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Summer Breeze, our 1978 Seafarer 26 sailboat is finally getting her spring projects going so I thought I would share this new countertop as it was one of the very first things Erika and I wanted to do since owning the boat.  The old counter is 1/2” plywood with a teak veneer of some sort and was rotting on the port side badly near the icebox.  After looking at different wood, laminate and synthetics I decided on 1/2” Teak plywood (single face) from Exotic Lumber in Annapolis.  It wasn’t cheap at $90 for a 4×4 piece but it matched the existing cabinetry well, has good resistance to the marine environment and I’ve worked with plywood/have the tools.  Here is a shot of the old countertop just before it came out of the boat. I was surprised it was only held down by 4 screws and the trim across the back, no evidence of a sealant or adhesive.  I’m still up in the air on how I will be re-attaching the new one but more on that later;

Once free of the boat I set up my workshop on the balcony back at my apartment, it was a TIGHT fit and my stools/sawhorses did get nicked a bit by the jigsaw but it worked;

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The cutting took longer than I anticipated, even with the higher end, fine tooth saw blades I still had issues with chipping the veneer off. I got a little better towards the end adn also started taping cuts to help prevent the chipping.  Here is a shot of the dry fit – test of the counter installed in the boat;

You may have noticed that I have deleted the reserved hole for the alchohol stove.  I did that on purpose and will use the cavity for a ‘pantry-bin’ with a rubbermaid bin used like a drawer.  More on that when I actually finish it!

I put 4 coats of Minwax Helmsman Spar Urethane on it (1 coat on the underside) and it is currently ready for permanent installation back on the boat.  I’ll be sure to update pictures when I finish.