As bored readers of my prior threads know, we have been bleaching out the factory stain and varnishing portions of our interior teak over a period of years - more than a decade, actually.
Not a high priority, and we are about half done at this point.
The difference is difficult to show in pictures on line, but the natural "golden" teak appearance in the refinished sections seems attractive to all visitors in person, and they make favorable comments even without being prompted to do so.
Of course the gloss varnish also reflects more light and brightens up the interior. Being lazy, we have stopped at four coats for most of this work, and do realize that more sanding and another 3 or 4 coats would really make it look really great. Someday...
We have visited a lot of other boats (some Ericsons) and really do not like the dark "living inside a teak tree" ambience in many.
Sidebar: Anyone else here remember the 80's Hans Christians, some with dark green velour upholstery and
black marble counter tops? It was like descending into a mine!
As to Brian's system of applying clear non-skid to the holly strips on his sole, we saw that while visiting a SC-53C a few years ago at Sail Expo. Very nice/safe, yet subtle. Hours and hours of time, and rolls and rolls of blue tape!
Cheers,
Loren