How can I restore this?

[CJ]

Thisteak strip (one each side) runs along the side of my FG boat doesn't look anything like this picture anymore. The varnish is weathered, cracked and just gone in some spots, especially along the top edge. I'd really like to restore them to this condition, but they cannot be removed from the boat. So, how can I completely strip them so that I can start over without scratching or otherwise damaging the 'glass adjacent to them?

Someone recommended a heat gun, but I'm not familiar with this technique and I'm afraid to damage the fiberglass.

The teak handrails were relatively easy since I was able to remove them and do them at home, but again, these strips can't be removed. They're 2" x 1/2" and taper to 1/2" x 1/2" along the trunk cabin.

I swear if I can get them to look like this again, I'll take care of them every year - really!

Thanks!
CJ

[RFNK]

The heat needed to soften the glue holding these strips would probably do grave damage to your FG. I think you have two choices. Sand right back to bare wood and recoat, or rip the strips off by chiseling through lengthways, as opposed to prising. Once the strips are chiselled down to quite thin, then you should be able to prise or sand the rest off. If the strips aren't actually split, then sanding and recoating would be the best option by far, I think.

Rick

[upchurchmr]

The picture shows you how. Tape around the strip - multiple layers or duct tape - then get down with sand paper and work until your fingers hurt to sand it in place on the boat. There is no substitute to just getting down (literally) and doing the work, except grinding/ chiseling the wood strip off as discussed in #2 below.

You could think about creating a strip that went over the current one, but to glue it on well you would need to sand off the bad finish anyway.

[Mrleft8]

Why can't they be removed from the boat? I'd be very surprised if there aren't some screws holding that strip in place. Teak doesn't take finish well, and looks like crap when the finish starts flaking off. That's one reason that Teak is traditionally left unfinished. If you want shiny brown wood, replace it with Mahogany, pre-finished, and make sure it's easy to remove so that the next time you want to refresh it's finish, the job is easier to do off the boat.

[wdbeyer]

they're screwed on ... look at the bung holes in the pic

[wdbeyer]

CJ, sand the face down to wood. Carefully remove each wood plug that covers the screws. Small drill, small chisel or ice pick. You may have to re drill the holes for new plugs if you're going to reinstall. Unscrew it. refinish, or what is suggested replacing with mahogany. Either way that'll come off.

[SchoonerRat]

Chemical stripper. Protect your gel coat with masking tape (I like the green stuff) and plastic sheet. The bulk of the softened varnish can be removed with a putty knife. When the varnish is gone, bundle up the debris and clean the wood and decks with copious amounts of water and a scotchbrite pad.

Masking is a pain, but I recommend removing the tape immediately after it has served its purpose, and starting each varnish coat with with a fresh masking job.

[Yeadon]

Tape them off, then use SoyStrip to remove the finish. Then use teak oil on them. Wear gloves.

[Jay Greer]

When faced with similar problems, I often resort to the use of a French Cabinet Scraper to clean the finish off to bare wood after taping around the part to protect the mating surfaces. I also use chemical strippers when the job allows. My favorite stripper is Star 10. If you have any concerns you can ask their customer service about
the job.
http://www.starten.com/
Jay

[Figment]

If the adjacent surface is gelcoat and NOT PAINTED, then you can use a heat gun with care. If you can get a heat gun with high and low settings, so much the better.

You don't need to get the finish to bubble-off with the heat, just soften it enough for a putty knife to take away most of the finish. Clean up the rest with a sharp pull-scraper.

(I'm defintely in the "let teak go grey" camp)

[CJ]

Well, okay the strips COULD be removed from the boat, but the bungs were epoxied in place, every foot or so, and some sort of adhesive has been applied to the back of the wood (could be 5200) so I'm sure I'd make a huge mess of trying to remove the strips, unless I did decide to just make new ones and replace these (tempting). I'd really like to try to get these back to their original condition while they're still on the boat before I go that route. If I mess it up, next winter they'll come off and I'll make nice, new mahogany pieces.

I do have a dual-setting heat gun so I guess it's worth a try. If I mask it off before using the gun, would the tape be a good way to gauge just how much heat I'm applying to the fiberglass? For example, discolored tape equals too much heat? Or, would I regret heating up the tape's adhesive and end up making a bigger mess?

The only chemical stripper I've had experience with, and it worked great on paint, was 5f5. Anyone else use this? Good application for this stripper?

Thanks!
CJ

[RFNK]

They're not very big strips and it sounds like their condition is okay. I'd just scrape the remaining varnish off with the grain and sand them.

Rick

[Redeye]

Sandpaper.
1-2h in the sun on the mooring - possibly with a beer.
Mask beforehand.
Varnish afterwards.

[Cogeniac]

As stated above, use a heat gun. All you are doing is heating the varnish enough to allow you to strip it off the wood, not to remove the wood from the boat. Do most of it that way (go light around the edges, since you don't want to compromise the fiberglass). Then tape the FG near the wood with duct tape (or some similar tough tape that can resist the sanding a bit. You could also use a thin piece of metal (e.g. aluminum sheet) to protect the FG. Line it up right next to the wood, and tape it in place. Then sand right up against it. Move the metal, and continue....Use something like 100 grit and a hard block.

