Conference unifix::sailing

re .0:

Well, I've never heard of REMCO, and, apparently, neither has anyone 
else. But .... if it were any good and really lasted five years, I'm 
sure that every sailing magazine in the world would be touting it. 
Several magazines in recent years have tested various teak 
oils/varnishes, and none of the tests have included or mentioned REMCO 
(since our boat has a right fair bit of teak, I read all such articles 
with more than casual interest). Pending more information, I remain, as 
always, skeptical.

Removing varnish: sanding works well, and is, of course, work. Scrapers 
are also effective (there was a good article in WoodenBoat not too long 
ago). My fear is that any residue from chemical removers might affect 
the new finish. The best tool for maintaining varnished teak is a checkbook. 

    Talking to a chap at Brighton Marina last weekend who had a Halberg
    Rassey with plenty of immaculate teak work. Asked him the secret
    of the way it looked and he introduced me to his young son who uses
    Teakbrite oil every few weeks for pocket money..........When he
    bought the boat he apparantly used a hair dryer and scraper to remove
    the bits that had been varnished.
    
    Pete 

    A 1" hand held scraper does a good job of scraping flush to an inside
    corner.  I use one for furniture and removing varnish from floors next
    to the baseboard.  This is a mini version of the 4 bladed scraper
    used for scraping paint of the sides of houses.  A pair of kneepads
    probably won't hurt either.
    
    - gene

    We used several implements of violence and destruction for removing the
    old varnish on our toe rail and other brightwork.  What worked well on 
    flat surfaces was a belt sander with medium grit paper.  We also used 
    several different sized scrapers from 1.00" to 4.00".  Chemical removers 
    were a pain at best as we had several layers of old varnish to remove as 
    well as the more recent stuff.  Messy as all hell too.  Elbow grease, 
    sharp edges, and kneepads are the only substitute I know of for $$$$.  If 
    you take it down to bare wood, we found a sanding sealer worked real well 
    as an undercoat.
    
    Brian 
    

    
    I recently read a fellow who said that he was using these pressed steel
    reinforcement joist hangers as scrapers.  These metal widgets are used in
    construction to attach joists and all sorts of other combinations of
    timbers.  He was getting the Tee shape and using the burr.  He said in
    quantity they were less than $.50 each which worked out to less than
    scraper blades.  Haven't tried it myself so caveate emptor!
                                  

    re. -1
    
    Old metal light switch/outlet covers are also supposed to work.
    
    The Wooden Boat article Alan referred to does a good job describing how
    to convert almost any piece of scrap metal into a scraper.  Pieces of
    old saw blades are supposed to incomparable for this.  The metal just
    has to be hard enough to hold an edge, at least for a while.  The trick
    is in the sharpening.  To do this, clamp the propective scraper firmly
    and then file the edge of choice lengthwise until it's dead flat.  Hold
    the file at a consistent right angle to the edge.  The file will bite
    with a smooth steady feel when perfect flatness has been achieved.  A
    burr will form on both sides of the edge which can be further
    emphasized by rubbing a screwdriver shaft or other smooth metal rod over
    the edge.  Do this with vigor.
    
    To use, hold the scraper against the work at an angle that gives the
    best bite and pull.  Keep that file handy.  The burr wears off pretty
    fast.  I often use a putty knife to scrape an inside corner where I
    want to scrape only one side.  The edge against the side I don't want
    to damage can be left (or made) round and smooth.  The other edge gets
    the file treatment.  However, this makes it kinda poor for applying
    putty.
    
    - gene
    

    Could it be SEMCO that the man was talking about and not REMCO?
    
    I have used SEMCO and I will never use it again. It imparts a rather
    dull yellow finish to the teak. However that is just my opinion,
    someone else may find it very attractive.
    
    What is a good teak oil to use? I do not care to varnish my teak but
    I would like to find a longer lasting teak oil than the one I presently
    use.

    
    An orbital sander also works well for most surfaces, although because
    of its bulk it can't reach some spots, and you need to be extra careful
    where the teak abuts gel coat.  Compared to a sanding block, effort is
    reduced substantially.  I've never thought about using a scraper; I'll
    have to give that a try on the (remaining) hard to get at places.
    
