Hi Kent;

Sorry to hear you had poor results. From your description, it sounds as though it went on too dry, it probably is in need of thinning. My gallon can of spar varnish was brand new, and I didn't have to thin it at all. I pretty well saturated the wad of rag, and did about 2 sq. ft. or less at a time. I swirled randomly within the area, and then drew strokes parallel to the keel. If the rag felt like it was "dragging" in a spot, I dipped it lightly into the varnish again, swirled a bit in that area, and proceeded to draw straight strokes again. The varnish leveled and removed ALL rag marks whatsoever. There are pictures of the 1st coat up at my site, linked below. I swear it was cake to do . . . ;-)

Again, I poured about 5oz into a small can through a strainer (this would be the time to thin it if necessary) and just dipped and went. I probably had 1-2oz left over, and a lot in the rag when done. Above all, you have to wet the surface, so use enough varnish and thin if necessary.

Others have reported good results raggin' it on this forum, so it has to be a small hitch in the technique - BTW, a t-shirt should be fine material.

Spidey