[Bushwacker]

GFS - Teak is a unique animal when it comes to sanding - it's so oily that it'll clog the paper if you use too fine a grit; same for cutting, can use a fairly course blade. I used 60 grit on a power sander; it's best if you sand with the grain, so I don't think an orbital sander works as well. Belt sander works fine if you're careful. On the application, I just followed the Epifanes directions, nothing fancy. I believe 1st coat is thinned 50%, next coat 25%, then 10%, then last 3 coats were unthinned. Just used foam brushes, let dry overnight, then wet sand w/280 or 320 grit, just enough to knock off the gloss and knock down bugs, bubbles and high spots. I had used the 2-part cleaners several times over the years, and they destroy the soft grain and have little effect on the hard grain which then becomes high spots. Even sanding w/60 grit won't fix it because it also takes off more soft grain than hard. Would have to run it thru a planer to fix this problem! I will NEVER use those cleaners again on anything I intend to varnish! Took about 6-8 coats to get it reasonably level but it still isn't perfect. I guess those cleaners are ok if you're just gonna oil it and leave it kinda rough, which I did on my old swim platform because I didn't want that slick! May have used 400 grit under last coat, but you should knock the gloss off so next coat will bond. The red 3M pad also works; it tends to clog but can be washed out. Just wet sanding with wet-or-dry paper eliminates the clogging. In my experience, most varnishes are much different than paint - they remain relatively soft so they can't be buffed, but if properly applied most will level out real nice and have a good gloss with no other work required. It may be a little more work initially than chemical cleaning and oiling, but I've been there/done that, and once you get a good layer of varnish on it, I think it's a lot less work in the long run, especially if you keep it covered. Just a couple of coats every couple of years vs clean and reoil about every 6 months in this climate, plus the oil will still oxidize and turn dark even if you keep it covered! Varnish keeps the oxygen away and the new ones have UV inhibiters to make it harder to break down.