Polish/wax or revarnish?

[jaschrumpf]

The wood in the cabin of my 1975 Newport 28 is in very good shape, with only a few places where the finish is less than gleaming. The deck is another story of course, because of the foot traffic. But for the places where the finish is still very good, I'd like to get a real nice high-gloss on it if I could.

Should I put a coat of a high-gloss varnish on it, or are there polish/wax products out there that will do this without the work of varnishing? I'm hoping a couple coat of a good wax might do it, but I don't have any experience with wood in a boat. From the dark-red/maroon color of the wood I'm thinking it's mahogany. Does that sound right for interior wood in a boat of this vintage?

Here's a link to a photo of the cabin. I think Yahoo will let the public see it:

Yahoo! Photos - jaschrumpf's Photos - cabin


Thanks!

[Gene T]

Teak and Holly sole, varnish. You will be glad you did. Wax will not hold up and is slippery.

[camaraderie]

Jas...for the floors get Ultimate Sole Welcome to Ultimate Marine Products, Inc
It is high gloss but also formulated to not be slippery when wet. Awesome stuff.
For the cabin itself I would first recommend a thorough cleaning with Murphy's oil soap followed by rubbing with Scott's Liquid Gold. You may be happy with the results. If not, Varnish away...I like the look of SATIN varnish on verticle surfaces offset by gloss on tables and handholds.
Have fun!

[jaschrumpf]

Originally Posted by Gene T

Teak and Holly sole, varnish. You will be glad you did. Wax will not hold up and is slippery.

I'm a little confused by your first sentence. Are you saying that the wood in the cabin is teak and something called Holly sole? I've never heard of Holly sole; what is that? Can you describe which is which in the picture of my cabin? I'm not a "wood guy" at all.

Any recommendations on varnish and sanding requirements would be greatly appreciated, too.

Thanks again!

[Gene T]

The sole, or floor of your cabin is made up of 2 alternating woods. Teak and Holly are those two woods. Teak is dark and the Holly strips are light. And I agree with everything camaraderie says. I will add that the oiled teak walls will mildew and varnish will not. Lemon oil will retard mildew.

Varnishing the sole is relatively easy but refinishing the rest of the cabin interior would be a big job.

[Gene T]

Prep for the sole: Use ordinary water based paint/varnish stripper to remove whatever is on the sole now. Sand lightly with the grain, put on several coats of a fast build sealer and then several coats finish per manufactures recommendations. Light sanding with 220 - 320 grit between all coats. Either Ultimate Sole or ordinary floor varnish, I personally prefer a satin finish but the Ultimate Sole product is reported to work great. I have no personal experience with it but would use it myself next time.

[jaschrumpf]

The finish on the sole seems to be more dulled than worn out. Is there a product that can restore the shine without requiring the old finish to be entirely removed?

I did a rubdown with Scotts Liquid Gold on the vertical surfaces, and the result was pretty good, thought the smell of SLG is nothing to write home about. Is that really about all that's needed to keep those surfaces looking good, a regular application of Scott's? 'Cause I want this cabin to look as nice as possible, though I of course want to avoid any extra work -- I'm naturally lazy.

[sailingdog]

Ultimate Sole is really is the way to go....

[blt2ski]

I have a qt of Ultimate sole to redo my flooring. I will just remove the boards, bring them home, and refinish. I have not used this stuff as others have, so I am going by advertisement info, and posts on here as backup to the "It works"

The rest of the teak wood interior, I have been using a wipe on spar varnish from "Top Secret" 2-3 coats wiped on with a cotton cloth, and everything look shiny again. The cabinet doors, and doors to the head and aft cabin I have been bringing home, and doing then in the garage also. Otherwise, a quick sand with a 220-400 sandpaper equal, then varnish.

marty

[sailingdog]

blt2ski-

On Sailnet, where we don't agree about anything, the two products that generally are agreed upon as best in class are the Miracle Cloth for polishing and cleaning metal, and Ultimate Sole for doing cabin soles.