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| This is what the cockpit teak looked like before we prepped and Cetoled. |
“Nice overcast morning; perfect for varnishing [Cetol]” Wayne said. “Looking all around… no rain. I’ll go for it!”
And so he did. It took only an hour for him to lay down the 2nd the 3 prescribed coats on the teak in our cockpit. We’d already removed the blistering varnish with a heat gun and sanding, attempted to even out the wood tone inconsistencies with teak brightener, sanded again, taped and laid the first coat the day before. Just as the last strokes were laid, the rain began.
Arg!
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| Uh oh! Here comes the rain! |
Now there are plenty of purists out there who point out Cetol is not varnish. It has an ornany-finish, one that compared to varnish even I find a bit muddy.
But… the slight mottling left by the rain on just applied Cetol disappeared with the 3rd coat, applied the next day. It may not be as beautiful as varnish, but it sure is forgiving.
If we’re lucky and good on maintenance, even with the harsh Caribbean sun, we should be able to just do small spot and one annual all-over touch-up coat, and that’s it! No sanding down to bare wood. No teak brighters. Just a little dab will do it.
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| See the water just beading up? The just brushed on Cetol still shone. |
With all the other boat projects that crop up, we’re thrilled our brightwork is one annual chore that’s going to get easier.
Murphy's Law!!
The rain, it’s plain, falls mainly on Wayne… when he’s varnishing (or Cetoling as the case may be).
Clear blue sky this morning, until Wayne laid down the Cetol on the combing, instrument panel and companionway exterior frames. Then it poured. Most we've seen for months. Enough that adding weatherstripping on our main hatch and galley window is now on the the list.
Posting photos soon.
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It looks great…job well done guys! Ethereal
Wayne gets 100% credit on that; maestro with a brush. Just one coat left to do on the coaming (oops! learning coaming is the correct spelling – pronounced the same as combing), instrument panel and companionway exterior frames.