      /Jim
    

    SEMCO it is. I saw some at the Marine Exchange in Danvers?Peabody?
    
    It comes in clear, gold (which is a deeper shade of teak), and by
    combining th eclear and gold you can get an even deeper shade of
    teak.
    
    Still, that teak I saw looked great after 4 years.
    
    I have bought a 1 1/2 in scraper and three double bladed replacement
    blades.
    
    Oh well! Saturday looks like it will be varnish stripping day. Is
    there anyone not busy that day? %^)
    
    Thanks
    
    Paul

    Sorry Paul gotta wash my fish and then rearrange my sock drawer
    Saturday.  Would really love to help you though.  My favorite job on
    the boat last year was taking down 100' of toe rail on St. Kilda. 
    Yessiree, right up there with having my gums scraped!  Best of luck. 
    It was this chore that made up my mind for me that if we ever buy our
    own boat, it will be plastic.  Any wood will be oiled and not
    varnished.  Seriously though, let us know how you make out.  If the 
    varnish is old and lifting it may chip right off for you.  We had alot
    of areas like this which eased things considerably.  Also, make sure
    you use the scrapers in the right direction.  I believe they are made
    to be pulled and not pushed.  Nothing dulls a scraper blade quicker
    than going in the wrong direction except maybe a grinding wheel ;-).  
    Have fun!
    
    Brian who will be waxing the hull, reinstalling heads, wiring the LORAN, 
    greasing seacocks,  attaching headliners, hatch covers, ports.........
    on Saturday.
    
    

    A tip on using scrapers I got from a floor refinisher.  After scraping a
    couple of feet of varnish, run a file over the scraper pushing the file
    *against* the sharp edge.  This keeps the edge sharp and produces the
    cleanest shavings.  Otherwise, it will be necessary to change blades
    every 10 minutes.
    
    - gene

    Instead of varnish, what about clear Awlgrip?  I've used it on interior
    wood to great effect.  Incredibly hard and looks good too.  Any reason
    not to use it on the exterior?
    
    Dave

By every test so far, there is no miracle teak coating (varnish or oil).
They all weather/fade/fail with depressing quickness.

To futher enliven the discussion, after ten years of oiling teak, we've
decided it is too much work to keep oiled teak looking good. So we're
embarking on a slow change to varnished exterior teak. It looks ever so
much better than oiled teak (in our humble opinion), and varnishing
can't be any more work than thoroughly cleaning oiled teak twice a year
and applying several coats of oil. It is either that or a grubby boat.
The oil either washes off in rain and spray or it is so sticky that it 
attracts and holds dirt. For those of us fortunate to be in Marblehead 
and vicinity, the soot from the coal-fired electric plant in Salem settles 
in the grain of the teak, sticks to the oil, and turns the teak yukky black.
One additional nasty problem with oiling: As the teak weathers, the 
softer wood disappears and the grain becomes very deep. Thus cleaning 
becomes harder and harder and more and more destructive to the wood. 
I've come to the conclusion that varnished wood will last much longer 
than oiled wood. 

One of the interesting things about teak oils is the wide differences in
perceived results -- what one owner thinks is great stuff another thinks
is awful. All the ones we've tried have required frequent applications 
to keep looking good. I'd rather go sailing.

re .12:

Yes, Awlgrip can be used, but ......

Even new teak has a rather open grain and weathered teak has a very, 
very deep grain. That grain must be filled to get a smooth, glossy
surface. This can be done with many, many coats of varnish (I've heard that
Hinckley uses seven or more on new boats) or by using epoxy (eg, WEST or
System 3). Two or three coats of epoxy resin thoroughly sanded between
coats fills the grain of teak that has weathered for ten New England 
summers. Another coat will provide a smooth surface for the Awlgrip, but
getting a really smooth epoxy surface is tough given the reluctance of
epoxy to brush nicely. Next a couple of coats of Awlgrip. All of this is
a tremendous amount of hard work. Plus, wood is not very stable
dimensionally, and the epoxy is necessary (I think) to keep the wood
from expanding and contracting enough to crack the Awlgrip. Varnish is
more flexible. Both epoxy and Awlgrip are not exactly fun to work with.
Reading the product hazard warnings for Awlgrip is downright scary.
We're using epoxy to fill the weathered grain of our teak and varnishing 
over that. 

