Any Yacht painter pros out there?
From my days holding a brush, I have a couple observations.
Teak has a ton of oil in it. It's a quality that makes it ideal for applications in a wooden boat that would be a problem to paint because of the use. (think a nice slippery deck) It's modern component is non-skid fiberglass. Some other exterior applications have been replaced by Starboard (HDPE plastic)
The teak deck can't be beat for beauty. Any you don't have to paint it to keep it around. As I read in an earlier post, clean across the grain (just type "teak cleaner" into google) and rinse. When it drys off, oil with teak oil. You have to watch out for boiled linseed oil as it can leave a surface when it hardens if you get too much on.
And the nice thing is that on a lazy hot sunny day you can re-oil.
Varnish is made for mahogany. Everyone has a favorite brand. Think about clear or cmber finish first. I like the Amber because it's what always was used - but that's me.
Then think about gloss or satin. Usually its gloss on the outside and satin on the inside.
Spar varnish is made for spars and those applications where the wood is undergoing alot of movement - but this type is not as hard a finish, so don't use it where there's foot traffic.
The two part epoxy varnishes can be tricky to apply. And you can't clean and thin with mineral spirits, but some folks love them.
A good sight to compare all this is
https://www.jamestowndistributors.c...ryName=Varnish&category=36&refine=1&page=GRID
They have all the products in one place so they are easy to compare, and they have how tos in the sidebar.
I once had a varnish job where we took out rags soaked with spirits at the end and wiped it all off. happens to every one sooner or later.