Morris Minor Owners Club

Can anyone advise with regard to the best way to protect the woodwork ? Currently I have yacht varnish. A friend has suggested stripping and using Sadolin ? Some seem to argue that the wood needs to breathe, others advocate plastering on the varnish ! I'd be grateful for any info from experienced users !
Have a good weekend, Gelli Aur Andi.

Well Steve Foreman recomends Burgess products and I have used the Dulux 2 part system, the main thing you want is that it wants to be UV light resistant so it does not fade to quickly and a breathing type will also help it last longer. If you intend stipping it right off the best thing to do is give it a few coats of clear cuprinol before you recoat as this will soak into the wood and give it a good bit of protection and is what they are supposed to have done at the factory on the new cars.

Don't use international yacht varnish..... we spent weeks rubbing down the wood on our trav, varinshed it with international yacht varnish, and after 6 months it was peeling off (that was 2 years ago and havent had a chance to do anything about it yet :s)

Matt,

Which type of International varnish did you use?
There's the Polyurethane (totally impermeable to water vapour) and
Conventional yacht varnish (which breathes).

Having used both types on sailing dingies, I would never touch the polyurethane again. Most wood has some moisture, so the varnish start to lift & bubble, pulls off in large flakes, peels etc.
The conventional stuff is designed to let the water vapour through. If the wood is very wet before the varnish is applied it will do the same...
Otherwise it's a lot better to use than polyurethane.

Nowadays, I use the West epoxy stuff before varnishing. It's great for strengthening the wood, and it soaks into the grain & makes it waterproof. Might be difficult to remove a Travellers' wood though.

Colin

Which type of International varnish did you use?

No idea.... probably the poly urethane one (in a red tin)

I did my Traveller timber during the summer by stripping to bare wood then first, as Kevin suggests, treating with a liberal covering of clear Cuprinol wood preserver. I was advised to leave this to dry for at least 7 days. Used Burgess base coat and a couple of coats of their top gloss and found the product very easy to apply, I am very pleased with the results. The top gloss is recommended for uv protection, the base coat doesn't have this. Burgess are based on the Isle of Man and will supply directly.

urgh i spent most of the summer holidays rubbing off sadolin coating from my traveller, its great stuff but i wanted to SEE the wood grain. sadolin is more for use around the house on window frames and doors etc, it is very long lasting.

i have a few dark marks but id still rather see the grain, the back posts look fantastic now. i gave it all about 4 coats of clear cuprinol and three coats of ronseal outdoor matt varnish (it does what it says on the tin ... and it says it lasts longer than yacht varnish )

i have ended up with a couple of milky spots though, i presume this was where the timber wasnt quite dry, am i going to have to fetch that off at some point or will it go clear ?

cheers
grainger

am i going to have to fetch that off at some point or will it go clear ?

I doubt it will go clear as varnish only gets worse with age not better.

Has anyone had their wood reconditioned by Foremans? They offer a refurbishing service and I wondered if they had long lead times etc..
Mine needs stripping, treating and revarnishing and I've not contacted him to get an idea of price yet (I have no great desire to dIY it - wood isn't really my thing)

grainger wrote:i have ended up with a couple of milky spots though, i presume this was where the timber wasnt quite dry, am i going to have to fetch that off at some point or will it go clear ?

cheers
grainger

According to Burgess there is only the risk of this when applying their Top Gloss to damp timber. They advise it will gradually disappear with Burgess treatment (the dampness will evaporate eventually), don't know about others though. But as Kevin says possibly not with Sadolin as it is probably an oil based varnish

rayofleamington wrote: (I have no great desire to dIY it - wood isn't really my thing)

why on earth have you got a traveller then Ray ? ...

i think wood is great when its rubbed down and maybe a touch of stain to bring out the grain and then varnished at least 3 times it sort of glows

i think i will leave the milky patches alone through the winter, they seem to have gone hard enough now.

a couple of tips, i think it would be better to do the sealant all round before varnishing, and definately make sure the cant rail is sealed with dum dum or something just under the guttering, because thats where mine went rotten - water drips over the gutter and gets under the roof where the timber probably isnt varnished

cheers
grainger

When I spoke to Steve Foreman in the spring he recommended Sikkens 2-part product. One coat of Sikkens HLS followed by 2 coats of Sikkens Filter 7 which filters out UV light. It is a wood stain so you have to choose which colour you prefer. Steve recommended light oak but I chose pine.

i think wood is great when its rubbed down

Well each to his own but I can see Rays point as Revarnishing properly is not a quick 5 minute job, how long in total did it take you Grainger.

When I spoke to Steve Foreman in the spring he recommended Sikkens 2-part product.

So he has changed his reccomendations then as it always used to be Burgess he suggested, maybe the Sikkens is longer lasting.

Kevin wrote:

i think wood is great when its rubbed down

Well each to his own but I can see Rays point as Revarnishing properly is not a quick 5 minute job, how long in total did it take you Grainger.

to be honest, including the woodwork repairs, it took nearly 2 months !!! ... i had to do it outside. i started it toward the end of the summer holidays (after i had repaired an exhaust valve and decoked the engine) and then in august it seemed to rain every other day. but it has definately been worth it i think the previous owner had used sadolin to cover up the dark patches, but i dont mind the odd stain

cheers
grainger

Kevin wrote:

When I spoke to Steve Foreman in the spring he recommended Sikkens 2-part product.

So he has changed his reccomendations then as it always used to be Burgess he suggested, maybe the Sikkens is longer lasting.

Interesting question. In his article in Minor Matters May/June 2001, he suggested a range of treatments depending on traveller's usage, exposure to weather and owner preferences. Be surprising if he's really narrowed his choice of BEST FINISH under ALL circumstances to one system ! But, maybe he has. Any help with that one out there ?

Cheers, ronwilson

Kevin wrote:

When I spoke to Steve Foreman in the spring he recommended Sikkens 2-part product.

So he has changed his reccomendations then as it always used to be Burgess he suggested, maybe the Sikkens is longer lasting.

Re-reading his article "WOODWORK SPECIAL" published in Minor Matters May/June 2001, he highlights the pro's & con's of current methods to preserve Traveller wood without excluding any except the Teak oil one. Seems to leave the choice of best method to the owner considering the circumstances of usage, exposure to weather, and preferences for appearance and frequency of maintenance.

Worth a read I think. Cheers, ronwilson