    I've heard that one of the main factors that makes varnish peel
    is moisture from below. Sealing the wood with epoxy is said to
    lock out moisture and prolong the life of the varnish.
    
    I haven't tried it because I'd never varnish teak :)
    
    

    Ah...Never thought about the grain issue.  I agree that nothing in the
    world is worse than oil.  Cleaning it out is a bitch and the oxalic
    acid in the cleaners does over time trash your teak.  We simply
    polyurethane our exterior teak once a year and by the next spring it
    peels off compliantly for a new coat! :^)  Ofcourse our vessel isn't
    exactly loaded with wood trim so it's no issue.  Good job for the
    ladies during spring fitting out!
    
    Dave

RE: clear Awlgrip,

I had a dinghy with the stuff, and it was absolutely wonderful.  3 years
without any visible deterioration.  Wore well, and never showed a single 
crack.  It was applied over mahogany, not teak, so particular attention 
might have to be paid to avoiding teak's oily revenge.  Alan's idea of 
epoxying to stabilize the surface sounds good, though some research into 
preparing the epoxied surface for Awlgrip would be in order.

The negatives include the need for exquistitely careful preparation and 
application (mine had been done by the builder inside a controlled paint
shed), near impossiblity to touch up dings neatly, and great effort/cost
(you choose) to remove it for renewal when that finally does become due. 

Having never tried the owner-applied brush-on type, I can't compare it to 
the professionally-applied spray-on form.  The latter sets a high 
standard, though, and if the brush-on is even close to it, why aren't boat 
owners everywhere raving about it?

J.

    I've redone my teak in spar urethane.  Minwax makes it, complete with 
    U.V. inhibitors.  Four coats so far and it looks wonderful.  I went
    back to varnishing (urethaning?) my teak after trying the oils for
    several years.  I just prefer sailing to caring for my teak.  Besides,
    I can varnish whatever teak I can unscrew during the winter when I
    haven't got anything better to do anyway.
    
    I hope I don't have to post a note of contrition this summer.

    I am surprised this topic has not been hotly discussed prior to this. 
    A spin through the kewywords and title search for varnish showed
    relatively little attention paid to such a potentially volatile
    subject.  At any rate there are a more than a few written sources
    around on varnish application and maintenance.  To some this is akin to
    a religious topic.  My partner insists on storing his brushes in
    vegetable oil after a thorough cleaning in spirits and hung dry for x
    minutes at a temperature of y degrees with ambient humidity at.....
    By the way they are also not to be used or thought of being used or even 
    asked if it would be alright to maybe contemplate using the brushes for
    any purpose other than applying varnish.  If we would only pay as much
    attention to the initial preparation we would be better off IMHO.  He
    approaches the chore with the thought that we can remove the loose
    stuff, fair it in and recoat where mecessary.  I on the other hand feel
    that if the varnish is peeling or bubbling up, it will happen again ad
    infinitum unless the surface is properly prepared.  I write these off
    as quirks since what I have read, heard and practiced are all completely 
    different.   Any other particular oddities folke would care to share? 
    There was an article about the Hinckley yard varnishers and the
    meticulous process they go through to get the perfect finish.  Can
    anyone remember where or when that was published, Sail, CW?
    
    Brian 

    
    Last year I spent a lot more time on the companionway boards than in
    previous years; #100, then #180, then #320 grit sandpaper to get it
    really smooth.  Did the same for most of the tiller.  The only varnish
    that held up for a full year was on the surfaces which were prepared
    this way... everything else peeled long before, some as early as June
    (a little over a month after application). 
    
