spreader repair/refurbishing

[Cal28]

well the mast is down and the next project at hand is to repair/refurbish the spreaders ...



the wood seems to be in good shape ... varnish long gone ...



my question is ... do I just sand them smooth? ... then apply

well my reading here at sailnet seems to conclude perhaps painting the tops white ... and varnishing the bottoms ...

anyone have any thoughts on this please? ...



and then there is the question of the boots ... they seem ... solid but then I wouldn't actually know if they are or not ... and it looks as if that is old plastic electricians tape ... wrapped around the ends ...

should that be removed? ... and if so ... replaced with what?

as always ... thanks for the input ...

John

[mitiempo]

I would sand them to the stage where you can easily inspect them for flaws or cracks. If they look good you can continue finishing them. White paint will last a lot longer than varnish on an item you seldom see.

The boots should be replaced and the tape to use is white rigging tape.

[mm2187]

I also would sand them down to a get rid of all the dirt and grime in the grains and take a good look at them. If you plan to revarnish it would be necessary to sand them down. If you do not take your mast down often you might want to look into epoxy varnish which will last significantly longer also.

New spreader boots and fresh rigging tape would add a nice touch.

[hurricanehole]

Definitely inspect each end without fittings. Water will enter wood where the end grain is located. If you're lucky enough to not have rot then seal the ends with epoxy before painting and putting everything back together.

[capttb]

A friend had a cabinet maker build him a new set and they were beautiful for about a year, now you can't really tell what they are made of.
I'd call the folks at Seals Spars to see if they have parts and replacements available, they been doing this stuff on Cals for decades.
Seal's Spars and Rigging