Barnstorming

 Jim is now back on Chertsey, getting all set for the Brownhills trip, and I still haven't written about what we did the weekend before last, in the lovely sunshine.

Ever since we had the oak gunnels fitted in 2012, we have been regularly painting them with oh-so-traditional bitumen. It looked good (well, it looked traditional) but had certain downsides. It could get sticky in the sun, for one, but worse, it just didn't stick very well. Not only did Jim have to keep repainting them, but the danger was that water would get trapped underneath, work its way into the oak, and eventually cause it to rot. Now, they definitely need doing again, but was there a better way?

Jim has long been a fan of Barn Paint. I have been a sceptic, because I am sceptical of all things water based. How can it be any good if it's not choc full of highly poisonous volatile compounds?  But I have see this Barn Paint in use on interior and exterior wood at home, and last year Jim painted the steel gunnels round the cabin with it, and it does look good - especially on wood. He's been on at me for ages to try it on the oak gunnels, so I finally gave in. I was very keen that it shouldn't be such a smooth finish that the oak gunnels ended up looking like steel.

It looks as if I needn't worry on that score - this is after just one coat and they'll be having at least two, but the grain (and the epoxy-filled bolt holes) is clearly visible. And if the stuff lives up to its hype it should last a lot longer and give much better protection than the bitumen.