Teak and Holly Tongue and Groove - Marine Wood Products

[Rumrace]

Thanks for sharing. Love your wood work and dedication to restoration. It’s just damn lovely work.

[MicHughV]

When I was building my boat, I looked longingly at the teak and holly sole, but it was way beyond my budget.

Instead, I made my own.

I bought sheets of 5/8" texture T1-11 plywood, obtainable at any Home Depot. This plywood has pre-cut grooves in it.

I had salvaged some old motorcycle crates that were made from mahogany. These I cut in strips and glued them into the T1-11 plywood.

I attach a pic for illustration. They were simple and inexpensive to make and they look great.

[MicHughV]

another pic.

[zachduckworth]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

another pic.

That looks nice!

It’s interesting how many methods and techniques there are for installing a cabin sole. I’m going to have to pick one come winter. For now I’m going to arrest any ongoing damage with the penetrating epoxy and then either attached a teak mat or else just put a small rug over it. I am leaning towards tongue in groove teak/white wood, although I can see that the stability of the substrate will be critical to success there. I don’t want to use synthetic although I could probably do that myself easily. I can’t see myself installing laminate, which seems to be more difficult than t&g and probably nearly as expensive if you hire someone. I’d sooner learn a new skill than spend $3k on labor or whatever they’d charge here in CA at the moment.

[MicHughV]

Some people carpet their cabin sole. Not something I would do, but it's an option.

[zachduckworth]

I may put down a small rug right there. I’m concerned the teak mat will ding up the board next to it.

[MicHughV]

I've been on carpeted boats....I'm kind ambivalent about them...don't love 'em, but don't hate 'em either....seen 'em mostly on powerboats.

It's a quick and easy solution though....

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

I've been on carpeted boats....I'm kind ambivalent about them...don't love 'em, but don't hate 'em either....seen 'em mostly on powerboats.

It's a quick and easy solution though....

My powerboat is carpeted everywhere except the galley and heads. I absolutely hate it and can't wait until the year I have the time and motivation to re-do the flooring. Keeping carpet clean on a boat is pretty much impossible. You clean it thoroughly, spend a single day on the boat and it needs cleaning again it seems like.

[zachduckworth]

Ok- continued research has revealed some new info. So what call “veneer” is actually teak and holly marine plywood, which is what is on my cabin sole. It’s hella cheap, even in SoCal. I can get 4’ x 8’ for $270, which is enough to do the entire cabin sole and have extra left over. Making a template for it from paper will not be that difficult. I was overcomplicating it because some websites make it sound like you need a plywood template, which isn’t the case if you are doing it as a one off of a simple floor plan. The only trick is to make sure that the substrate is solid, and if it isn’t to replace it, probably with more marine ply, or maybe just with penetrating epoxy. It seems solid as it is now, even where the water damage was.

I’m very relieved that this might be a one weekend project and not a seasonal one…

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

Ok- continued research has revealed some new info. So what call “veneer” is actually teak and holly marine plywood, which is what is on my cabin sole. It’s hella cheap, even in SoCal. I can get 4’ x 8’ for $270, which is enough to do the entire cabin sole and have extra left over. Making a template for it from paper will not be that difficult. I was overcomplicating it because some websites make it sound like you need a plywood template, which isn’t the case if you are doing it as a one off of a simple floor plan. The only trick is to make sure that the substrate is solid, and if it isn’t to replace it, probably with more marine ply, or maybe just with penetrating epoxy. It seems solid as it is now, even where the water damage was.

I’m very relieved that this might be a one weekend project and not a seasonal one…

That is what I told you in post #8 but you ignored it

[wholybee]

A timely post. I am just starting my own sole repair. I have it figured out but can share.

Unknown to me previously, a previous owner repaired some dry rot. They replaced a section of the floor outside the head, and then covered the whole sole with 1/4 veneer. It looked good and they did a very professional job with no signs of the repair. Except they apparently didn't stop all the dry rot, and the veneer eventually went soft, and ultimately formed a hole.

I've cut out the section and am cleaning up the rotted area. I've found what I think is original floor that was not replaced and had the rot in it, and am removing even a substantial amount of good wood around that area. I am replacing the door sill which had a lot of rot in it, and wasn't replaced the first time.

I will be replacing a rib with some rot, and applying thinned epoxy all over everything before putting it back together with a new veneer. I am crossing my fingers I can find veneer with the same width strips and match it to the existing.

[zachduckworth]

Does anyone have any tips for cutting marine plywood without damaging the veneer? I’ll be doing a lot of the work on my boat, unless I can find a buddy who will let me do it in hid garage. Or if I can find someone willing to cut to a trmplate for me, cheap. I may document this in a youtube video because there isn’t much out there.

[zachduckworth]

I hope you can find a section that matches. How’d you get the veneer to cut clean like that? I’m trying to figure out how to get clean cut in the stuff.

Originally Posted by wholybee

A timely post. I am just starting my own sole repair. I have it figured out but can share.

Unknown to me previously, a previous owner repaired some dry rot. They replaced a section of the floor outside the head, and then covered the whole sole with 1/4 veneer. It looked good and they did a very professional job with no signs of the repair. Except they apparently didn't stop all the dry rot, and the veneer eventually went soft, and ultimately formed a hole.

I've cut out the section and am cleaning up the rotted area. I've found what I think is original floor that was not replaced and had the rot in it, and am removing even a substantial amount of good wood around that area. I am replacing the door sill which had a lot of rot in it, and wasn't replaced the first time.

I will be replacing a rib with some rot, and applying thinned epoxy all over everything before putting it back together with a new veneer. I am crossing my fingers I can find veneer with the same width strips and match it to the existing.

[MicHughV]

For some obscure reason, sailboats need to look " yachtie", and I could not say why, hence the teak and holly sole, as it looks " shippy", much like "teak decks", etc, possible harkening back to bygone years, when sailboats were still being made from wood, etc.

One could almost point to a teak and holly sole as a "sales feature" as it has little, if anything to do with a boat other than to " look nice".

Power boats take a more pragmatic approach to interior design. More modern if you wish.

[thesaltytar]

Originally Posted by zachduckworth

Does anyone have any tips for cutting marine plywood without damaging the veneer? I’ll be doing a lot of the work on my boat, unless I can find a buddy who will let me do it in hid garage. Or if I can find someone willing to cut to a trmplate for me, cheap. I may document this in a youtube video because there isn’t much out there.

Starting with a sharp blade is useful. Nice straight cuts pretty much demand a table saw or something with a fence. The secret trick told to me by a 10 year professional woodworker is to take a straight edge and align it with your intended cut then use a razor knife to score through the veneer before you make the cut. Cut along the score mark with the edge of your blade.

The blade will try to splinter the wood, even a good blade. The score mark stops the wood from splintering past it giving you a clean edge.