    If you've ever gotten any varnish onto gel coat, have you noticed how
    long it lasts if not forcibly removed?  Years.  I'm not sure why, but
    if you spend enough time to give it a very, very smooth surface you
    may not need to scrape the following season.
    
       /Jim
    

re -.1

I wonder if the removal of all foreign matter, salt, etc. is responsible for
the better results? (I would guess that cursory sanding leaves a lot of "stuff"
in the grain, and all this can be removed with thorough sanding.)    

--RS

    One trick I read in the Wooden Boat article was to leave no sharp
    corners on your wood. The varnish (or whatever) needs some surface to
    adhere to. A sharp corner gives little surface, and starts the peeling
    process.
    
     I tried some DEKS OLJE on my teak soles (in the cockpit) and the
    locker tops (seat in the cockpit). After much abuse for a year, it
    looks fine. But the jury is still out.
    
    Gregg

re .12 and .14:

A little research over the weekend revealed that the problem with using 
clear Awlgrip over wood is that just a little moisture in the wood will 
break the bond between the Awlgrip and the wood -- instant peeling. Ugh.
Apparently, the best method is to seal the wood with three coats of 
epoxy, sand smooth, apply several coats of varnish, allow to harden for 
a couple months, and then apply two coats of clear two-part polyurethane 
(eg, Awlgrip). Ay yup, an incredible amount of work, work best done 
inside a temperature/humidity controlled boatshed. This finish should 
last about four years. 

Second best is varnish over epoxy. Clear two-part polyurethane over 
epoxy also works well. Brushing on Awlgrip, etc, smoothly makes 
varnishing seem easy, I gather.

Hmmmmmmm .......................

    Re -.1
    
    YOW!  Way too much work.  However, I must report that we had great luck
    with clear Awlgrip on our interior woodwork and floorboards with none
    of that prep work.  I can see how that would not correlate into
    exterior sucess.  For the little amount of ornamental teak we have we
    are going the traditional route of re-doing every year.
    
    Dave

    My 53 year old wooden boat has all bright work done with DEKS OLJE.
    It has had two seasons and will easily make it through the third
    judging by my inspection.
    
    Annual maintainence is wet sanding with 400 wet/dry followed by
    a single coat of #2.    It's a real pain to get the first treatment
    down (mine is 7 coats of #2 and uncounted coats of #1) but it appears
    to hold up remarkably well.   It does not take abrasion well but
    water salt and sun don't touch it if you follow mfg. recommendations.

    I can also attest to the DEKS OLJE treatment. I used it on both the
    Westsail and the Pearson and it worked very well for both boats. As
    both were new boats I let the exterior teak "age" for 1 year then
    cleaned with TE-KA and then applied multiple, as in 20 or so, coats of
    #1 and 7 coats of #2. It lasted through the 5 years of ownership of
    both boats. Once a year recoating was 1 coat of #1 to soften the surface
    and 2 coats of #2. Scratches and such were taken care of with a Qtip
    full of #2. No sanding!
    As in all cases prep is the thing. Most people who were not sattisfied
    with the DEKS OLJE finish did not apply enough #1.
                                             
    

    Last year I replaced the rotten mahogany seats, side rails, etc
    in my Whaler with teak.  I decided to varnish it all and used Epifanes,
    which was best in several of the varnish tests.  The four coats
    look great and survived the last 12 months outside (uncovered all
    winter) without any lifting.  This varnish also fills well (I was
    bored after 4 costs anyhow).
    
    One of the varnish tests recommended nothing FINER than 180 grit
    for the between coats sanding.  The sanding scratches are supposedly
    the right size from this grit.  
    
    The right sandpaper also makes the job MUCH easier.  3M Tri-M-ite
    Fre-Cut is a superb paper that is extra sharp and resists loading
    up.  I found it in 180 grit at a big paint store.  This stuff is
    what the professionals use.
    
    My 2 cents on alternatives for treating teak:  A good phenolic varnish
    (eg Epifanes) is best because:
          - it looks great
          - same work as Deks Olje, but lasts better/looks better
          - easier to remove which all coatings eventually require
          - easy to repair the wear spots during the season
          - protects much better than oils
    
    The last boat had lots of exterior brightwork.  Current boat only
    has varnished hatchboards.  I can handle this much teak.
    
