20ft Texas Barrel

[DrBryanJ]

Matt, it's looking great.

[chugalug]

I'd hate to be the first one to put a scratch on her.Wow

[Bill Edmundson]

I did whitewater boating for a long time. I always said that the boat should come with the first scratch! They you didn't have to worry about it!

Bill

[Gayle Brantuk]

Beautiful, Matt!

[chugalug]

My name is Mr"O"(ole)

I can help with your first scratch.Here's a picof some of my work

[Gayle Brantuk]

That's hilarious! Mr. "O" is a cutie...

[Hercdrvr]

Every time, somebody comes in for a landing on wet varnish. I don’t mind the little guys that get stuck in one spot. It’s the bigger insects that make a mess as they flop around.
Matt B

[ejr]

Looking good.

I know your frustration. When you find a way to keep the insects away, let me know your secret. I’ve had a number of simple projects take weeks to finish because an insect decides my freshly coated surface would make a perfect resting place.

[mrintense]

I found a solution that works every time.

I leave the bug stuck in the epoxy and coat over them. Then I make sure that they are always visible to other bugs. Eventually they got the picture and now stay away!!

[Jimbob]

After spraying, I setup a large floor fan (hft version) to blow over the fresh varnish. Bugs couldn't land.
Jim

[Hercdrvr]

Blowing with a fan sounds effective to keep the bugs moving along. I’m not sure I want to stir up the air in the shop with wet varnish. The bugs are a problem though, I like to spray varnish after dark when they are more active, the overheads lights are best with no sunlight. I’m talking about seeing the work, the wet edge, the dry spots.
Varnishing an entire boat is such a delicate art. I’m still refining how I move around the boat with my spray pattern to keep a wet edge and not overspray on to 5 minute old varnish.
Thanks for the tip.
Matt B

[Jimbob]

I sprayed in sections. One side, transom, rear deck, front deck. Not all the same day. The lights at night attracted our bugs. I thinned the varnish almost 50 percent with naphtha. All else fails sand the suckers out and spray another coat. Seems worse if you try to get them out when the varnish is wet.
Your boat looks great!
Jim

[Bill Edmundson]

Their little feet don't show up much.

Bill

[Hercdrvr]

Sanding varnish 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000 grit. Followed by cutting compound, finally polishing. Oh man, I think I’m now a fan of orange peel finish varnish, this is brutal. I may have to take a break from boat building after this one, maybe build a couple of bird houses or a picnic table.
Matt B

[Thomas H]

Looks great Matt!