Then tape with good masking tape and varnish. WHoever said teak doesn't take finish well apparently has not tried very hard...You will need 5-8 coats. Start with the varnish thinned 50%. Gradually work up to 10% thinned (enough to get a good brush stroke). Sand with 220 between coats at first, and then once you have most of the grain filler, use 320. Once you think you are at the last coat, do one more. Sand lightly and recoat every year.

S

[Bob Cleek]

NO! DO NOT USE A HEAT GUN!

Holey Moley! The slightest moment of inattenton and the heat applied for a bit too long and your gelcoat will be destroyed. Repairing that (if possible, really) will make refinishing these teak strips look like child's play.

Tape it really well. I'd use duct tape because you are taping to protect the gelcoat while stripping. Take the tape off afterwards. Don't leave it on for more than a day.

You can use a chemical stripper if it is certified as safe for gelcoats. There are strippers made for removing bottom paint from fibreglass boats which won't hurt the gelcoat. Strip and then sand. (You can sand it off, but that will make you crazy... unless you use a Fein Multimaster, which would, I expect, make short work of the job.) If after stripping the varnish, the teak is still weathered, bleach it with oxalic acid (wood bleach at the paint store.) DO NOT use any "teak bleach" product they sell in chandleries... it is way too caustic and will destroy the wood. Then sand smooth for revarnishing.

Now, tape for refinishing using ONLY the lime green "lacquer proof" masking tape. Prime the teak well with Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer and lay down your first varnish coat on top of that within 24 hours (three or for us better still.) (The lacquer proof tape will prevent the solvents in the sealer from running beneath the tape. They will melt the adhesive in ordinary masking tape.) Build up six to eight coats of varnish, roughing to key the surface between coats using a coarse scotch-brite pad. Use a good quality marine grade spar varnish. Sand the pieces so they are perfectly smooth, but don't sand so much that you remove all the coats of varnish you've already put on. Then tack well and apply two or three (or however many until you get it right) finish coats. Remove the tape. Revarnish when it first occurs to you it might need it. If you don't, it will get ahead of you and you'll have to do this all over again. (Don't ask me how I know that.)

[Lew Barrett]

Since you don't show us the product you now have, it's hard to say if a dry scraper is all you need or not, but if the finish is really that far gone, a sharp scraper, kept sharp as you go, could accomplish 90% of the job. You want to learn how to handle it, which isn't hard. I agree with all who have already suggested eschewing sanding. Sanding can cost you your profile and is the most labor intensive approach to a mediocre, sack-o'-walnuts finish.

Otherwise, it's stripper and the scraper. I am a big believer in Soy Strip as the starter product. If that doesn't cut through the remaining finish, you can always kick it up to an MEC based product, but those are more likely to damage gelcoat. As previously warned, whatever stripper you use make sure it is safe for the gelcoat. Soy Strip will be so. Available online from Amazon and locally at Rockler. A quart will be more than enough for this job. Traditionalists who have not used it don't realize how amazingly effective it can be in most applications. Trust Yeadon on this, but not on his recommendation for oil. More about that anon.

Like Bob Cleek, I have a lot of suggestions about how to tape this job off, mine are just a bit different, is all! I would start using 3M,2090, a plastic backed safe release. The tape will be on there for a while, so a safe release/lower tack starter makes sense. Go over the top of that with a more robust product for protection. It is an old trick to put the tackier stuff over the safe release to get the best that both styles of tape can give you. I would masque off anything below the rail as well as horizontal surfaces on the deck, just to be safe or unless you are convinced you won't be splattering stripper about. How sure are you of that?

Be patient, allowing the stripper to do the hard work. You may find a few dental picks are handy for clearing the last bit of gunk out of the margins where the wood meets the glass. Be picky, then. Dental picks (or tools that look much like them) are available here in Seattle at Hardwick's Hardware store. Or you might look online. A small well chosen set can come in handy, but for this job you might easily get by without them. Your call.

I suggest you consider bleaching the strips with oxalic acid if it looks like the raw teak is uneven in color, or if any gray/black staining is visible after your stripping torment. Maybe just do it whatever you think unless you have used chemical strippers on the entire piece. Those often tend to bleach the teak to an even color as they remove the finish, but bleaching your piece is a small matter and will guarantee even color in the finished job. Just reckon on it and ask about how to do it when you get that far.

Despite admonitions to the contrary by one/some of my favorite posters here, I would argue that teak takes quite well to varnish. You just need to get enough on. It will take eight coats to make a final finish on these strips, but once those are done, an annual refresher course will keep them pretty. Varnish, not oil. It's what you want anyway, and it is what's for dinner.

[David G]

Just a quick note to agree with Lew's approach - esp. starting with the 2090 tape. I'll add: be sure and burnish the edge where it meets the wood. You want to eliminate any unnoticed tiny gaps that will allow varnish to creep onto your gelcoat. I'll also add that my sequence goes: soy; citrus; then what Lew calls MEC. That's short for Methylene Chloride, and is the harshest of the common formulations.