    Grant
    

    A quick question regarding sanding media...
    
    After stripping and varnishing (7 coats!) my interior floorboards last
    year, I found that the speed with which the sandpaper loaded up was the
    hardest part of the operation.  Would anyone like to comment on the use
    of a sanding screen instead of sandpaper?  The stuff comes in grits
    ranging from about 40 down to 600.  In the past, I found that it worked
    great for sanding bottom paint -- but then again, that was wet sanding
    so any loading problem would have been washed away!
    
    Is there anything to be said for (am I crazy?) wet-sanding to strip
    varnish or between coats?
    
    Carl

    back to epoxi...
    
    
    I have used epoxi from Ciba and SP (UK).Its difficult to get West
    system over here.
    I had with both products the same problems.The first layer of epoxi
    on teak seems to go in quite good but leaves a very uneven surface.
    The second layer is the problem.The surface looks like the moon
    afterwards.A lot of small holes and mountains.Just like a bad paint 
    job with silicon on the surface.Sanding,even when done very carefully
    with 400 wet ,seems not to get rid of the "holes".Actuelly I always
    manage to sand down to the bare wood.After 3 layers of epoxi I always
    gave up.
    Any ideas ? 
    
    Peter

re -.1:

I think you gave up too soon. For some time I have felt that maintaining
our weathered, oiled teak was much too difficult and time-consuming. The
soot and ash from a nearby coal burning power plant settles into the
weathered grain, turning the wood nearly black. Last year as an
experiment I decided to epoxy coat and varnish the companionway weather
boards. They were ten years old and were quite weathered -- the softer
wood was weathered well below the harder grain. I first thoroughly
cleaned them. Next I coated them with epoxy. After the epoxy cured I
sanded until reaching bare wood in places. I kept doing this (perhaps
four or five coats of epoxy) until all the grain and hollows were filled
and sanding gave a uniform, smooth epoxy surface. Then two or three
coats of varnish. The final result was a beautiful surface -- a little
dark perhaps but indistinguishable from new teak with varnish only. At
the end of the summer the surface still looked very, very good. A bit of
bronze wool and a coat of varnish is all they will need this year and 
maybe not even that. I am pleased enough with the results that we're
going to slowly do all of our exterior teak this way. Initially, it will
be a horrendous amount of work, but in the long run I think it will be
worthwhile. I've done another experiment that shows promise -- fill the
grain/hollows as above, then cover the wood with very light fiberglass
cloth (3/4 oz) and epoxy, filling the weave of the cloth with a final
coat of epoxy. Then varnish. This is claimed to provide an exceptionally
durable surface. I'll be doing my hatches this way this year. The
fiberglass cloth is invisible. I covered a piece of teak in two
sections, one with cloth and one without. I can't tell which is which. 

    Coating with epoxy and getting a good surface is tricky; maybe some of
    this will help.
    
    First, note that most epoxies don't have the properties of a varnish.
    In particular, they don't have the additives and formulation which
    tries to prevent drips and sags. They therefore create poor surfaces at
    the least excuse. The only remedies are:
    	- If possible coat only flat horizontal surfaces. They can't sage.
    	- Otherwise, use very thin coats, applied with a roller (you just
    	  can't get it very thin with a brush).
    	- Use multiple coats and patience.
    
    To make things worse, many epoxies exhibit a reduction in viscosity
    just before going off, so they may go on and look OK, only to sag just
    before setting up.
    
    The other issue is recoat time. Epoxies accept a new coat with good
    results only during a specific window after being applied. This window
    is between the time they are tack-free, and a time which is usually
    about 24 hours or less later. If you put on a coat, then wait several
    days before recoating, you may see this problem. Note that most
    boatbuilding epoxies well acquire a greasy surface as the set (amine
    blush), which must be wiped away with a damp sponge on nothing else
    will ever adhere. If you have an aged epoxy surface and want good
    adhesion by more epoxy or a paint primer, sand with 100 grit.
    
