I always like to try different ways of doing things. On my Pocketship I used straight varnish on epoxy covered bright work and Sikkens on the spars. Both worked well. On the Wood Duck, I needed to do the finish indoors and used the water based Halcyon. It worked ok, but the thickness needed to get it to level also caused it to run. On my Little Auk 10 I decided to try a UV cure finish- Clean Armor. 627, which is a gloss marine finish. It went pretty well. I thought I’d relate my experience. Now, I’m ok but not great at finishes, so, keep that in mind. It is applied by pad or spray, though brush can be used. I’m not set up for spray and the pad is really only good on flat surfaces. I used a high quality brush. It needs to go on fairly thick; they say 1 mill but I have no idea how one gauges that. I put it on like I do an epoxy fill coat- fairly heavy with lengthwise brush, then across, then lengthwise again. The brush marks level out fairly quickly. It will run, so you have to stay on top of it. It seems to ‘settle down’ after a minute or so. Definitely use tape to protect against drips running where you don’t want them.
It’s a different mind set using this stuff. It will stay just as out comes out of the bottle forever until UV light is applied. So you have all the time in world to tip and catch runs and get it just right. Then apply UV and it cures in 2 minutes! Fully cured and hard. Very little time for dust and bugs to get into it. I have a small UV light but found that a kayak’s large odd shaped surface is hard to cure by lights. Luckily you can put it out in the sun to cure it, which is what I did.
I’m still learning how to use it but I’m happy with the results. It took me 3 coats to get it to where I want. I think with experience, two would do.
so pluses and minuses:
It’s expensive- $165 a quart, but it’s all solids. I used a little more than half a quart total.
It’s clear . I’m fine with that, but if you are used to the varnish tint that could be a minus.
no clean up! Put your brush in a bag in a light tight drawer and use it next time.
takes some practice to get the right amount on the boat to get minimal runs.
It’s a very hard finish.
It says it has no VOCs . I detect a slight odor and I do have some sensitivity to it on my face.
You can recoat very quickly.
Definitely remove your tape before curing!
Do not pour the finish into styrofoam or red Solo cups. It seems ok with clear plastic take-out containers.
So here is what it looks like:
The second photo shows detail and the reflection of an overhead light. There are some specks, but I think they are dust. I think one can do a very respectable finish with this.