Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

Joe wrote:
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

We varnish ours and have them professionally checked every two years.
Most of our really high load blocks are Harken with wood cheeks made for
them. They are not really wood.

Gaz

"Joe" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

Wooden blocks are fine for display, Joe, but substandard for use. That
said, a number of older boats still use them. Painting any load-bearing
wood on a boat is probably not a good idea. Spars, blocks, bowsprits,
sampson posts, etc. fall into that category. Varnish is a better
alternative--if rot begins it can be seen, not hidden by paint. I replaced
all the wooden blocks on my previous boat with Harkens. The wooden blocks
now hang decoratively in my den.

Max

Joe wrote:
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?


Same as any other wood.

Varnish if it's pretty, oil if you don't like to varnish, or
Sears Weatherbeater is you don't like constantly varnishing
or oiling & don't care about showing wood grain.


I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.


???

Are you sure it was the paint which caused this problem?


What is your opinion?


I like the look of modern hi-tech blocks, myself.

DSK

Our wood blocks were lignum vitae with bronze guts. I
cleaned and greased the guts and varnished the wood 8 coats.
The lignum was a bitch to sand but held the varnish fine. I
used to varnish a couple coats over the face-plates after
reassembling to keep water out of the shaft. Most of those
blocks were 60 years old and in great shape.

Seahag

"Joe" wrote:
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the
inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the
sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I
sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

On Mon, 02 Jan 2006 01:00:41 GMT, "Maxprop"
wrote:


"Joe" wrote in message
roups.com...
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

.. Varnish is a better
alternative--if rot begins it can be seen, not hidden by paint. .


Doesn't always work. I had a tiller that I varnished faithfully every
year to make sure that no water got in. Snapped off one day with no
external signs of rot but was rotted internally.



Max

"Frank Boettcher" wrote

. Varnish is a better
alternative--if rot begins it can be seen, not hidden by
paint. .


Doesn't always work. I had a tiller that I varnished
faithfully every
year to make sure that no water got in. Snapped off one day
with no
external signs of rot but was rotted internally.


What kind of wood was it?

SV

"Frank Boettcher" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 02 Jan 2006 01:00:41 GMT, "Maxprop"
wrote:


"Joe" wrote in message
groups.com...
Hey Gaz, or anyone else who uses or likes wooden blocks.

How do you care for and maintain the wood?

I painted some wood blocks and it destroyed them from the inside out
due to water trapped inside. Rotted the wood around the sheeves.

Just leave them plain ol wood? Oil the wood?

Was it was just a fluke my painted block went to crap?
Maybe it was bad wood anyway and lasted 5 yrs on deck so I sould be
happy.

What is your opinion?

Joe

. Varnish is a better
alternative--if rot begins it can be seen, not hidden by paint. .


Doesn't always work. I had a tiller that I varnished faithfully every
year to make sure that no water got in. Snapped off one day with no
external signs of rot but was rotted internally.

Wood is wood, and it will rot under the right conditions. Water can seep
into the internal fibers from bolt holes, etc. As you say, varnish is no
guarantee against detecting rot before it bites.

Max

On Mon, 2 Jan 2006 13:47:51 -0500, "Scotty"
wrote:


"Frank Boettcher" wrote

. Varnish is a better
alternative--if rot begins it can be seen, not hidden by
paint. .


Doesn't always work. I had a tiller that I varnished
faithfully every
year to make sure that no water got in. Snapped off one day
with no
external signs of rot but was rotted internally.


What kind of wood was it?

SV


Laminated Ash