    Ross Faneuf
    

    
	re .-1
	
	Epoxies come in two styles, laminating and finish.
	The laminating epoxy is used where you are going to add more 
	coats/layers.  Its surface never sets hard.  It remains sticky
	and accepts the next layer any time for a long time.  Since it
	is sticky, keep the dust off.  If all you have is laminating
	epoxy, you can get a hard finish by covering the uncured epoxy
	with waxed paper.  Make sure it is in tight contact with the resin
	everywhere.
	The finish kind has some waxes (or something) in it that come
	to the surface and keep the air away during the cure.  This
	results in a hard, tack free surface.  It will need surface
	prep if you want to add more coats.

re -.1:

I think your description is accurate for polyester resins, not epoxies.
I don't know of any epoxies that contain waxes. The usual epoxy cures
with a greasy film (amine) on the surface that is easily washed off.
Laminating epoxies, according to the catalog I have, appear to have a
very long pot life so that they can be vacuum bagged. 

    I have used both type of epoxy for my teak.
    I have found no difference in behavier except the temperature range.
    My oldfashioned laminating epoxy needs at least 20,better is 25 C.
    The epoxy for "painting" is less critical with temp going down to
    15 C.
    The next time,I'm going to try the roller and see what happens.
    
    How do you clean your tools ? 
    
    Peter

    Acetone should do well to clean up uncured resin.  I used this for the
    brushes I was using with West system.  
    
    Brian
    

re cleaning up:

Acetone is harmful to your lungs and skin and is quite flammable. I use 
as little as possible. There are less hazardous alternatives -- see the 
WEST catalog. I avoid cleaning tools to a large extent by using cheap
brushes and throwing them away after use. Foam rollers cannot be
cleaned. Fortunately, the rollers are easily cut -- I usually cut them 
in thirds.

    A couple of years ago I bought a second hand sunfish that has a beat up
    rudder and mediocre dagger board for our cabin.  Both the rudder and
    dagger board are well worn on the leading/trailing edges and the dagger
    board has a half inch chunk taken out.  The trailing edges are really
    weather worn/porous. After I strip the mahogany, what is the best
    material to fill in the chunks prior to varnishing?
    
    Bob

    I was talking about this problem (damage to lower leading edge of
    board/rudder) to a racing dinghy sailor a few years ago. His solution
    was to cut a slot in the damaged area, insert a piece of stainless
    steel sheet cut to the correct profile, and then build up to the
    correct section with filler (epoxy/microballoons these days, I
    suppose). Saved a lot of further damage to the wood when the board hit
    the bottom, and had the side effect that with wear it developed a good
    cutting edge that would slice fishing lines that were sometimes cast in
    front of him (when sailing inland)!
    
    - Brian

    re. 38   fishing line cutter
    
    
       What a neat idea. To bad the hydrodymanics are wrong for the best flow
    though. 
    
       It's funny when we are rocketing around on our cat and accidently
    catch a fishing line. The line is so fine the rudders do not
    automatically kick-up and release. We ussally feel something slowing us
    down a bit. We then scan for somebody standing up with a doubled over
    rod. A quick rudder reset, a freindly hand wave, and we are on our way.
    
       Always wanted to hear those reel bearings as we take the line at 25
    knots.
    
    john

    As part of our adventures rebuilding a Taiwanese bowsprit (note 1831) my
    wife and I had to "wood" the spar so we could coat it with epoxy.  I was
    ready to go to a chemical stripper, but she had been reading the
    recently published "Brightwork" by Rebecca Whitman (An eminently
    readable and beautifully designed how-to book.)  Whitman highly recommends
    a heat gun for varnish removal, so Anne insisted giving it a try.  We 
    checked one out from Taylor Rental for $10 a day and went at it. 
    
