Dinette base restoration

[NewToTheRoad]

I was refinishing the cabin sole over the winter and just couldn't get past the look of the old, corroded base.  So I took it to a local metal shop to get it sandblasted, which left it pitted.  He offered to smooth it out and have the body shop paint it.  Yeah, why not..  The admiral thought it was a waste until she saw the finished product.  Came out pretty nice IMO.

[NewToTheRoad]

Before image

[Jon W]

Great job, it looks good as new. Do you know what they used to paint it?

[Eisensail]

Looks great, and so does the refinishing of the sole
I need to do both of these projects... here are a few questions:
1. The metal table base looks very pitted (like mine), did it need some filling prior to painting? Or just sandblasting?
2. What did you use on the sole? How may coats?

Thanks.

[britinusa]

Definitely an 11 

Paul

[NewToTheRoad]

Base
The metal base was pitted after the blasting.  He used some filler, my guess similar to Bondo, and smoothed and primed.  At that point he told me he could paint it so we walked to the adjacent business that did auto painting.  Initially I was going to repaint myself but went this easy route.  As it was a change in plan we didn't match the paint before and only had the before picture to go by.  He brought out a bunch of auto paint swatches and we went with the one that had the most brass look to it - so not very scientific.  My thought was that the post is black so how bad could it be.

Floors
After reading up on all the options I used a heat gun (first time) and I think it was the good choice.  Be careful because you can burn the wood, as I learned on the first board.  I sanded the best I could but being a thin veneer I was afraid to do much.  I live just a few miles from Jamestown Distributors so I gave their TotalBoat brand a try.  First I did 2 coats of their Varnish Sealer (front and back).  Then on the fronts I did 4 coats of the Lust Spar Varnish (gloss).  They also have matte finish.  Gloss does reflect the imperfections well.  Overall I think they look 100% better, but nothing like new.  They have a lot of character - aka chips, scratches, and nicks.  What I like about TotalBoat Lust Spar varnish is you don't need to sand between coats if you recoat within 24 hours - at least for the first 3 coats.  I did a total of 4 coats over the winter.

note:  The Lust Spar Varnish is like a thick syrup.  The first coat came out uneven and lumpy so for the remaining 3 coats (after sanding first coat) I cut it with TotalBoat Brushing Thinner (they recommended) and the results were much better.

I will post some before and after shots.

[NewToTheRoad]

Some Before and After.  I had to shrink due to forum constraints but hopefully they show up well enough.

[patrice]

Hi,

Very nice look

[Eisensail]

Thank you for the info about your refinishing process.  How long did you wait before walking on them after your last coat?

[NewToTheRoad]

I actually finished about 2 months ago and didn't install but a few days ago.  I imagine you are concerned about cure time so my case won't be much help.  They were not tacky at all after 24 hours.  I would have probably waited 48 hours to walk on them.  You can always call Jamestown Distributors.  They are typically very helpful and knowledgeable, especially concerning their own branded product.

[Stu Jackson]

Dare I suggest?  RTFM.  Or the label on the can of stuff you use to coat the material.  They always tell you how long it takes to "cure."  Really.   

[NewToTheRoad]

Stu,
  I don't think your comment was directed at me, but I do see his point.  In my experience you can't really trust the label and there are environmental aspects like humidity and temp, YMMV.  And, also thickness of the formula, and what you cut it with.  I did it in my garage in New England in the winter so the air is pretty dry.  Florida in the summer would be different.  I'm pretty sure the can says recoat in 2 hrs at 72 degrees but my experience was that at 65 degrees it took at least 12 hours.  I also agree with you that the can, or website is a great place to start..
Bryan

[Eisensail]

The reason I asked was that I had a problem with the salon table that I varnished using epifanes. I found the directions are off by quite a bit for when you can put pressure on a surface after the last of several coats are applied.  This seems to be especially true when you do not allow a complete cure between each coat (hot coating I think it's called). 

[Stu Jackson]

Stu,
  I don't think your comment was directed at me, but I do see his point.  In my experience you can't really trust the label and there are environmental aspects like humidity and temp, YMMV.  And, also thickness of the formula, and what you cut it with.  I did it in my garage in New England in the winter so the air is pretty dry.  Florida in the summer would be different.  I'm pretty sure the can says recoat in 2 hrs at 72 degrees but my experience was that at 65 degrees it took at least 12 hours.  I also agree with you that the can, or website is a great place to start..
Bryan

Bryan,

You're right, of course.  The "Lust Technical Data sheet" is referred to in the lengthy "applications" discussion on Jamestown's own website:  https://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=98160&familyName=TotalBoat+Lust+Marine+Varnish+