Coaming Wood Refinishing DS1

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Coaming Wood Refinishing DS1

Postby earhile » Wed May 30, 2007 9:11 pm

I have removed the coamings from my DS1 to be stripped and refinished. It seems the boat must have sat a few years before I purchased it, so the existing finish is in fairly tough shape. It has several coats of varnish plus a reddish stain on the wood. What have folks been doing to strip off old finishes? Because of the variation (I've got some bare wood and some fully coated areas) I am really inclined to strip it completely before varnishing. My current plan is to use a chemical stripper although I am not a big fan after having done some furniture work. I don't think sanding will do it. Thanks, Ethan
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Postby Phill » Wed May 30, 2007 11:10 pm

Ive had good luck with scrapping the old finish off. If it is old enough most of the old varnish will come off and leave only a few areas that will need sanding or stripper.

You may find some very nice mahagonay under the old finish and weathering. If you do need to sand, try to not thin the coaming too much. They provide a lot a structural strenghth to the cocpit edges.

good luck, phill
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Postby calden » Thu May 31, 2007 2:07 am

Ethan:

Hey, how are those sails?!?

My DSI's coamings were in similar condition. I bought a palm sander and took off the old varnish and just enough of the old wood to bring it to a consistent color. I did not use teak cleaner, which might have done a better job with the color.

It was SO worth doing. Here are before and after pictures:

[thumb=317] [thumb=268]

Click on them for enlargements to really see the pre-condition of the coamings.

After sanding them I repaired some holes by stuffing them full of epoxy mixed with teak dust (a luthier's trick) then sanded that down. I then thinned the varnish (Pettit Captain's) way down and put a couple of very thin coats into the wood. I then built up coats with light sanding inbetween. I guess I've got about 6 coats on, and it's pretty tough stuff. Still looks good.

Here's a close-up of the thwarts and jib cleat supports I made:
[thumb=337]
So shiny I can almost shave by using them as a mirror.
Carlos
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Re: Coaming Wood Refinishing DS1

Postby MarcCram » Thu May 31, 2007 10:41 am

Ethan,
I just stripped down the coamings on my recently purchased DS1 after purchasing a hitachi belt sander. The boat was outside for 8 or so years before I purchased her and brought her indoors. I was going to purchase new wood and replace them (I still might since the there is some of the wood is worn down, but not for a few years) but after about 30 min with the sander I have perfectly good mahogany. The side that faced the outside had glue and varnish on it, they came just as clean as the inside side did.
[thumb=440] [thumb=439]

The moral is "don't give up on the original wood".

Good luck!
Marc
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Postby earhile » Thu May 31, 2007 12:54 pm

Did any of you have stain on you varnish? The stain seems to get into the wood, and doesn't sand off. Believe me, I tried the 60 grit on the palm sander. I hate chemical strippers, but I tried it a bit and it was the only thing that pulled off the varnish and the stain. My other thought was to match the stain, stain it, and then varnish it. Someone else suggested using epifanes mahognay colored paint. This is kind of against my "beliefs" when it comes to wood, but I am also headed into sailing season and I am itching to get the thing back together and out sailing.
Ethan
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Postby calden » Thu May 31, 2007 1:22 pm

Ethan:

I didn't have any stain on mine, but if I had I would have done what you are proposing, find a light stain to cover it up as best I could or use a tinted varnish. Even with perfectly clean wood the varnish makes it darker with multiple coats. You could always try some teak cleaner. I think it's base is oxalic acid. It will definitely clean up the wood that's not stained and may even lighten or wash out the stained area.

I'd go ahead and get it done whatever way possible so you can get on the water. If it's not a total cosmetic historical restoration no one else will notice slightly darker areas on the coamings, and after a few sails you won't care either.

If you find that it still bugs you, you can always get some new wood, shape it, varnish it, and put in on at a future date.

Carlos
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