In case you were wondering what it would look like if you removed every bit of interior trim for refinishing in your basement. After some experimentation, I've settled on Epifanes Rubbed Effect Woodfinish. I wanted the satin look of an oiled finish, but the protection of varnish. Sick and tired of fighting mildew and mold here in humid coastal NC!
My process:
- Thorough acetone wipe to remove grime and old oil finish
- Sand with 120 grit
- Sealer coat of Epifanes thinned 50% (4 oz varnish to 2 oz thinner etc.). Both sides.
- 2nd coat Epifanes thinned 25% (4 oz varnish to 1 oz thinner). Face side only.
- 3rd coat Epifanes full strength or thinned 10% if needed.
- 4th coat Epifanes full strength
No sanding between coats as long as you recoat within 72 hours. Hurray! The varnish is expensive, but less so if you don't buy from Worst Marine at $65/qt. Defender or Amazon sell it for $48. Worth every cent even if only because of the no-sanding feature.
Wes
(http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h411/wnewman/D89FC4A1-69D2-48E6-AEBF-87522475CD9E.jpg)
(http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h411/wnewman/029C8E5B-2A1B-4A2C-81BB-B5F9BFD2FDC3.jpg)
(http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h411/wnewman/8BA3749F-A87F-4BD6-B77F-88820E7376B1.jpg)
Hey Wes:
As always a professional job. Soon she will be lookin' as good on the inside as the outside.
regards charlie
Wow, a lot of work! Any recommendations for this...
My steps leading down into the cabin have the original finish (oiled, or whatever it was) and are starting to get a lot of dirt/sand/mud ground into them.
Any recommendations for cleaning and sealing or refinishing these that will withstand the dirt and wear?
Rick
Rick - my plan for the steps is the Epifanes Matte Woodfinish. Not quite as "oiled furniture" looking as the Rubbed Effect product, but tougher and loaded with UV inhibitors. They recommend it for cabin soles so I think it may work very well on the steps. I'll let you know how mine works out!
Wes
Great job! Im planning on doing the same. How did you sand the bulkheads? Same 120? My fear is there isnt much naterial. Also, did you do the coach roof sides in place (removal of ports?) i also fear these are glued...
You're right to be concerned about the bulkheads and those upper panels around the ports - the veneer is very thin. I tried 120 on my random orbit sander and quickly cut through the veneer. Bummer. 220 by hand works fine, so that's what I'm doing now. I do a thorough acetone wipe first. I think 220 on the RO sander might be ok if you're careful.
I did remove my ports, since they needed rebedding anyway plus I was planning to paint the deck. Obviously it's much easier to sand and varnish the the upper panels with the ports out.
The upper panels are glued with globs of polysulfide sealant. I didn't bother to remove them, just refinished them in place. They are quite thin, so I feared I would destroy them before the sealant let go.
While I had the ports out, I sealed the edges of the holes in the trim with epoxy, to guard against rot should the ports leak in future.
Wes
I used Restore A Finish 6 months ago and got a beautiful Matt finish. Check out howardproducts.com. They have great videos . This is as easy as it gets. On my first boat I used Sikkens Cetol 2 coats then Sikkens Marine Gloss for a knock out finish.
I used the mahogany Restore-a-finish product on my 23 interior and I concur, it works great! Fumes were minimal too.
Wes- That looks great. Epifanes is good stuff. I used it on my old 23 and was very pleased with how it looked and how well it held up. You are lucky you have a basement you can fill up!! Anxious to see pics when it is done and back on board. Jim
For those that used the Restor-A-Finish, what color did you go with? The interior teak on my '87 CP27 is pretty dark.
I used mahogany color and it matched well.