A few years ago, out of frustration with a mahogany exterior door that needed much-too-frequent refinishing, I searched around and found Steve Smith and the products he has developed and refined. I have since used CPES, in particular, on several projects with excellent results each time. One was a custom made cypress gate which was optimized more for aesthetics than water impermeability. I used CPES as an impregnating sealer and also to “glue down” the finish (in this case Epifanes clear gloss with one coat of satin on top). Despite its challenging location, the gate looks like new almost two years later with no signs of decay, delamination or the like. The most recent project was a walnut end table built for a friend as a special thank you (see picture). As the intended location was a sheltered outdoor patio, I used CPES again as a sealer and to glue down the first coat of finish (also again, Epifanes clear gloss). This has worked so well that I plan to use CPES for all my furniture projects regardless of their intended location. While I wholeheartedly recommend Steve’s products themselves, there is something else special that you get with Smith & Company products that you can’t get anywhere else. I am prone to asking a lot of questions, mostly to help me achieve the best possible results but also sometimes out of pure curiosity. Steve has not only tolerated my questions but has been solicitous of them and has given me valuable guidance and scientific/chemistry related insights that I would not have gotten any other way. Many of Steve’s suggestions have no possibility of earning him any income. What you’re getting is a quality scientist giving you suggestions based on practical, effective scientific principles rather than on snazzy marketing. I, for one, very much appreciate that.

John Maxwell
Memphis, TN

My name is Laurie. I am a 72 year-old woman that has worked on wood boats most of her adult life. I currently own a 1959 Lapworth 36 wood sailboat that I live aboard. I have used Smith's for at least 15+ years and love it. (Read: drink it for breakfast! LOL)

I have used Smith's to:
- seal bare wood before finishes when rebuilding my Spruce mast
- "cold mold" over old, stripped interior paint before priming/finish coats on the plywood bulkheads
- as a (tie) coat between paint/varnish finishes throughout
- as an adhering medium for spot varnishing

My question is:
I have a friend with a 43-year-old classic fiberglass boat with tired fiberglass waterways on his deck. Would Smith's be a good (tie) coat between prepped gel coat and new LP primer and paint?

[The answer is yes-Steve Smith]

His gel coat is oxidized and he knows he has to remove all oxidation via sanding and wipe down with a solvent before next-steps. If he did the prep work, I am thinking, he could use Smith's followed by LP Primer and final LP Gloss, much in the same way that I used it with refinishing my waterways and deck on my wood boat.

[Exactly so-Steve Smith]

Respectfully, Laurie aboard S/V

We rebuilt a gazebo, dating to the 1970s, using the Smith 2-part epoxy system to restore, fortify and refurbish eight sashes measuring 4' x 6' each (with sixteen lights in each) that date from the late 1800's. The sashes were forlorn and in seemingly irretrievable condition after years of neglect and a lot of powder post beetles. Smith's system worked like a charm. We were able to salvage six of the eight sashes and cut two down to half size in order to use parts to rebuild the others. The gazebo now stands stronger than ever, in no small part because of a product as iron clad as Smith's epoxy. We expect that these sashes will outlive us by decades! D. I.

I am a true believer and avid user of your product, CPES. I own a 100 year old house. I have RESTORED (not replaced) 30 original double hung windows and am now on my second door. I have used CPES in all cases and know that my windows and doors are now almost bullet proof. Thanks for your advice and for inventing such a great product.
Pete Vrhovnik Tekton Builders, Seymour, Wisconsin.

I used CPES™ a few years ago on my Grand Banks 42. I did a side-by-side comparison on a long teak trim that was to be varnished. In one end of the trim CPES were applied to the bare wood before varnishing and the other end was varnished directly without CPES. Within a year the end without CPES was showing moisture intrusion around the edges and a couple of years later the varnish was peeling in places. The CPES end was still looking good 5 years later. Gilberto Sanchez, Spain

I have used Steve Smith's products for over 30 years on many types of boats, doing wood, FRP (Fiberglass-Reinforced Polyester resin) and steel restoration. Projects included complete transom replacements and keel repairs on wood cruisers, to an inside-out replacement of a failed rotted wood transom and stringers on an offshore race boat. My current project is the restoration of our 53' Hatteras Motor Yacht, having just sealed the inside of the engine room hull with CPES™ and his faring compound (Smith's Fill-It Epoxy Filler™), followed by an Ameron Epoxy top coat, and am now working on the bottom. In every case over the years Steve has been very helpful giving his time and advice freely, he is a wealth of knowledge, the bottom line is his products WORK, especially if you follow the instructions. I have NEVER had a failure with any of his products; the 1:1 mix ratios are easy to use and very forgiving. As way of a disclaimer my comments are unsolicited, I have no connection with his company, just a satisfied customer. Mike

I have 49' German Frers wood yawl with a varnished hull. I have had your CPES™ under a large number of coats of Epifanes [varnish] on it since 1991. It has lasted very well MORE Christian Carleton, San Diego, CA

About 85% of our work is historic preservation the 2-part epoxy comes in handy when saving original parts. Try it. The price is right. Mark Ihm, IHM Builders, Platteville, WI

(What I like about Smith & Co. is) dealing with people who actually know their product they are as advertised which is exceptional these days. D. M.

