I tried using a rag for covering scratches on the top of my Coho's deck, and it worked great! No sign of any varnish on non-scratch areas, but the varnish did fill in the scratches very well. So instead of a major repair, it took me about a minute. (You can still see the scratches at a certain angle, but I'd highly recommend this approach for minor cosmetic repairs.)

Tom

: Maybe you just need a tighter-weave rag. Something more like a bedsheet than
: a terry-cloth towel or shop rag. Another plus to a finer-woven cloth would
: be less chance for fibers to end up in your varnish job...

: Dean