# Teak and Holly Veneer Only?



## brianontheroad (Jun 9, 2008)

Does it exist? my google searches have come up nil, just synthetics and then a few random places that I have to call to order, obviously they put the veneer on plywood but I can't find it anywhere

thanks for any help 

Brian


----------



## sailingfool (Apr 17, 2000)

I just took my 14 floor pieces to a local full service lumber yard. They ordered the teak/holly ply received it in a day, and had replacement pieces cut within the week of my order. They fit quite well.


----------



## brianontheroad (Jun 9, 2008)

I have a fiberglass sole, I just want to cover it with a veneer...local wood companies will be my next check, but was hoping to find something and a general price range on the internet

thanks!


----------



## davidpm (Oct 22, 2007)

Even if you found it preparing the fiberglass properly seems like a miserable job. Then applying it, then dealing with edges and holes. Seems like a bad idea to me. 
Putting down some plywood over the glass would be a lot easier and probably last longer, be easier to repair I doubt if it would be much more money as the cost is in the veneer anyway.

You can buy it at Jamestown Distributors at only 1/4" thick..


----------



## mitiempo (Sep 19, 2008)

The reason you can't find teak and holly in veneer form is because it would all be strips and hell to glue on. Best to buy the ply as that is what holds it together. It's available from 3mm to 3/4" near me so probably in those thicknesses near you as well. Pricey though. $225 for 3mm to $315 for 3/4" here. Any good exotic wood supplier should have it or be able to get it.


----------



## tager (Nov 21, 2008)

Cork!


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

I would go with a vinyl teak-holly sole, rather than a veneer. Veneers are pretty thin and if you have any damage to it, you'll probably have to re-do a section of it all over again.


----------



## cormeum (Aug 17, 2009)

sailingdog said:


> I would go with a vinyl teak-holly sole, rather than a veneer. Veneers are pretty thin and if you have any damage to it, you'll probably have to re-do a section of it all over again.


We have 45 years on our veneer on ply sole- I'd rate it "durable".


----------



## kaluvic (Jan 14, 2009)

cormeum said:


> We have 45 years on our veneer on ply sole- I'd rate it "durable".


That's probably some thick veneer...also the quality of the teak (if its Teak) 45years ago was FAR better than most of what you would find today.
Most veneers we find over here are 0.5mm
Why not use conventional teak strips 5mm thick by 500mm wide and glue them down with PU glue or thickened epoxy?
Do you have much to do?

Also the stuff Sailingdog mentions if you find nice stuff that's not so expensive.


----------



## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

In our area (near to Mitiempo) it's available in 1/4" and 1/2" sheets... the quarter is around $250/sheet and the 1/2 is $300 (4'x8') Considering that you'd likely have to laminate the 1/4" stuff to marine ply anyway, the 1/2" is the better way to go if that's strong enough on its own.

Builders such as Beneteau are using synthetics nowadays.. to my eye it doesn't quite have the "look".. they've gotten away from the contrasting white strips.

Nothing quite dresses up an old boat like a new sole... It would be interesting to compare the stuff SD refers to.... I've not seen it around.


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

First, as pointed out previously, yours is older veneer that is probably a good deal thicker than the stuff sold today. Also, yours is over plywood, not fiberglass. Plywood is a more forgiving backing material imho.



cormeum said:


> We have 45 years on our veneer on ply sole- I'd rate it "durable".


----------



## christyleigh (Dec 17, 2001)

sailingdog said:


> First, as pointed out previously, yours is older veneer that is probably a good deal thicker than the stuff sold today. Also, yours is over plywood, not fiberglass. Plywood is a more forgiving backing material imho.


Hey Dog..... I almost jumped in the way Cormeum did but I figured you MUST have been talking about the OP directly veneering Teak and Holly to his fiberglass sole. Big difference. Having applied Teak veneer to the fiberglass walls of my previous boat I agree..... not a good idea. But as for the regular factory veneered Teak and Holly over ply soles that thousands and thousands of boats have come with before the vinyl stuff as long as you don't Attack it with a belt sander you can get a few re-finishes out of them. I have.


----------



## mitiempo (Sep 19, 2008)

Faster
Westwind Hardwoods in Sidney has teak & holly in 1/8" (3mm) as well for $225 a sheet (4 x 8).
I agree the 45 year old teak & holly probably has much thicker surface veneers. Nowadays it's close to a picture of teak.


----------



## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Stan-

Considering the OP said:



brianontheroad said:


> *Teak and Holly Veneer Only?
> *
> Does it exist? my google searches have come up nil, just synthetics and then a few random places that I have to call to order, obviously they put the veneer on plywood but I can't find it anywhere
> 
> ...


