Apropos’ bowsprit measures 14′ in length, and is 8.5″ by 8.5″ at its largest cross-section. It’s by far the biggest piece of wood on the boat, most likely made of Apitong, a very strong/dense hardwood grown in Southeast Asia.

Like most projects, this one started out small. Something I could do in a day or two, but grew into something much bigger. I was only going to touch-up the bowsprit tip–a 16″-long section forward of the cranse-iron where the bowsprit is rounded. There were a few dings and dents from 16 years of docking at marinas, fuel stations, and ramming noisy power boats (kidding!).

But then I started looking at the rest of the bowsprit and realized the entire thing could use refinishing. After all, it would be a waste to buy material (epoxy, primer, paint) for just repairing such a small area. A section along the bottom where the two anchors rest had some large gouges caused from up-anchoring and also from the chain scraping when the boat swings while anchored in windy conditions. There were small pieces of Starboard (UHMW ultra high molecular weight polyethylene) at the rest points of the stowed anchors, but their size and placement were not enough to protect the wood.

At the far aft end on the bowsprit, there was some wear and tear just from normal use (standing on it, dropping things, etc).

There was one more thing that needed some attention–the large piece of teak that is bolted to the top of the bowsprit had cracked a few years ago. This plank is 7′ long, 8.25″ wide and 1.25″ thick. Replacing it would cost a few hundred dollars just for the teak and a few hundred more to have it milled to proper thickness and cut. So before I sink $500 into a new teak plank, I thought I would try to repair it first. Removing it was no easy task–it’s held in place with 5 foot-long thru-bolts to the bowsprit. Also, removing the plank gave me full access to the top of the bowsprit for painting.

So the task grew in scope and or course in time, but I’m glad I did it. Here are the steps I took in completing the bowsprit refinishing:

• sanded the entire bowsprit with 80 grit paper followed by 220 grit.
• used thickened epoxy (West Systems 610) to fill in all the scrapes and gouges, sanded and repeated where needed.
• applied 2 coats of Interlux Pre-Kote primer, sanding between coats and after 2nd coat.
• applied 3 coats of thinned Interlux Brightsides polyurethane, lightly sanding with 320 between coats.
• used thickened epoxy (West Systems 610) to repair teak plank. Clamped tightly for 24 hours, sanded, and applied Semco teak sealer.
• made new protection pads from UHMW polyethylene, rounded the edges with 1/4″ router bit, drilled and countersunk holes to attach with ss screws to the bowsprit.
• cleaned, polished, and sealed the bronze star at the end of the bowsprit.
• cleaned up the stainless steel frame that the bowsprit is attached to.