Not Quite As Cheap This Time
Should confess that, in preping for painting this time, I did not use the really cheap masking tape.But I did use the least expensive 3M tape (tan stuff).
Only a bit more expensive than the "off brand," but miles better quality. The 3M tape was still easily removable after two days in sun and fog. Probably could have gone for two or three more days . . .
Bill, all of this hard work surely deserves some pictures!
Mike
Totoro (Sea Sprite 23 #626)
Thought about it, but could never remember to take the cameraOriginally Posted by mbd
Bill, all of this hard work surely deserves some pictures!Probably too offensive to post how ugly things look covered with tape and newspapers!
Early morning coffee time.
Nosed around on the net Scott Galloway's TIP on Semco Sealer, usually associated with teak, but works just fine on our teak alternative mahogany.
Definitely not a varnish-look alternative. What the effect is, according to the dozens of teak furniture manufacturers who recommed it, is a bare wood look. Haven't actually seen a Semco finished coaming, but I've seen a lot of failing and blotchy varnish jobs.
If it is a careful but simple procedure to reapply the sealer WITHOUT TAPE, as Scott does it, then that convinces me. Tape would not be much help with a runny product - varnish, you could say, is more likely to stay where you lay it on because it has more body. Less likely to get under the tape.
One hand with the 'applicator', the other with an absorbant rag, could be something I could learn to do.
The great thing about Semco (taken from the net) is that it is a family owned business. Has been doing this sealing business for 30 years by word of mouth, without advertising. Pricewise a quart costs the same as a similar product from Interbucks or Sherman Bill or Dow/Dupont or whatever Con Glomerate. Sealer gets more coverage, and you don't have to put 17 coats on!
The little Monk 24' Woodie that was reborn in the yard - that used 3-coat Detco Crystal - it's still going strong waiting for its owner to come get it. Been a year. So there is a 'varnish' job that's lasted...one year for sure... in the California sun.
Too much bad times with the glitz. I'll go with the mom-and-pop Semco to keep the grey away. She'll never know.
What isn't clear in Scott's post is why he uses OIL on his cabin sole. Why not the S. Sealer? One less can in the locker.
Last edited by ebb; 08-13-2007 at 07:05 AM.
It's that time again . . . This, however, is the first year of the "new" teak coating regime: two coats once a year vs. one coat every six months. Actually, I think it ended up being 13 months, which may explain the one spot on the teak where the Cetol was starting to degrade. A little bit of 180 grit sandpaper seems to have cured the problem.
New this year is 2-inch blue (more expensive) masking tape. The cheaper 3M used last year left tape sticky in a couple of places. The blue stuff has a different mastic (so I'm told). But, it still takes miles and miles of the stuff for the relatively small amount of teak on the Ariel's decks.
Day one was scrubbing the teak finish (as directed on the can) with mild detergent and a soft scouring pad. As luck would have it, the day set record low highs for the date! Never got over 50 something in Alameda.
Day two, however (today) was a different story and the temps ramped up to the low 80s. After about five hours, the masking tape was in place. Tomorrow we add the newspaper and (hopefully) the first coat. Here is MAIKA'I with her new blue trim, awaiting the newsprint.
Your boat looks great! I really like the pressure cleats and winch located at the top of the coachroof. It must make raising the main SO NICE. I plan to add a similar setup to mine sometime in the next couple years.
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