[jvlassak]

Just came back from a nice day sail when I noticed some minor damage to one of teak toe rails - something must have hit the boat, taking out a piece of teak about 2-3 inches long and leaving a half inch deep gouge. Really just cosmetic damage, but I would like to fill in the gouge, ideally with a piece of teak of just the right shape with maybe a filler in the gaps? Any advice on how to best fix this? Any tips would be much appreciated!

 

[weinie]

Fill in the gouge, ideally with a piece of teak of just the right shape. Maybe a filler in the gaps.

Honestly, without pics, it's impossible to offer help.

 

[garyguss]

Think you answered your own question, get a piece of teak, file it or sand it to the right shape and use teak sawdust and glue as filler.. not sure what else you could do here. These guys have toerail stock.. FEQ Teak Lumber Supplier - J. Gibson McIlvain Company

 

[Bill-Rangatira]

sometime if its just a dent it can be sweated out with a damp cloth and steam iron but sounds like this is a bit bigger than that

 

[jvlassak]

Thanks for the comments and for the link. It's too deep to be sweated out, so I was planning to cut a piece of teak to the right size, shape it, and glue it in place, fill up the gaps with filler. I was wondering about the best wood glue for teak - it's a fairly oily type of wood and the glue needs to stand up to the marine environment.

Also, has anyone any recommendations for a good filler for teak?

I forgot to take a picture and won't get back to the boat for a week.

 

[celenoglu]

Use epoxy as the glue. The trick is to clean the parts with acetone prior to glueing. Damp a piece of cloth with acetone and clean the areas to be glued. Wait till the wood is dry and apply epoxy. If you wait too long the oils will show again.

 

[capttb]

The method you propose is sometimes referred to as a Dutchman, it is common to make the gouge a regular shape with a chisel (old school) or router. This makes it easier to make a patch piece that fits tightly.

 

[Capt Len]

I usually cut the hole first then the dutchman until it fits perfectly (maybe second try) Wash all surfaces with acetone and glue. THEN plane or rasp and sand the part down to flush. No biggie.You will always look at the filler and go 'Duh' ( addition I've got a box of chunks of teak Up to 2 inches thick for just this sort of repair.Any one fairly loco can E me .

 

[Faster]

Given the beauty of the joinery on PSC caprails I'd think you want to make this repair as 'pretty' (or as invisible) as possible... bit of an extra challenge, I'd think.

 

[T37Chef]

Two thoughts I have...

1. Router out the damage and replace with the appropriate sized piece of teak, see if you can "weather" it a little first so it matches better.

2. Cover it up with something, maybe a large rub strake made of stainless or bronze perhaps, like its supposed to be there, both sides of course. Maybe a "lift here" plaque if near the right spot, or a plaque with the boat name or manufacture.

I often cover things up vs trying to match, that's just me...maybe I am cheap or lazy, maybe smart?

 

[paul323]

As folks have said: Dutchman, acetone, epoxy. Fix it right and it will look great. Personally I used angle edges like this:

At first the color difference between the old and new teak was jarring, but within a year the new teak had aged and it is now almost invisible.

Careful with the glue or epoxy, as if you slop it around it tends to show under the varnish as absorption is different from plain wood.

(BTW the image was from somewhere else - not my repair! But looks similar. With me, the narrower part was outboard, the wider inboard of the damage)

 

[RichH]

Only way to do this to make the repair essentially 'invisible': scarf in a new piece of teak that is precisely formed so that the glue/epoxy joint lines are 'perfect' - takes time & patience and razor sharp chisels.

 

[jvlassak]

Thanks for all the suggestions . I will try the Dutchman technique - something to do this winter. Fortunately, the damage is in a not too obvious place. If it works well, I'll post a picture of my handiwork.