Hello Rehd,

Thank you for the comments. I will go out and find Finesse-it today. Heck, why not? That will complete my collection of polishing products from 3M :-)

The finish on the deck is about 6 days since the final coat, and the hull is about 5 weeks in the cure. Both surfaces seem to act identical.

Best Regards,

Dan
Lake Forest, Ca

: Hi Dan

: I used Varathane Water-Borne Urethane to final coat my canoe. I put on 8
: coats, didn't sand till the first 4 were on and hard. Then sanded ( wet
: silicone-carbide ) with 600 grit and again after 6 coats. After the eighth
: coat I let it set for a week. Then I started in with a light, wet sanding
: of 600, and progressed up to 2000, just as you did. At the end of that
: process the finish was, as you say, less that 'perfect'. Seemed a little
: cloudy and not near the shine of fresh resin or the Urethane.

: Remember that any finish has scratches, no matter how fine you go... I did as
: you and looked to an auto finish type polish ( 3M as well ). Still wasn't
: up to snuff. So, I went back to the shelf and pulled out my 3M 'Finesse-It
: II' Finishing Material, part no. 051131-05928. I applied this with the
: electic buffer ( 2500 rpm only ). When I wiped off the residue... A Mirror
: was staring me in the face.

: And before anyone chimes in with the " Waste of Time " comments...
: this project was a training project and was used to experiment with
: several ideas... It's actually going to be given to the Grandkids in a
: couple of days and after that, it will probably take the beating of it's
: life... And it was built to take it. I was just playing with the finish to
: see what I could do to it and how much work it would be.. I have no fear
: of the finish being destroyed.. I DID find it to be rather easy obtaining
: this quality of finish.. and will use it in the future, on MY own boats.

: The Varathane itself is an experiment, to see how it holds up compared to
: varnish. It's a heck of a lot easier to apply and dried to recoat in an
: hour.

: Not sure it shows but around the bottom of that figure in the Okoume, you can
: see the hatchet... ?? Didn't show as well as I'd hoped with the flash...
: A photographer, I'm not..!! The light stand behind me actually shows up
: better. Take my word for it... it's just like glass.

: I do not know how Varnish will take a shine.. But, if you put on Poly, it may
: have enough UV protection that you don't need varnish. There are folks
: here that can probably give you Stats on this, but the Varathane I used
: had as much or more UV protection than any varnish..

: You might try the same thing with the Poly.

: Also, as I think I was going to ask in the first place... Did you give each
: coat of finish the proper curing time before trying to polish it out.?? I
: know that most finishes won't take any sort of shine until they are
: totally cured.. ??

: Good Luck with that Shiner... Hope to see it when you've got her
: 'finished'.

: Rehd
: Fresno, Calif.
: Chillin' @ near 80*..

: I've been baking cookies all day.
: 43 dozen since yesturday, along with fudge, divinity and those GREAT Rice
: Krispie Treats..
: Gotta open a window so I can get to sleep...