It sounded like he wants to apply the veneer directly to the fiberglass sole.



christyleigh said:


> Hey Dog..... I almost jumped in the way Cormeum did but I figured you MUST have been talking about the OP directly veneering Teak and Holly to his fiberglass sole. Big difference. Having applied Teak veneer to the fiberglass walls of my previous boat I agree..... not a good idea. But as for the regular factory veneered Teak and Holly over ply soles that thousands and thousands of boats have come with before the vinyl stuff as long as you don't Attack it with a belt sander you can get a few re-finishes out of them. I have.


----------



## Shortman (Feb 12, 2006)

Boulter Ply in MA sells partial sheets. Also Maine Coast Lumber I believe. The veneered sole in my 25 year old Pearson is doing just fine although if redoing I would consider synthetic to avoid the maintenance. 
BTW, as someone who purchases Teak 3-4 times a year for our shop I can tell you that the Teak available today is just as good as 30-40 years ago. Just don't get the plantation grown stuff from S America.


----------



## mitiempo (Sep 19, 2008)

But a bit more expensive now.


----------



## kaluvic (Jan 14, 2009)

Shortman said:


> Boulter Ply in MA sells partial sheets. Also Maine Coast Lumber I believe. The veneered sole in my 25 year old Pearson is doing just fine although if redoing I would consider synthetic to avoid the maintenance.
> BTW, as someone who purchases Teak 3-4 times a year for our shop I can tell you that the Teak available today is just as good as 30-40 years ago. Just don't get the plantation grown stuff from S America.


We also buy a lot of teak and I would say that what is available here is definitly not the same ....It may be a question of who gets the "good stuff", we don't.


----------



## VallelyJ (Nov 21, 2008)

Beyond seconding what's been said about the inadvisability of applying a veneer to the plastic, I'd point out that you may well have thick plywood under the plastic sole. That gives the floor strength and rigidity.
In that case, all you'd need would be thin, i.e. 1/4 or 3/8 inch veneered plyood over the plastic. In such a situation, the only purpose that top layer of ply serves is as a base for the veneer.
And you do need a wood base for the veneer. Even then, gluing alternating strips of paper-thin teak and holly parquet to a proper wood surface is quite an art.
John V.


----------



## davidpm (Oct 22, 2007)

Does anyone know the history of the whole idea of having a striped sole. Teak makes sense on a boat but what advantage is their to striping it with holly?

I know it is traditional but where did the tradition come from? Who did it first?

The only thing I can think of is that solid teak is too dark and the added the holly to lighten it up a bit.


----------



## cormeum (Aug 17, 2009)

The Holly originally was ridged to provide some grip. At least that's what i've been told.


----------



## svHyLyte (Nov 13, 2008)

FWIW in 1987 I used 5/16" teak and holly veneer plywood to cover the sole in the main cabin of our, then, 1976 Cal 2-29. We made a pattern out of brown butcher paper and laid it out on the back of the plywood. After shaping, we then used a mat-knife to score the back side at 2" intervals both fore'n aft and transversely. This allowed the ply to conform to the curvature of the sole without splitting. The material was temporarily held in place with #10 wood screws while we installed #10 flacehead wood screw, counter-sunk so they could be covered with plugs. The rows of screws were approximately 18" apart. We framed around the openings to the bilge, and the covers with 1" by 5/16" teak strips with mitered corners. The plugs were shaved flat with a very sharp small hand plane. The whole surface was roughened with 220 grit paper and covered with 9-10 coats of Minwax Helmsman Semi-gloss urathane and a final coat of the mMinwax Urethane made for hardwood floors which is much more durable. The most difficult part of the job was sculpting 1"x2" moldings around the edges which took a long time as the teak doesn't bend too readily and that was before I knew the trick of making a steam box our of cardboard, foil and foam.

It was a job but the end result was very pleasing. By keeping the deck clean and free of sand, and periodicly scuffing it up and applying a new coat of clear floor vurathane, it looked as new we we sold the boat in 2003.

Below you can see a bit of the sole and the decking on the step at the foot of the companionway (that was not fastened down but served double duty as a table-top in the cockpit).


----------



## svHyLyte (Nov 13, 2008)

*Follow-Up*

As a follow-up to my post above. Had teak and holly inyl flooring been available at the time, I surely would have used it. See Lonseal Teak-Holly Flooring, 6'wide x any length:World Panel Products Inc


----------



## TAK (Jul 14, 2003)

I went on a Hylas a couple of years ago at the Annapolis Boat Show that had a bamboo sole with teak inlay. I thought it was stunning. I am contemplating something like that using regular hard wood bamboo flooring over a 1/4 inch ply.


----------



## TomRay (Apr 9, 2009)

cormeum said:


> The Holly originally was ridged to provide some grip. At least that's what i've been told.


Wow, I'm a traditionalist! I made my sole teak and sandy recently.


----------



## mitiempo (Sep 19, 2008)

If you're trying to make it non-skid use walnut shells. Works well and nowhere as rough as sand. West Marine sells ground walnut shells.


----------

