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I have noticed in the forums that some prefer varnished teak and some prefer oiled. I did oil on my gunwales this last year and it looked great but did an excellent job of catching dirt. Granted, scrubbing and reoiling solves it but I was wondering if there were some opinions out there and photos as to which is better.

thanks

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I like SEMCO sealer

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I have not had a boat with a lot of wood but I would caution to using varnish on the gunwale. If you board the boat by stepping there,varnish can be very slick. On the other hand finishing with a quality varnish will give you maintenance free finish for a number of years

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That's a personal choice.

I use Daly's SeaFin Teak Oil and have done so for over 20 years.

But what do I know?

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I am refinishing the wood on my '76 montauk. After cleaning, sanding, and staining with teak oil, should I
polyurethane?

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Teak oil is not a stain, but generally used as a protective treatment. Although there are exterior grade polyurethanes available, they are generally not favored for marine wood. Generally, those who prefer a natural look use teak oil; those who prefer a more protective layer use marine grade varnish.

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I'm thinking of using some kind of protective finish too. I was trying teak oil but I guess I am not faithful enough. My boat sits out all season and my wood turned grey even after using teak oil.
So Josey Whaler, I am surprised to hear that polyurathane isn't the preferred finish. Can you or someone else explain why varnish is preferred compaired to polyurathane?

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I like using "Zar" stain, and "Poly" (both are Marine grade), my boat get's "Hammered" all season from the Sun, and everything else, I can get a few years out of the finish, on my 4th now, going on 5th, then it's time to do it all over again. I like the look and protection of "stain" and"Poly", Teak oil work's very well, it's just that I don't like being a slave to the wood all season long by the constant oiling needed. I choose to be a slave to the wood for 2-week's straight when I have to re-finish. Choose your poison, lol !

I have "Mahogany" wood.

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I used teak oil on my montauk and it looked great for 3 weeks then it started to grey. I had to re-apply the oil again. I am not into that much upkeep. I like the look of the varnish and will try it this time on my outrage.

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Well Kevin, I would suggest you do a search on the topic here. Preferred is a subjective term, but if you consider the vastly greater number of Varnish finishes over Polyurethane, I guess that you could conclude Varnish is "preferred". A complete explanation of the virtues of Varnish would be long and exhaustive. Polyurethane is actually a synthetic resin and used in the production of Varnish, but the end result is somewhat different.

I would also suggest some reading-BRIGHTWORK, The Art of Finishing Wood by Rebecca J. Wittman. It is an excellent book, easy to read, and very informative. I'll lend you my copy if you like.

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When I bought my Montauk, I sanded and oiled all of my teak. I loved the way it looked, but it just didn't seem to last. I struggled with the thought of varnish, but just recently varnished all of the teak on mine with Epifanes Woodfinish Gloss. I am thrilled with the end result. You can buy it at West Marine if you're interested. Good luck.

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Well, Josie, the way I figure it, it is what looks nice to me and what I'm happy with. Varnish has less upkeep and I like the way it looks. So on my outrage, I will go with varnish this time around.

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So now all you need to decide is gloss or matte finish. Personally, I like the warmth of a matte finish. But it is a personal preference. Epiphanes makes excellent varnish in both matte and gloss finish. In fact their preferred matte finish recommends 6-8 coats of gloss topped off with 1 or 2 coats of matte.

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My wife and I prefer the look of the gloss. I just purchased Z-spar captains varnish. I like the way it looked on some of the other projects people on here have acomplished.

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Thanks for the input guys. I'll do a search for more info too.

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There is a new version of Cetol teak finish called "natural teak." I used it on my teak last year and it looks great. It is a more natural lookng teak color than their previous products (which looked orange to me). With regular touch ups it will last forever. I thin it is the best looking low-maintenance teak finish I have found.
Ron

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Saw your PP Ron. Really nice job, the boat looks great!

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I did a search about natural teak Cetol. The stuff seems to be causing a stir. A lot of people really stand by it. Others just hate Cetol. My boat has some orange ugly stuff that is most likely the old Cetol and I see why it has a bad reputation. The new stuff sounds promising tho.

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I love wood... on other people's boats.

Many years ago I owned an old Stamas cuddy cabin with teak from bow to stern. It was a beautiful and well built vessel but incredibly heavy. Anyway, when I finally sold that boat, I swore I'd never have wood on a boat again. At least not a boat I actually use.

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The trick to whatever you decide to do, oil or varnish, is to minimize UV exposure. Yes, whatever came from the factory would be the 'purist' decision to make. However, for whatever the reasons we all have our preferences. This is an age old debate.

I keep a Mills mooring cover on the boat when it is at the mooring here in RI. I spent hours cleaning, sanding and oiling my teak - back to what some friends remarked - original appearance. After four months on the water, and never putting on another coat of oil on the wood, the wood looks almost as good as when I launched the boat Memorial Day weekend.

If you are trailering and you aren't able to garage the boat make sure the boat is covered when not in use.

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I'd like to second the vote for Cetol Natural Teak. A harbor master in Key Largo who lives on a trawler with tons of britework suggested it to me. Two coats of the Natural Teak and three coats of the Cetol High Gloss. It really looks great on my Montauk!