While we're on the topic of maintenance, I was wondering how people deal with finishes on their teak or mahogany. My boat has teak gunnels in the cockpit and while they look great it is a constant battle to maintain them. I used to built furniture professionally so this type of work is second nature to me but I wanted some input to see how others did it. I've been sanding down the gunnels and then finishing with 3 - 4 coats of oil. This looks great but has to be redone at least once a season. Has anyone else found a better way?

I've got teak toe-rails and hand rails plus some other trim on the sailboat and I switched to Armada about 2 seasons ago. Really like it - Much better than Cetol. The first season was tough - took it all down to bare wood, brightened it, then applied 3 coats. Now all I do is a light scuff and add a maintenance coat each year - looks great.

The best way. Remove all trim and sand down to bare wood. Apply 3-4 coats of epoxy on all 4 sides. Re-install, coat new bungs and joints with 3 coats of epoxy, sand smooth then apply another 3-4 coats of a 2 part uv resistant "varnish". Add 2 coats yearly.