Any tips please for timber & finish.

[dadiOH]

Wood... #1. teak #2. mahogany

Finish (in order of lasting power)... #1. paint #2. oil #3 poly

dadiOH

[Nick]

A very good friend of mine has a small 60yo sailing boat that she and her brother have spent the last 4 years restoring. Pretty much completed now except the frilly curtains. 26ft, I think. That's the length of the boat, not the curtains. She (Clare) wants to make a nameboard that will be fixed to the stern. Lettering will be incised by hand. Clare is a carver but has no experience of incised lettering. I suggested a hardwood for durability and gave her some bits of oak, ash, beech and elm to practice with. She is struggling as the timber is hard and the process very contrary to her usual discipline. This is going to live in a seawater environment 24/7. 6 months in/out.

Gave Clare a few bits of softwood to try and she is finding this easier to work. I think the practice may be improving her technique. I still think that if the finished article is to have any durability, it should be of hardwood.

Any suggestions for timber and durable finish please.

Good luck, Nick

[Leon]

Teak and or Ipe with a spar varnish. nothing is going to be permanent, expect to refinish every year or two. Use a router to carve with.

[Gramp's shop]

You can't go wrong with teak. I used to finish all my brightwork with Armada. Of course, anything that sits in the sun for six months will require sanding and refinishing.

[Lew Hodgett]

------------------------------------------------- Teak left natural.

If you must finish bright and you are in the UK, check out Epifanes at a local chandlery.

Lew

[Dan Coby]

Episode 307 of "Rough Cut - Woodworking with Tommy Mac" had a picture frame with hand carved letters. It had tips on how to do the lettering. You might be able to find it on you local PBS or Create TV station.

The wood that they used was mahogany.

Dan

[SonomaProducts.com]

Use Mahogany. It is not so hard that you can't carve it and is great for wa ter resistance. She is never going to carve Ipe (nick named iron wood for g ood reason). Teak I am not so familiar with but seems like even stringie-er grain than mohag and probably tought to carve well.

[Leon]

resistance. She is never going to carve Ipe (nick named iron wood for good reason).

And the reason I suggested using a router. ;~) If she is struggling with carving with a hard wood and she ends up using a router, Ipe would not be out of the question and would probably outlast the boat.

Teak I am not so familiar with but seems like even stringie-er grain than mohag and probably tought to carve well.

Teak is a pretty common marine wood.