Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Oh boy, I have been sanding and sanding, and am no where finished with the preparations for refinishing the exterior of my little woody. I have been fielding a number of questions from potential woody builders, and have a word of caution for them. An all-weather exterior is surely easier to keep in order, and probably not a problem if left out in the elements. I keep my woody under cover all of the time, unless caught in a rain storm, (as in my trip to Shasta a few years ago), and still feel that a new coat of varathane is necessary every year, before camping season starts.

So, I guess the bottom line is, if you have plenty of time, and want to keep that woody tear looking like new, you just have to spend a lot of time keeping it looking that way.

Now, the little 6 ft long 1/4 Nelson Stacker, is another story. I am going to paint the exterior with ordinary house paint , and just freshen it up every spring, by simply brushing on another coat, of maybe a different color, to suit my whims.

Just a thought that I wanted to share, since my fingers are cracking and sore with all of that damned sanding, night after night. Bottom line, Wood is Good, but sure is a lot of work to keep it looking that way.

Roly...........Sweetwater bound in another week, with a fresh varathane finish, complete with a few paint brush hairs and some runs that I didn't see at 11 o:clock at night.

Not real encouraging when I'm just getting started and planning on building a woodie, Roly. But, with the exception of traveling, it will always be kept in a closed storage, so I guess it won't be that big a deal.

Roly Nelson wrote:<snip>
So, I guess the bottom line is, if you have plenty of time, and want to keep that woody tear looking like new, you just have to spend a lot of time keeping it looking that way.
<snip>
Roly...........Sweetwater bound in another week, with a fresh varathane finish, complete with a few paint brush hairs and some runs that I didn't see at 11 o:clock at night.

Or you could finish it off like Doug did with a couple coats of Automotive Clear. Then it's just wax on, wax off.

Have a good day.

See you there Saturday Roly. Bring some of the 1/4 Nelson.

I used an anti-UV marine spar varnish. It's got some weathered spots from letting it sit outside all the time (no garage) and I just wipe off the dust & dirt and varnish over those spots. Gives it character, IMHO.

Joseph

There are a lot of finish materials and techniques that can be done for a Woody, and if you want it maintenance free, it's going to cost you for the materials up front, and the tools to use them, and possibly an education that can only be earned the hard way...but it can be done...and ideally, one would want to store the tear offseason under a covered area, whether it's a woody or not...Roly has a great looking tear and all of his efforts really show...it's kind of like building a wooden boat...you got 2 ways to go for a "bright" finish, varnish or epoxy...the varnish guys end up with more maintenance than the epoxy, but in a judged competition, you lose points for the epoxy...not original....on a tear there are a lot more exterior finish options for wood, but the principal is the same....Doug

Doug,

What do you know about this product? http://www.bristolfinish.com/ I've been doing some reading and it sounds as if it would be a good product for a woodie. While we were on our cruise, they were touching up the mahogany on some railing and this was what they were using. Said it is as good as the literature states!

I checked it out Chris...looks like it would do the trick and the only thing that I can think of is that it says a minimum of 4 coats, more if you want to seal up the grain entirely...up to 8 coats + for a deeper finish...also says to recoat every 18-24 mos in southern latitudes..less in northern ones..It would be interesting to do a cost comparison between this and epoxy...The epoxy is a lot less of an environmental issue when you check out the VOC's, but like I say, it should work fine...and a big advantage is that it can be sprayed....Doug

I know it says recoat in 18 months...................but that's for a boat sitting out in the weather 24/7/365. My teardrop is going to be outside a whole lot less in 10 years than 365 days, I'd think. But I agonize at the thought of spending all the time you did sanding to get that nice smooth finish.