I have used it (CPES™) on (boat) bottoms as well as almost everything else. It does two things very well. Firstly it soaks into the wood gluing the grain part of the wood now it is the perfect primer or paint base. R. W.

For one season I used CPES™ simply as a primer on some areas of my boats hull where paint wouldnt stick, (mostly due to oil-soaked wood). The stuff worked great. Im restoring the boat now with a new bottom, and let me tell you, it was tough getting the paint off where I had primed with CPES. R. V.

(What we like about Smith & Co. products is that) They work--no glue failures: Better guitar finish adhesion; secure fingerboard glue joint. M.T.D.

I don't have to worry about Cocobolo [a kind of wood] guitars coming apart. (Another guitar-maker)

Try Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer™. It is great stuff and the ultimate product for sealing wood. Apply 3 coats of CPES. You just keep brushing the stuff on until the wood won't take any more. Before the third coat is completely cured (1/2 cure time roughly) put on your first coat of varnish. That way the varnish is glued down and will not lift.J.B.

I've been in the Period House restoration business for more than 25 years, and to save old windows and doors and other period house architectural items, I learned real early that just because there was some rot, I did not have to throw out a window sash or architectural trim, if I use Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer™ (CPES) and Smith's Fill-It Epoxy Filler™.

I was turned on to the product by friends in the boat work business. It is my policy to use CPES on all areas wherever I've removed rot and fill joints and end grain with Fill-It Epoxy Filler, especially exterior exposed wood areas.

The filler is easily shaped, sanded and painted. My customers are surprised how strong and secure their doors and windows are after I use Fill-It and they can't see the repair once painted.

I could not stay in business without Smith's epoxy systems. David T. Clark I Do Windows And Doors Sacramento CA 916-600-2598

P. S. All parts are a 50/50 or 1 to 1 part mixing schedule, which makes it easy, and the long pot life is very user-friendly as well.

We rebuilt a gazebo, dating to the 1970s, using the Smith 2-part epoxy system to restore, fortify and refurbish eight sashes measuring 4' x 6' each (with sixteen lights in each) that date from the late 1800's. The sashes were forlorn and in seemingly irretrievable condition after years of neglect and a lot of powder post beetles. Smith's system worked like a charm. We were able to salvage six of the eight sashes and cut two down to half size in order to use parts to rebuild the others. The gazebo now stands stronger than ever, in no small part because of a product as iron clad as Smith's epoxy. We expect that these sashes will outlive us by decades! D. I.

(I've handled challenging situations with) rot on wooden boats. (You should ) try it. Malcolm M. Crosby, Crosby Yacht Yard

I have used the (CPES™) on my boat, the Vixen, built in 1904, houseboat, and house the dry rot bugs hate me for it. My next project is my decaying molar, but Mr. Smith has reservations. H. O.

We love all your products. Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer™ has helped us to repair instead of replace our decking. I tell everyone I talk to about your products. Sandra Kash

Thanks especially to S. Smith and Co. for the fine products that I purchased from them that came thru just as he said they would, CPES™, Smith's Fill-It Epoxy Filler™. T. P.

Effective, reasonably priced, good customer service, timely delivery. Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer™ (is) great for sealing old wood for museum displays. (The products) work. Have ordered on 2 different occasions. It goes a long way + lasts in storage. Have recommended it to associates, because of product quality + effectiveness. T. A. (Museum staff)

Given the very detailed explanation of the products, its chemical properties, ingredients and the instructions for use, I'm left w/no doubt that I have purchased a quality product. Plus, you have demystified deteriorated wood and its repair for us with your very thorough description of how this system works.

(We've handled) window sills, decking, (and) porch dry rot. (It's) a very empowering product having taken us off our dependence on handy-people who have charged us too much for too little in such repairs, i.e., inferior results. Homeowners You can do this. L. M. G.

(The Smith & Co. products) work! Restoring a 63 foot Alaskan Trawler, they saved me about two years and great expense. (I'd tell you to) use them they are fantastic. Dave McGreenery

(CPES™) does just what it promises! A great product. Highly recommended. Also the Fill-It is a fantastic filler. I saved all the windows in my home with it. Mae, at The Lumber Baron, Albany, CA

I would recommend your product (CPES™) to anyone involved in repairing or maintaining anything made of wood. Andrew Maggard

I believe your [Smith's Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealer] is the best sealer I've ever used.
Bruce MacKenzie, Senior Shipwright, USS Constellation , Baltimore, MD

"What I like about Smith & Company products is their ease of use and their longevity. They last a long time. That fifty-fifty mix is worth its weight in gold.

I have used them to build numerous boats, from twelve to fifty feet long.

They make my business more successful because they work. They have made boatbuilding a whole lot easier, and when doing restoration on old wood boats, we've saved a lot of wood. Wood, cement, whatever, they hang together a whole lot longer with Smith's products.

Use them. I wouldn't use anyone else's products, honestly." Curt Dodson, San Rafael, CA

Your products are the best and my first choice. Meaning if I need something and you have a product in that line, I take yours without even looking at what other companies offer because your products are top notch and have a value to price ratio as good as others. Winston Lambert, Los Altos Hills, CA

These are the wins these people have had with our products. Do you have a story you'd like to share? We'd like to talk with you, please email us.

© copyright 1972 - 2024, Steve Smith,
reprinted with permission