The Varnished Truth

January 9, 2017  Hours spent building to date:  3,234

I’ve been slogging away at the trim varnish and it is finally done.  My recipe is a modified version of the Lackey Method:

5 coats of Interlux Schooner gloss for depth, then 2 coats Interlux Goldspar Satin to create a furniture-like “rubbed effect.”  First two thinned coats to seal, no sanding in between if applied within 24 hours.  Sanding with 220 grit after coats 2 and 3, 320 grit after coat 4, green Scotchbrite after coats 5 and 6.

Ray was available over the weekend before a big snowstorm, so we bedded the handrails, with me on top handling bedding and machine screws and Ray inside tightening the bolts.  Tried a new goop, TotalBoat Seal, which spreads a little easier than 3M products and is in general easier to use, but doesn’t have quite the adhesive properties.  But with the handrails through bolted through almost an inch of deck and glass with 1/4-inch bronze machine screws, I needed water-tightness more than strength.

Then onto a big, scary water-system test.  Since the engine and steering system choice has been made (much more on that later this week) I could finalize the splash well.  But that meant sealing in the one water fitting that would take a huge amount of work to reach in case of a leak.  So I put a couple gallons in the auxiliary tank and turned on the water all the way to the galley sink.  No leaks!  That enabled me to rough in the splashwell.  Back to real construction this week, glassing the splashwell and building out the dinette.