TotalBoat Lust Marine Varnish

I have an outdoor covered kitchen that emulates the kitchen in the house. Needless to say it sure requires maintenance to keep it looking good. In the past I have tried all different varnishes with limited success. They always look good when first applied but give it a year in the Texas elements and they deteriorate. So this time I thought I would try this lust varnish. The kitchen was looking pretty rough. First I sanded it all down, patched, and re-stained it. Next I applied the lust high gloss marine varnish as directed. First I started with a quart of the high gloss. I did three coats with this. First 50% dilution, then 30% dilution, then 20% dilution. I allowed this to dry since I did not have my can of matte finish yet. I have to say it looked great and pretty flawless at this point. I am not a fan of shiny finish so I waited for the can of matte finish to arrive. First I scuffed the surface with 800 grit scuff pads and cleaned it off. This step was a royal pain and I wish I had all the cans available on the same day. The directions state the matte finish can only be used as final coats and high gloss must be the initial coats. I applied the matte fnish at 20% dilution for 2 coats. I was a little horrified because some areas became hazy as opposed to matte. I did thoroughly mix it and mix it as I as working with it. It must have something to do with the flattening agent or the Texas weather. I also noted as time went one it will gel up in the container I was using. I ended up doing an extra undiluted coat on the areas that were hazy that helped with the haze. The final product turned out pretty nice but not perfect. Perhaps a sprayer would have been better. The real test will be if this nice finish lasts in the Texas elements. I have used other marine varnish in the past and they do not hold up. I also never put on five coats of those varnishes. This is definitely a time consuming process, I hope it will be worth it. There is no way you will find a reasonably priced contractor that will be willing to do five coats of this. The previous varnishes I had were applied by paint contractors and sprayed on but only two coats. If you want this much effort it is going to be a DIY job. Only time will tell if it holds up. Also a small can goes a long way considering you have to dilute it. One quart can would be more than enough to have done five coats on this outdoor kitchen, there is another section opposite the grill that is the same length. So I would have saved myself the cost of the extra can if I stuck with the high gloss finish. I may use the left over on my french doors.

I would consider myself an expert with a brush so that's the first factor. It thinned the gloss 50-50 for the first 3-4 coats. I used Pettit brushing thinner because I ran up to West Marine after I decided not to spray my doors. I continued with about 8 more coats with 25% thinner. 90 degrees in the shade. Product flowed well and didn't "gator" when I thought it should have. I sanded on time to level then two coats of satin with 25% thin. I now see why they want you to build with gloss and topcoat with satin. It did "gator" on a second coat. Not enough for me to sand it out and it is on my house, not the boat. Overall, wetedge and flow were great. I put three to four coats per day with maybe 1.5 hours between. Sanded great and looked gorgeous in gloss and satin. Use to use Awlgrip spar and thought I would try this at 1/2 the price and available.

Beyond happy with this varnish. Sanded my full cabin doors with 220 grit and cleaned with denatured alcohol. Applied 3 coats. 1st coat used the varnish straight up. The next 2 coats I added a bit of lacquer thinner that I had on hand and it was a thinner viscosity to work with. It came out way beyond my expectations. Very happy with this product. Will definitely buy again.

Works as expected