Varnished Exterior Teak Hand Rails?

I just finished stripping the failed remaining varnish off my exterior teak handrails. I'm debating re-varnishing or just using teak oil. I have new Sunbrella covers for the rails so they are out of the sun and mostly out of the weather.

My concern is there was very little, probably no, varnish on the underside of these handrails. It seems varnishing these handrails is doomed to premature failure since the underside is not sealed. I don't know how long the previous varnish job held up since it was done over five years ago by the PO.

Anyone have experience with the longevity of varnish on their handrails?

Thanks!

Mark

I use Sunbrella covers on the handrails and other exposed teak along with the hatches. Prior to using the covers, the varnish lasted 6-9 months. Now it is 3 1/2+ years. The varnish looks far better than the oil. The oil is easier to keep up.

Teak

Like Bob I keep my teak hand rails covered with Sunbrella(r) covers when not using the boat. Blocking UV is a huge part of external teak maintenance, no matter where the teak is located.

Our external teak bits came with no finish combined with rampant neglect. I sanded them and applied Cetol. The original formula was too "orange" altho we could get a couple years or more of use out of it. Then I had covers made.

Current we have the "light" version of the Cetol product on for the last 5 years. Still not very attractive, IMHO.
When doing this again, likely next year, I see a change back to varnish. Nothing else seems to bring out the beauty of teak as well.

Of course, the moment either of those two nice rails develops a crack or a split, both will be replaced with SS hand rails!

Heck, truth to tell, 50% of the reason we have never seriously looked at a bigger Tartan is the presence of their signature (massive) teak cap rails. Several of these boats in our moorage have only two "modes" of appearance: fresh varnish for a few short months until the sun attacks it, and pealing and moldy degraded surfaces due to Oregon rain conspiring with Old Sol to assault those spendy pieces of external teak.
(Not like I have an opinion, of course.)


Regards,
Loren

Here, at our 12-month latitude, the gold-plater yachts have a contract to revarnish every six months. That way you can display your Hinckley 40's brightwork like a jewel. Covers are declasse.

But covered, varnish lasts a long time. Years, even. This week I applied two maintenance coats to the long handrails of the E38. I just sanded a little because there were no breaks in the varnish shield, and no discoloration. Interlux Schooner, thinned a little with Interlux 333 to slow the cure.

However, the companionway mahogany work had voids and stains, and so did the lazarette pocket surround. Those I took down to the wood with a heat gun and putty knife, bleached with oxalic acid to reduce the weather stains, and applied (only ) three coats of varnish. I recently finished making covers for everything--including the lazarette pocket.

When varnishing on deck I tape off carefully with exterior 3M--the expensive plastic stuff. Tape may be in place for a week or more, in rain and sun, between coats. It holds its edge and comes off easily. I actually prefer oil, because all those covers are a pain, and themselves get dirty and require maintenance.

But this boat came varnished. I think with covers, it will be less work than oil to maintain. But dealing with all the covers is work too.

Varnishers,

How much varnish do you apply to the bottom surface of the handrail?

It seems that a minimum thickness is needed on the bottom just to seal the teak handrail so that the varnish doesn't lift from the edge. The top and sides can get more coats for UV protection and so they look better. With covers on most of the time, there is quite a bit of UV and weather protection so maybe I'm being overly concerned about the bottom surface.

Thanks,

Mark

To my mind there's a big difference between mahogany and teak. Our boats have either*, and there are scores of varieties of both, and I am no expert at wood identification.

Teak doesn't hold varnish so well, but is nearly immune to sun even if bare. So no worries.

Mahogany you gotta protect from fresh water and in the sun it's pure vanity. It likes salt water, and makes a great hull that lasts forever.

I didn't bother to carefully varnish the undersides of my hand rails. Didn't even sand the undersides. Never even thought of it.

Till now?

*Well, maybe. But mine, I discovered, is all teak. http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoex...tion-(-teak-or-mahogany-)&p=103078#post103078

All I know is that all the sanding and varnishing that I did five years ago is now wholly undone. What about paint instead?

I have tried oils, cetol, various kinds of varnish, and have settled on varnish for the last 10 years. I scrape and sand to bare wood every five years or so, which takes about an hour. I lightly sand the underside of the handrail but not much. Then i apply three coats of varnish. Twice a year I sand lightly with 220 paper and apply a new coat. If left too long, you have to sand to bare wood again.
I don't cover the rails cause i want the boat ready to sail anytime without alot of pre-work. If it's too hard to get the boat ready to sail, I wouldn't get out sailing as often as I do.
Frank

I use varnish and also have Sunbrella covers. I stripped (heat gun) them and put 3 coats of varnish on 6 years ago (on the underside too), and each year would just lightly sand and add another coat. In the off season the entire boat is covered.

On both my '27 and '31 the rails are teak.

Don

While downloading some boat pictures from my camera today, I found a few pictures of the hand rails prior to stripping and it looks like there is no failure of the old varnish along the bottom edge. It actually looks like there was continuous old varnish along the entire lower edge of the side even though there was no varnish on the underside when I stripped them.

Pardon the dirty, oxidized gelcoat on the cabin side in the left picture. The right picture is the after shot of the same area of the cabin side after compounding and polishing using Maine Sail's buffing guide.

Mark

markvone said:

While downloading some boat pictures from my camera today, I found a few pictures of the hand rails prior to stripping and it looks like there is no failure of the old varnish along the bottom edge. It actually looks like there was continuous old varnish along the entire lower edge of the side even though there was no varnish on the underside when I stripped them.

Pardon the dirty, oxidized gelcoat on the cabin side in the left picture. The right picture is the after shot of the same area of the cabin side after compounding and polishing using Maine Sail's buffing guide.

Mark

Click to expand...

When my varnish failed, I cleaned with Barkeepers Friend then finished with Starbrite teak oil and sealer. I am very happy with that so far. I used a sponge brush and got underneath as well.

The environment my boat basks in (bakes in might be more appropriate) has lead me to do everything mentioned here. Varnish has no lifespan at all, and if covered the winds coming out of the panhandle carry enough dirt in the air where it builds up in any sunbrella cover and wears on the varnish like sandpaper. Oil is okay if you do it every week. Bare teak isn't the look most of us want, and wood without protection in some form in the summer when it feels like you are 100 feet off the surface of the sun doesn't sound like a good idea to me. So, I guess what works best depends on your latitude.

For me, the new natural teak cetol WITH the marine gloss coating has outlived all other options by far. Looks good too, which I couldn't say about the older versions on cetol. Thats without any sunbrella covering, I got rid of the covers years ago. I would rate its look second only to varnish. First in longevity, second in appearance, vs. varnish first in appearance, near last in longevity...not too bad at all. And I only cetol what I can see, not the undersides or anything like that. Just tape off and go.

These work pretty well. The long grab rail cover has old line sewn into the hems, and lies flat of its own weight even without snaps. Reduces on/off time.

You wouldn't think a pocket cover necessary-- until refinishing that crazy racetrack of Ericson woodshop scraps.