: Last year I went through a little fact finding expedition at the boat show
: talking to paint vendors. Polyurethane varnish is synthetic and was
: invented for the floor industry and is harder than varnish. Exterior
: varnish is made from all natural ingredients like Linseed and or Tung oil
: and other stuff. It dries slower and has more flexibility and is not as
: hard. I got a lot of this from the people at Epiphanes. I tried their
: varnish on my kayak over my Helmsman poly varnish and it's held up with no
: problems... plus it the best and longest lasting high gloss I have ever
: used. It's pricey but I was surprised how great the finish has lasted.

: So why would anyone want to use varnish? Bright work on boats is not over
: epoxy but on to usually mahogany and in the sun that wood will expand and
: contract and the varnish with it's increased flexibility can handle that
: better. Most boaters will use the marine poly on table tops and more
: inside work. many time the poly will hold up fine on bare wood but the
: expert opinion from the manufacturers is that varnish will do better.
: Epiphanes sells both varnish and poly varnish. Polyurethane has also
: become a buzz word and makes people think it's superior in every way.
: Regular varnish which not many companies make anymore is more expensive to
: make because of the natural oils.

Hi Jay,

Actually the swelling and contracting of the individual boards on a boats deck won't cause a problem even with two part catalized varnishes, but the joints between two or more boards will. It's a common problem with owners of varnished mahogany runabouts that try to use the modern varnishes.

Bill H.