnish experts in may find yourself sanding or touching quickly from the sun. the Caribbean, where the sun is especial- up the varnish several times a year. Linear polyurethanes, such as Interlux ly brutal, prefer Interlux Schooner and Most manufacturers make a matte var- Perfection or clear Awlgrip, are hard, Epifanes Gloss Varnish, though Z Spar nish that givesa rich satin luster to interi- clear, long-lasting finishes that are more difficult to work with than traditional varnishes, but the trade-off is that they don't have to be recoated as often. When varnishing from bare wood, I al- ways start with a varnish-based sealer, such as Interlux Interprime Wood Sealer or Pettit Clear Sealer, for the first few coats to fill in the grain. On mahogany, you can fill the grain with a paste stain, such as Z-Spar Wood Filler Stain or Inter- lux Interstain, before the first coat of seal- er goes on. Though foam brushes have a tendency How-fo to drip, if you're careful with one, you can DVD '-.-.....- achieve almost as good a finish as with an .0 expensive badger-hair varnish brush.