Bright work refinishing

Post by **Nepidae** » Mon Apr 27, 2015 11:54 am

I'm sure this has been discussed previously but searching bright work brought back about 100 million hits so I thought I'd ask again, as the hit I want is probably down 99 million.

We previously used Bristol Epoxy Finish with the promise it would go at least 2 years. It went 1 and looks like leprosy! Blotchy where the wood is coming through.

I was thinking that I'd try Cetol next on my bright work.

Any input?

I'm having a problem discerning which of the Cetol colors I would like. This will go on teak wood that has been sanded.

Can't find a color chart?

I'm looking for a color which would give me a light varnish look (amber if that isn't definitive enough!).

I'd also like some input if there might be another product that might be better.

We are refinishing the bright work on our 1986 Albin Sundeck which would include hand & toe rails, window trim, doors, etc.

I do NOT want to make this a project and want the least labor intensive product available with as minimal touch up as possible. I also want everyone to be happy, I just hope this is easier to accomplish!

One of our friends uses Cetol on his Kady and says he just hits a few spots each year.

We boat in the Chesapeake but are heading on the Loop in a year.

Thanks for any input.

Post by **jleonard** » Mon Apr 27, 2015 4:19 pm

We have been using Cetol on ours. Light touch up every other year.
We use Cetol "light" and it has a orangy color but not as bad as the regular Cetol.
We have not tried the "clear".

Post by **crowra** » Tue Apr 28, 2015 9:00 am

Unfortunately, keeping up with teak is a never ending project. We have been using Petit Flagship varnish and plan on switching to Cetol "Natural Teak". There's no sanding between coats which will save lots of time.

Post by **mudskipper** » Tue Apr 28, 2015 2:26 pm

HAPPY SPRING,I have worked my way around bright work on several boats . I Started with tung oil based Epithane from Holland. If you prep perfectly and use two hundred coats it will last about two years. No matter what you use it will degrade and to cut to the chase I invested in a fume mask with my prescription last year and used INTERLUX PERFECTION PLUS two part will kill brain cells clear finish. Hard to use and frankly dangerous but with good prep it looks wonderful. The say a ten year finish. I don't know. But to get back to your boat,you need to hire me to redo it for lunch ,care fare and. I ll just move in. what time is dinner? I also like to watch my shows in the afternoon. Jay

Post by **Jay Knoll** » Tue Apr 28, 2015 5:10 pm

I tried Cetol on my refit the stuff is crap as far as I'm concerned put seven coats on brand new teak handrails three months in the Florida sun and it was cracking and peeling.

Post by **mike66** » Tue Apr 28, 2015 8:10 pm

My experience with Cetol light covered with Cetol clear gloss has been very good. Easy to recoat every year or so with another coat of gloss with only a scotchbright rubdown. The gloss lightens the finish a bit. The natural is okay, a little darker and more brown than the light, which does have a little orange. My boat was already done in light; there was a can of natural onboard so I used it on a flagstaff. The natural looks like an older varnish job....I might have gone for it starting from scratch. Take some scrap teak to the store and see if they'll let you try each. You'll need three coats, so hopefully they'll oblige, especially if you're doing the whole boat. Whichever you choose, I recommend a couple coats of clear gloss over it... it makes maintenance easier and looks better.

Post by **rcor** » Sat May 02, 2015 8:52 pm

We use cello light on our 27. A re coat every other year and it looks great. No problems after 12 years of use.

Post by **Great White** » Tue Jul 07, 2015 4:01 pm

I used Cetol Natural on my 36 on the doors and window trim and it has held up very well 3 years with light touch up, On the cap rail and upper deck I cleaned with Nu Teak lightly sanded and coated with Teak Wonder 2 coats. Looks great and was very easy to apply. Lasted a boat 4 months then I just recoat which is not a problem since it covers very easily. Did the swim platform also and it looks like fresh teak!!

Post by **bccanucker** » Sun Aug 23, 2015 5:59 pm

Good luck with your journey.
I have been varnishing our 3 different boats since 1986. Don't like cetol because I have seen too many failures and mostly because I don't like its colour. Have always used interlux schooner varnish. The product has improved immensely over the years and the current product brushes on with no thinning. See my website for the shenanigans of taking pieces of the Blue Heron to Arizona and varnishing over the winter.
http://www.blueheron-albin.blogspot.ca/
I started about 5 years ago to put 3 coats of west system epoxy on before the 9 coats of varnish. The varnish faded in 2-3 years but water didn't get to the teak and recoating with 1 coat of varnish worked. More work initially but less work in the long run. After doing the epoxy I finally caught up to getting all the brightwork done.

Post by **Jeremyvmd** » Mon Sep 21, 2015 8:52 am

I have no experience personally (I try hard not to buy boats with teak...love the look hate the work) but one of the guys I know in my marina just had his boat awlgriped and his teak awlbrited. I don't know how it will hold up but it looks amazing. It's an epoxy similar to awlgrip so I imagine it should last decent...

VA3MRJ · Post by **VA3MRJ** » Sun Apr 23, 2017 6:08 pm

I put on seven coats of cetol, four of flat finish then three coats of bright, it still is good except where rope has rubbed or been dinged, after seven years. I will probably do it again this year and remove the damaged spots, lightly sand the rest and recoat as many times as possible before having to come back home. I put one to two coats on in N.C. in November years ago and came back in January to no cetol on the teak. Lesson learned, more is better.

Post by **DesertAlbin736** » Tue Jun 06, 2017 1:37 pm

We went with 2 coats of West System 105 clear epoxy resin & 207 Special Clear hardener followed by 4 coats of regular spar varnish. Epiphanes is my favorite. Of course with the Albin 25 brightwork is limited to three pairs of grab rails, one long pair over the main cabin, and two shorter pairs over the wheelhouse & aft cabin, plus our custom teak hatch covers over the wheelhouse. The trick is to completely cover the wood with epoxy & not allow any water to seep in, which is what really kills the finish. We then made Sunbrella covers for all the hand rails and the hatches to help protect from the weather. So far two years later they're as good as new. Of course in my dreams I'd have an Albin 36 or even 43 classic trawler kept up the the Pacific NW as a summer home, but that's beyond our means, plus we live in the Phoenix area 360 miles from the nearest ocean.

Keeping brightwork covered with Sunbrella helps extend the life of varnish.

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