If you are stripping the whole rudder down to bare wood, I highly recommend applying CPES (clear penetrating epoxy sealer) before varnishing. Especially on the end grain at the bottom, any cracked areas there and repairs to same, and the lower pintle bolt holes (often under water), and, everywhere else also. It will seal the wood from significant water absorption, so that scratches dents nicks cracks in the varnish will not result in the usual rapid blackening and need for immediate/constant repair & refinishing if you use only varnish. Also your base coat of varnish will stick better. I used CPES when I refinished my M17 mahogany rudder some years ago. Also for a base coat on most any wood I'm using on/in a boat that is going to get epoxy and/or varnish on it. If it's getting fiber-glassed but is at risk of damage that breaches the glass layer (e.g. bottom of wooden boat) I use it there also. Especially good for sealing any end grain, whether solid wood or plywood. May seem pricey, but a little goes a long way, both in terms of direct application and in terms of reducing repair/refinish work after that. Manufacturer site: https://www.smithandcompany.org/CPES/ cheers, John On 3/2/24 16:31, Gary H.Oberbeck wrote:
Jen, I have used Deks Olje with very good results ( using #1 and #2). It is hard to find so I am using Deks #1 and Petit Captains spar varnish over the #1. I believe you can use Penetrol in lieu of #1, with equal results. Let the topcoats dry, sand lightly with 220 wet or dry, recoat, as many times as you want. Usually takes a minimum of 3 or 4 coats. Note- varnish does not fill grain well- sanding will help- use a block and get lots of sandpaper, varnish clogs the grit. Sand just enough to take the gloss off the most recent coat of varnish, final coat hang rudder indoors (garage etc) and let dry for 3-5 days.
Have fun, go sailing! GO
On Sat, Mar 2, 2024 at 5:17 PM Jennifer Wood < jennifer@buskersguidetotheuniverse.org> wrote:
Hi all. I'm stripping the nearly 50 year old varnish from my M17's stock rudder, and man is that varnish sturdy. I'd love to replace it with something as durable -- what would you all suggest?
There are some cracks near the bottom that were repaired with fiberglass and resin, which I plan to re-do as well.
Cheers! --Jen
-- John Schinnerer - M.A., Whole Systems Design -------------------------------------------- - Eco-Living - Whole Systems Design Services People - Place - Learning - Integration john@eco-living.net - 510.982.1334 http://eco-living.net http://sociocracyconsulting.com