> The weather is too nice to mess with varnish problems, so I'd suggest you
> ignore them and just enjoy paddling the boat. Wet, dry, or in-between, the
> only purpose of the varnish is to provide a UV barrier. It adds nothing to
> the strength of the boat, or the functionality. If you don't leave your
> boat in the sun for days and weeks at a time, you don't really need
> varnish at all. Since it takes months and years for UV damage to start,
> you are not doing any harm by NOT varnishing for a while.

> The advantages of this slothful suggestion: Getting the boat out into use
> may help the solvent in the varnish to evaporate, leaving you with a
> delayed, but hard, varnish surface. If it doesn't do that, the exposure of
> the unhardened varnish to the water may make it easier to remove the bad
> spots.

> The disadvantages: The gummy scum may rub off on items you don't want to
> get scummy. The bad areas will look REAL bad. But, like a teenager's acne,
> the problem areas are VERY easily seen, and with simple treatment and a
> bit of time they DO go away. Until you get a nice coat of varnish on you
> will want to store your boat out of direct sunlight when it is not in use.
> (This is a good suggestion even after you have varnish on it)

> Unless you own stock in a sandpaper company, sanding off gummy varnish is
> a nasty job. I'd try using cloth rags dampened with a solvent that would
> disolve the varnish. Expect to go through a lot of rags. Don't use paper
> towels. Nick likes to use Scotchbrite (a registered trademark of 3M) pads
> for a final sanding. Those might be ideal tools here, too. Get them wet
> with a solvent and they may have enough abrasive action to remove the
> gummy mess. Yes, they will get gummy, too, but you should be able to rinse
> them clean in a tray of solvent and then go back to removing the gummy
> mess on the boat. The solvent fumes may get you sick if you do not wear a
> proper mask, so get one. Wearing impervious gloves is mandatory. Vinyl
> should work. I'm not sure if latex will.

> If the interlux brushing liquid works as a solvent, use it. Otherwise, try
> using mineral spirits (paint thinner). Cured epoxy resin is used in
> coating fuel tanks (gasoline and/or diesel) and is extremely resistant to
> petroleum distillates. If gasoline won't hurt it, naptha, kerosene and
> paint thinner won't hurt it either.

> Once you think you have it clean, go paddling again. If you have uncovered
> an area with some residual amine blush, the water should wash it away. If
> there is some more bad varnish, it will show up. If you have residual
> solvent it should wash away, too.

> I don't particularly agree with the general trend to rush into varnishing
> things. After a few launchings you WILL get some scrapes. After paddling a
> bit you may want to try adding additional scrape and ding protection,
> rudders or skegs or keels or cup holders or braces of one kind or another.
> These things get epoxied in, and you would have to sand off the varnish to
> get a good bond. If you don't varnish first you don't have to sand the
> varnish off two weeks later. My thought is: build and test the boat, then
> after a few weeks -- when the epoxy is fully hardened and all
> modifications are installed -- pull the boat out of the water, clean it,
> sand it and varnish it. Get used to this practice. Every year or two
> you'll have to revarnish it, and that means cleaning and resanding it
> (lightly) first.

> My first thought on your varnish situation is that the thinner you used is
> not compatible with the varnish. My second thought was that the varnish is
> old. You might try a bit of unthinned varnish on a scrap board and see how
> well two or three coats set up -- and how long it takes. The first coat
> may just soak into the wood. The real test is whether the 2nd and 3rd
> coats dry properly. If they don't, take the can of varnish and the plank
> to your supplier and see if they will give you back your money.

> There are several places on the internet that will sell you varnish by
> mailorder. Even my local home housewares/hardware store carries good spar
> varnish with a UV inhibitor. At first I used Pettit High-build varnish
> that I bought over the phone from Clark Craft (www.clarkcraft.com). Since
> then two boating supply stores have opened within driving distance of my
> home and I have debated using other brands. I get about 3 to 4 years of
> life from the Pettit, so I'm happy with it, and it comes delivered to my
> door. On the other hand, I can browse and read labels at the boat store.
> Ah, such dilemnas there are in life.

> Hope these random thoughts are of some aid.

> Paul Jacobson

Thanks,

I appreciate your insight and ideas, I think I have a little more perspective now.

Mike