The new swim platform is nearing completion. The last strips have
been sprung into place, screwed down, trimmed and given a preliminary
sanding. The last remaining assembly step is to glue teak plugs into
the mounting holes, trim and sand flush.

Next is the big decision - how to finish it, if at all. The choices
go something like this:

Leave it totally natural, the "gray is beautiful" approach (like the
swim ladder).

Oil it with teak oil - looks very good initially but tends to darken
with age and collect dirt.

Varnish bare wood. Looks extremely good but is high maintenance and
requires periodic stripping and do over (like the transom).

Seal it with several coats of low viscosity penetrating epoxy and then
varnish. The sealed wood tends to hold varnish better but stripping
is much more difficult.

All constructive suggestions welcome.

Befo

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/9...onstructio.jpg

After:

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3...earlycompl.jpg

On Fri, 03 Dec 2010 11:45:12 -0500, Wayne.B
wrote:

The new swim platform is nearing completion. The last strips have
been sprung into place, screwed down, trimmed and given a preliminary
sanding. The last remaining assembly step is to glue teak plugs into
the mounting holes, trim and sand flush.

Next is the big decision - how to finish it, if at all. The choices
go something like this:

Leave it totally natural, the "gray is beautiful" approach (like the
swim ladder).

Oil it with teak oil - looks very good initially but tends to darken
with age and collect dirt.

Varnish bare wood. Looks extremely good but is high maintenance and
requires periodic stripping and do over (like the transom).

Seal it with several coats of low viscosity penetrating epoxy and then
varnish. The sealed wood tends to hold varnish better but stripping
is much more difficult.

All constructive suggestions welcome.

Befo

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/9...onstructio.jpg

After:

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3...earlycompl.jpg

Very nice job. I'd leave it, or go with the oil. Cleaning once in a while is
easier than refinishing.
--

Hope you're having a great day!

John H

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...

The new swim platform is nearing completion. The last strips have
been sprung into place, screwed down, trimmed and given a preliminary
sanding. The last remaining assembly step is to glue teak plugs into
the mounting holes, trim and sand flush.

Next is the big decision - how to finish it, if at all. The choices
go something like this:

Leave it totally natural, the "gray is beautiful" approach (like the
swim ladder).

Oil it with teak oil - looks very good initially but tends to darken
with age and collect dirt.

Varnish bare wood. Looks extremely good but is high maintenance and
requires periodic stripping and do over (like the transom).

Seal it with several coats of low viscosity penetrating epoxy and then
varnish. The sealed wood tends to hold varnish better but stripping
is much more difficult.

All constructive suggestions welcome.

Befo

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/9...onstructio.jpg

After:

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3...earlycompl.jpg

--------
Get Scotty to come over and show you how to do it right!
Looks great.

"I am Tosk" wrote in message
...

In article m,
says...

"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...

The new swim platform is nearing completion. The last strips have
been sprung into place, screwed down, trimmed and given a preliminary
sanding. The last remaining assembly step is to glue teak plugs into
the mounting holes, trim and sand flush.

Next is the big decision - how to finish it, if at all. The choices
go something like this:

Leave it totally natural, the "gray is beautiful" approach (like the
swim ladder).

Oil it with teak oil - looks very good initially but tends to darken
with age and collect dirt.

Varnish bare wood. Looks extremely good but is high maintenance and
requires periodic stripping and do over (like the transom).

Seal it with several coats of low viscosity penetrating epoxy and then
varnish. The sealed wood tends to hold varnish better but stripping
is much more difficult.

All constructive suggestions welcome.

Befo

http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/9...onstructio.jpg

After:

http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/3...earlycompl.jpg

--------
Get Scotty to come over and show you how to do it right!
Looks great.

There are a bunch of motocross tracks down there He would have to put
me up though and I smell

--
Rowdy Mouse Racing - Pain is temporary, Glory is forever!
------
Haha!
I had a neighbor that would rope people into doing things for him by playing
dumb just to see if he could. He got me to rewire his dock electrics before
I figured out what he was up to.

On 12/4/10 11:21 AM, MMC wrote:
Haha!
I had a neighbor that would rope people into doing things for him by
playing dumb just to see if he could. He got me to rewire his dock
electrics before I figured out what he was up to.

You didn't read Mark Twain while in grammar school? :)

"HarryK" wrote in message
m...

On 12/4/10 11:21 AM, MMC wrote:
Haha!
I had a neighbor that would rope people into doing things for him by
playing dumb just to see if he could. He got me to rewire his dock
electrics before I figured out what he was up to.

You didn't read Mark Twain while in grammar school? :)

----
Haha!
Yeah and after I got played I made that connection!