Please help: What kind of varnish do I have?
 

Greetings all

Can anyone give any suggestions to help identify what kind of varnish
I might have on a used I boat I bought recently?

I bought a used 34' O'Day several months ago. The previous owner did
a nice job with the interior varnish, which looks like a semi-gloss of
some sort. It has some sheen to it, but it's not a high gloss.

Recently, I put some scratches in the finish. I first tried regular
ZSpar Captain's, which was much glossier than what was on there. I
then tried Interlux Goldspar satin. That was significantly duller
than the current finish. I called the guy I bought the boat from, and
he said he used a semi-gloss varnish. Definitely a varnish, not Cetol
or some other synthetic. He originally said it was Captain's
semi-gloss, but then said perhaps satin, and maybe not Captain's - he
wasn't sure.

Can anyone provide any suggestions as to what brand/sheen of varnish
this could be (or might match)? None of the local boat stores seem to
know anything about any semi-gloss varnishes. I'd prefer not to have
to re-finish the entire interior over a couple of scratches, but I
want my touch-up spots to match.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Mike P.
Tampa, FL

Epiphanes makes a semi gloss but if he used it he would likely remember. Its
going to be difficult to match the look given that the old varnish has been
curing for quite some time.


"Mike" wrote in message
om...
Greetings all

Can anyone give any suggestions to help identify what kind of varnish
I might have on a used I boat I bought recently?

I bought a used 34' O'Day several months ago. The previous owner did
a nice job with the interior varnish, which looks like a semi-gloss of
some sort. It has some sheen to it, but it's not a high gloss.

Recently, I put some scratches in the finish. I first tried regular
ZSpar Captain's, which was much glossier than what was on there. I
then tried Interlux Goldspar satin. That was significantly duller
than the current finish. I called the guy I bought the boat from, and
he said he used a semi-gloss varnish. Definitely a varnish, not Cetol
or some other synthetic. He originally said it was Captain's
semi-gloss, but then said perhaps satin, and maybe not Captain's - he
wasn't sure.

Can anyone provide any suggestions as to what brand/sheen of varnish
this could be (or might match)? None of the local boat stores seem to
know anything about any semi-gloss varnishes. I'd prefer not to have
to re-finish the entire interior over a couple of scratches, but I
want my touch-up spots to match.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Mike P.
Tampa, FL

Subject: Please help: What kind of varnish do I have?
From: (Mike)

Can anyone provide any suggestions as to what brand/sheen of varnish
this could be (or might match)? None of the local boat stores seem to
know anything about any semi-gloss varnishes.

If the old owner was smart he use a good grade of interior one part poly.
They come in satin and semigloss, last longer, are easier to apply, less
expensive and water proof.
You can get them in small cans, so pick one up and see if that matches better.

Capt. Bill

Satin finishes nowadays are obtained by adding 'wrinkling' chemicals to
the gloss mix.
Long before these chemicals were available, one obtained a satin finish
by hand rubbing gloss varnish with a mixture of pumice and/or
'rotten-stone'. This hand-rubbing process was the used for hundreds of
years before the advent of chemical addition. This hand rubbing process
can also be used to 'satinize' your existing gloss repair. All you
will need is several grades of pumice, rottenstone, a soft oil soaked
rag. Rotten stone and varying grades of pumice can be obtained in an
old-fashioned paint store. The technique of hand rubbing can be
obtained by doing a websearch for: "rotten stone" + "furniture
refinishing". You'll probably have to 'flat sand' the repaired areas
with 1000 grit wet&dry sandpaper first and then hand rub the entire
panel to get the effect correct. Hand rubbing is fairly easy and not
too labor intensive.

Thanks very much for the help thus far. I'm thinking about the 1 part
poly, or maybe trying this:
http://www.westernwooddoctor.com/manowar.htm which is the only
semi-gloss varnish I've been able to find so far.

I know the previous owner only had the boat for the past three years,
so the varnish is not too old, and he was pretty sure it was a
semi-gloss or satin. I think if he did a hand-rubbed job or spent the
money for Epifanes that he'd remember. My best guess at the moment is
that he did use a semi-gloss varnish or poly and can't remember which.

Which brings me to the following questions:

1. Has anyone used this man o war varnish? Any comments (for
interior use)?
2. What about if I mixed the gloss and satin varnishes that I have
(One is Interlux and one is Captain's)?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Mike