Posted by katorpus (jrb@…>)
Lola
You’re an artist, you ought to be able to handle this easily…
Google up “walnut shell non-skid” and/or “walnut shell grit” for a
source.
Basically, what you’re gonna do is take your whole companionway step
down to bare wood (with a heat gun and/or sanding & scraping…maybe
the whole ladder.
After an initial coat or two of varnish, you’ll mask off “stripes” on
the steps (keeping back from the edge of the step), apply a thick
coat of varnish only where you want the non-skid, sprinkle on the
ground walnut shells, then pull the tape.
After it dries, you’ll brush off any that didn’t stick and then re-
coat the whole thing with a top coat of varnish. This will anchor the
walnut shells firmly, the surface won’t be too rough, and (by keeping
back from the edge), you won’t “cheese grater” your shins if you
scrape them on the way up or down.
Steve Dashew outlines this whole process in at least one of his
books…he does the cabin sole in alternating stripes. The beauty of
the underlying wood is not lost in the process.
Posted by Lola Jackson (lolaltd@…>)
Thank Youkatorpus <jrb@…> wrote: Lola You’re an artist, you ought to be able to handle this easily… Google up “walnut shell non-skid” and/or “walnut shell grit” for a source. Basically, what you’re gonna do is take your whole companionway step down to bare wood (with a heat gun and/or sanding & scraping…maybe the whole ladder. After an initial coat or two of varnish, you’ll mask off “stripes” on the steps (keeping back from the edge of the step), apply a thick coat of
varnish only where you want the non-skid, sprinkle on the ground walnut shells, then pull the tape. After it dries, you’ll brush off any that didn’t stick and then re- coat the whole thing with a top coat of varnish. This will anchor the walnut shells firmly, the surface won’t be too rough, and (by keeping back from the edge), you won’t “cheese grater” your shins if you scrape them on the way up or down. Steve Dashew outlines this whole process in at least one of his books…he does the cabin sole in alternating stripes. The beauty of the underlying wood is not lost in the process.