TotalBoat Gleam Marine Spar Varnish, Gloss and Satin Polyurethane Finish for Wood, Boats and Outdoor Furniture (Gloss, Gallon)

It's from Total Boat so it does have a reputation. I put this on two projects to see of it would work for my needsA wood bathroom vanity top and some knee braces for a front porch. Nether have been installed yet but here is my experience. I applied with a foam brush and feathered the edges. It dries in about30 min to an hour depending pn conditions but I left it overnight to be safe.It self leveles and after two coats, I was pleased eith the results. This does have a high gloss but thats what I get for not using gloss first. Read up on this as if you want a satin look, you need to use gloss first then this product.If its good enough for boat builders it's good enough for me.

I’m so impressed with Gleam! I used it to finish our front door and I wanted a product that’s easy to apply, quick to dry, and looks great. I followed the instructions that in order to get a good satin finish, you start with gloss and add satin at the end. I applied the first coat thinned with the TB thinner and did a flood coat with gloss. I applied the finish with a foam roller and tipped it off with a foam brush. The door got 6 coats of gloss (1.5 cans) which made it so reflective I could see my face in it! I then scuff sanded, cleaned, and applied 2 coats of satin which gave me a great sheen. I was impressed with how smooth it went on. It flattens out nicely, and was easy to apply.

I used this on a couple live edge pine slabs for my dock bar. The stuff looks great & dried quickly for spar varnish. I brushed on 3 coats. It looked great, but a few hours later I notice one area w/brush marks & a couple that had almost a puddle, like it was too much in those areas. It seemed nice & dry so I took some sand paper & sanded those areas. All of those sanded areas sanded well. The product “talc-ed” up while sanding & didn’t load up the sandpaper with sticky fresh paint sometimes does. When paint is dry it dusts/talcs, if it’s not dry enough it’s gummy. This sanded well within 6 hours @ 90 degrees. Anyways, I wanted to apply another coat that evening so I brushed it on. An hour later I checked on it & was pissed to find everywhere I sanded it, the last coat wrinkled. Apparently, sanding the outer surface opened up the inner layer, which wasn’t quite as dry. The application of more varnish confused the inner that wasn’t as cured/dried & attacked it, wrinkling it. So I let it set for 24 hours, & then really sanded all the wrinkled areas with a DA sander w/150G, then 320G on the entire surface. Then I gave up on the brushing method & since I’ve got some nice spray guns from my auto body biz, I sprayed. Apllied more coats of Gleam, waiting a couple hours in between @ 95 degrees. Couldn’t be happier with the results. I don’t know why I tried brushing it. You’ve got so much more control with the gun. You do have to reduce it about 10-20% with xylene, which in California is thought to find, however Klean Strip makes a replacement product called Painters Solvent. It worked great.

In a class of its own. Excellent.

I have been looking for an easy-use outdoor varnish for a while now and came upon this one. What I love the most about this varnish is it's self-leveling, dries in 2 hours which is a plus in my book, has a beautiful glossy finish, easy to sand and durable to the outdoor environment.Only dislike I have is the can it comes in, after many use the cover doesn't fit properly because of the old dried-up residue from before, so it's difficult to get a proper seal on the lid. I think a plastic container would be best instead of a metal can.

This was easy to put on. Not as strong smell as others. I sanded with 320 grit between each coat. I used 3 coats. Make sure to give each coat enough time to dry before sanding and adding the next coat.

I use this on my verticle columns of wood on my new house's porch. It brings out the grain beautifully and the protection is great. With me being 67 years old, I should not have to use this again in my lifetime. Well worth the cost.

Just ordered my 3rd gal redid all the wood on my boat and it look great, after 3 coat that when the gloss finish really start to show, 4 or 5 coat even better