I'll throw my 2 cents worth on this topic as I recently have had a change of heart as how to best finish exterior teak. All of Dauntless' teak was recently re-finished with the new Cetol color "natural teak". It was the easiest finish I have ever applied. It looks good, not as good as varnish, but good. And it seems pretty tough. If I can get away with one maintenance coat a year, like advertised, I'm absolutely thrilled with it. Practical Sailor reviews exterior wood finishes in this months issue and gave it high marks. The "natural teak" does not have the orange hue that has been associated with past Cetol products which is what drove me to give it a try. Previously, I oiled our boats exterior teak. I love the look of oiled teak. The AZ sun, though, would require almost weekly applications of oil to keep up. And varnish.....well.....I end up stepping on, walking on, sitting on, dropping stuff on, and generally abusing everything I varnish no matter how hard I try not to. This usually occurs within the first ten minutes that my prized varnished job has dried to a mirror finish. (Bull in the China Shop Syndrome) I'll leave the exterior varnish for the museum boats! I'm just too hard on it. We'll see how the cetol holds up to the Sonoran Dessert Sun. Sean M23 Dauntless
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