    My image of a heat gun was one of those gas-burning models of yore, but
    this item, manufactured by Bosch tools, was more like a nuclear-powered
    hairdrier.  Though it was rated at several hundred degrees below
    Whitman's recommended temperature, it worked smoothly and quickly.  I 
    initially feared it would fry the wood or our fingers, but it concentrated 
    the heat in the one- or two-cubic inch area right below the nozzle.  In 
    about 20 minutes we had done most of an 8' x 6" square surface.  I would 
    heat a one to two-foot long section for a few seconds, until the varnish 
    bubbled, then Anne would run the scrapper over it, and, without much
    effort, take up all the old material.  While she scrapped, I moved on to 
    another section.  I don't know how easy it would be for one person to do, 
    but with two people it was a fast and pleasant technique.
    
    Unfortunately, because of the pitiful condition of the rental heat gun, 
    the motor died after 20 minutes.  Taylor gave us a credit, and we repeated 
    the performance the following week-end. It died again, this time after 10 
    minutes.  Despite this, we are thinking of varnishing a lot of our 
    brightwork rather than oiling it (especially after reading a lot of the
    disgusted comments made in this notes file about oil).  If we do go that 
    way, a gun will definitely save a lot of toil and a lot of exposure to 
    liver-hardening chemicals.  
    
    Rebecca Whitman's book --  a hybrid between a how-to book and a coffee 
    table artifact -- gives far more detail on preparation. She has a great 
    sense of humor, quotes everyone from Shakespeare to Liilian Helmann, and 
    the photos shine with those brightwork details that make even the wisest 
    among us improvident when faced with a wood-finishing project.  

    I have been using a heat gun to clean some of the wood in the 400 year
    old cottage I restoring. On old Oak it is very effective and does not
    leave any burn marks. On soffter woods I have to be very careful. I
    have just used it on a friends yacht to strip the main cabin table, it
    was very effective, the machine in question is the top of the range
    Black and Decker and on full heat starts my lounge fire nicely......
    
    
    
    Pete

    I used a heat gun to wood my entire boat. Worked like a charm. I would
    never consider chemicals again.
    
    Gregg

    Be careful with too much heat on your gel coat.  It could bubble and/or
    craze it.  Also, the heat can disturb any bedding that the wood has
    been set into and cause eventual leaks or worse a loose deck fitting.
    
    

    We bought the heat gun that Rebecca mentions in her book and are very
    pleased with the results.  We found it at the Wooden Boat Shop in
    Seattle. (By the way they are an excellent source for high quality wood
    working tools).  
    
    For those places where a heat gun does not work well (carved wood,
    etc.) 3-M makes a non-toxic varnish removing liquid that is friendly to 
    the lungs and skin.  It doesn't work fast but I find that an acceptable
    trade-off for good health.
    
    Howard  -  Who is now living in Sydney and is really missing Viking
               Rose.

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Note 1497.47                         VARNISH                            47 of 50
FASDER::AHERB "Al is the *first* name"                6 lines   9-JUN-1992 08:29
                       -< Didn't work on marine varnish >-
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    I have to report that the formula did little for the marine varnish. It
    worked great on the old rocker though. Rocker may have been shellac
    based.
    
    Grocery stores carry Arm&Hammer's "Super Washing Soda" in the soap
    sections.

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Note 1497.48                         VARNISH                            48 of 50
UNIFIX::FRENCH "Bill French 381-1859"                 9 lines   9-JUN-1992 08:57
                             -< Na2CO3 /=  NaHCO3 >-
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    Re .46 No, Washing soda is different than baking soda.
    Baking Soda is sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3)
    Washing soda is hydrated sodium carbonate (Na2CO3 .7H20)
    
    Both are mfg by Arm and Hammer. Washing soda is in a blue box
    available in larger supermarkets.
    
    Bill
    

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Note 1497.49                         VARNISH                            49 of 50
DNEAST::OKERHOLM_PAU                                  2 lines  10-JUN-1992 12:28
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    Okay I'll bite, what's the distinction between washing soda and hot
    washing soda? 

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Note 1497.50                         VARNISH                            50 of 50
FASDER::AHERB "Al is the *first* name"                 1 line  11-JUN-1992 07:50
                              -< Opps! Hot WATER >-
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    Sorry, I should have typed "hot water".