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Hello!

I am distraught after what i found working on the wood last night. The top part of my Sakonnet console (most exposed to sun) began peeling, and so i figured let it come off and then varnish over, good as new, right? Wrong. There is great contrast between old and new and it looks terrible. Any solutions as to how to match the varnish? It appears what peeled off had gone straight to the wood.

Before
https://www.flickr.com/photos/104375165@N04/shares/1KsP9D

After
https://www.flickr.com/photos/104375165@N04/shares/1srH32

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If you really want it to look good and all sections match disassemble/remove the entire helm and strip it and refinish.

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Once you have the wood refinished you should have a regular schedule of a light scuff and one or two new coats of varnish. Once a crack starts the staining process starts and it's hard to correct without stripping off all varnish and starting over. A cover would go a long way in preventing this, even just a canvass tarp tied down over the console.

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So assuming starting fresh is not an option, how do I proceed? It is my hope that maybe adding a stain with a tiny tiny tiny brush to all those areas and then varnishing would fix the whole issue, problem is I have no idea what the exact matching color is. Does anyone know the best matching rich mahogany color stains? Or maybe where to find Bostick #435?

Also, after stripping it down, say I did that, how do you get the rich color back?

Also, also, how do you varnish without the super tiny bubbles showing up? I used a sponge brush.

Thank you all so much for your help!!

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Unfortunately, starting fresh with stripped mahogany wood is your only option. First, if your console wood is original finish, then we know the finish is polyurethane. Do a google search of "polyurethane compatibility with varnish" and you will find out they are not very compatible. Did you apply the new varnish outside, in the sunlight, while the boat was in the water? If so, these conditions are not good for best varnishing results. Good news, though: the windshield can be removed by unscrewing the 8 bronze screws you can access from inside the top section of the console. You can work on the windshield while still being able to use the boat.

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That is where I did do the varnishing, but for the past 40 years we have varnished a coat or two each year after sanding..

So after stripping to new wood, would varnish being back the old rich color? Or should I go with a polyurethane?

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I personally would go with Petit Captain's Varnish or equivalent. It brings out the natural rich color of the mahogany very nicely.

I stripped the polyurethane of the original wood on my 1976 Sport 15 and refinished with a total of about 8-10 coats of Petit CV. You can see the results on my personal page.

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I have learned through other forums that bare wood, when coated with epoxy or varnish, tends to "outgas", I think that's the term used, if the finish is applied prior to rising temperatures, causing bubbles in the finish. I'm not sure if that applies to new wood, or any word but if you apply the varnish in the evening when the temperature is going down you won't have that problem. There are several good videos on YouTube demonstrating how to apply varnish but I have found a soft cloth like a tee shirt does a great job of wiping it on but that takes more coats.

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Also, thin the first coat of varnish 50% with mineral spirits. Apply all remaining coats using full strength varnish.

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What product are you applying for varnish removal?
Garris

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Methylene chloride. The higher the amount of MC in the product you choose the more effective it will be. Took off the old urethane with ease.

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Thanks, the thinners, spirits, etc... were not making a dent in it.
Garris

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I'm hoping that you are not leaving your Whaler out in the elements. Secondly, if you are keeping it inside, I hope you still keep a dust cover over it.

Long ago I kept my Whaler at a covered storage facility near the coast, but the condensation ruined the finish on my console in less than a year's time.

It was fairly simple to strip the finish completely bare, but I now had dark and light areas that had stained the wood unevenly. I tried a wood bleach but it was still unacceptable looking to go back over it with varnish.

I took my boat to a shop here in Houston that used to build wooden boats that completed with Chris Crafts, etc. and they suggested staining the wood prior to varnishing it. Basically there is blond, brown, and red mahogany stain. Red is what all the wooden builders generally use and gives the classic red mahogany color.

You can see how mine turned out on my Personal page.

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gchuba - Use gloves with the methylene chloride - it's nasty stuff.