TotalBoat Halcyon Water-Based Marine Varnish | Fast-Drying Polyurethane Wood Finish for Boats, Outdoor Furniture, and Woodworking | Clear Amber Gloss, Quart

I'm most impressed by how forgiving this product was having to work vertically and in the FL heat. It is a great consistency, and I only had to catch some runs in the corners. It dries fast, but you have enough time to work with it. Just make sure you blend intersections while it's wet, and don't go back to something that has dried for more than a minute or two. It was 80+ degrees and a little humid when I did this. I've refinished it once in the 6 years I've had it, and the urethane product I used a couple years ago didn't hold up well at all. I didn't have to sand too aggressively to get it down to the first pic because the finish came right off. Because this door can have character and I found a pretty good stain match, I didn't worry about getting it all off. I made it smooth and stained it with a gel stain, which I recommend for any vertical project. The second pic is one coat of stain that I brushed on and wiped in with a rag. As you can see from that pic, there is still original stain and finish and even different textures that I was hoping this product would correct for me. I wanted a satin finish, so I followed the recommendation of building with gloss coats and doing a satin final coat. I did 4 gloss and 2 final satin coats the next day. Like I said, the FL sun is brutal so I wanted to really protect it, so you may not need 6 coats. I did two final satin coats instead of one just in case I missed a little spot or something; I wanted to make sure no gloss peeked through. My door is 48" wide with a little exterior trim and I think I still have enough out of the gloss bag to do a 5th coat, so the coverage estimates are not exaggerated by any means. NO SANDING NECESSARY!!! I had a little rough spot from brushing over something that was dry-ish, so I hit it lightly with some steel wool once everything was dry and wiped the dust off well before the next coat. This product really is easy to work with, was ready for the second coat within an hour, and really does clean up with soap and water. I couldn't believe my brush was soft and ready to use the second day. I love the final product, and can't wait to see how it holds up.

This will be the my main go to varnish. It blows polyurethane out of the water! Halcyon goes on go smoothly and one layer makes a beautiful difference. I can use less of this finish and get results that are above and beyond anything else I have used.

For exterior wood, I usually go for oil finishes because of ****Chemistry**** water and oil do not mix so it repels without doubt. Testing this out to skip the fumes and wait time. Also, hoping for that grain color pop. WATERLOX is still my go to (I believe a hybrid tung oil with a drying accelerant) tested in time for durability on my butcher block counters. But this stuff! I will keep on hand for many reasons.... it dries faster, beautifully, easy to work with, no headache causing fumes! Easy cleanup and can be used indoors as well. The additional fumes of mineral spirits for cleanup and the wait times adds to the chore of many other finishes. See photos for how the water beads up, especially on platforms I should've incorporated a slight grade. I now have to keep a decorative squeegee nearby from my rookie mistake but this product makes swiping puddles easy. TUNG OIL- backstory- I applied two coats 5mo. Ago over cullwood plywood without much prep besides a light sanding. Never got the color to catch my eyes. Applied one coat of halcyon and wow! There it was.... until the 2nd coat. Not sure what happened reverted to what I've seen this coat to do- Dry clear with a very very slight amber tint. If anything, I don't notice the tint on this board. So I'm guessing it thoroughly dried by this point. Noticing from the amount I overbrushed onto my hands, it has some flexibility and is more of a "sit on top" finish with slight penetration on unfinished surfaces. Of course, the bag design is genius, creating little waste. Advice- I applied in thin layers in the shade. Anything more, you will end up trying to brush over globs of gel once it starts curing if not working fast enough. Anther sign it dries too fast to fully penetrate. As for color, if it's not already there, don't get your hopes up. Same preview as if you were to wipe it with a damp rag to see the final outcome. Surprisingly, it did add color over the Cabot clear oil coat on naturally darker wood. Next time, I will let the sun do its magic to darken raw wood before finishing.

November 20, 2025: ughhh... I think on my old review, this product had been mailed several times in a box. To be clear, it's a very good product. I needed some more, so I ordered some last week. It arrived in a thick paperish package. It was leaking, so they asked me to send it back and I still needed one, so the replacement arrived today. It is a clear bag inside of a shipping bag. I could smell the product through the bag. That's two in a short time where the outside of the package looks fine. Heavy boxes must've been placed on top these bags. SELLER: Send in boxes. I need this product!!! OLD REVIEW from 2024 Currently working on a gate of retro vintage surfboards. For a previous project of exterior butcher block I used a different marine paint that did not hold up in the Florida weather. Time will tell if this product does, but I can tell you already this product purchased in the pouch is very easy to use. It glides on, self levels, no brush marks. There are eight surfboards and before I gloss/protect all of them, I will put this one in the weather for a few good downpours and sun beating down on it.

I love how this goes on, almost like coating something in resin without having to mix it. I use it on sculptures to put in house plants or terrariums. That way they are more water resistant. My only issue is with things painted white, the yellowing is very apparent. It’s only been 5 months, and other than taking them to a show and displaying for 3 days, they’ve been stored in a box. They are yellowing significantly. I had to pull a few of my sculptures to sand and repaint because of this. I guess it’s my fault as I wasn’t using it on wood, nor a boat? But I’m super sad about it. Will still use on darker sculptures till it’s used up and look for something else.

This stuff is THE BOMB!!! I do woodworking that usually is for outside decorative purposes and have been using epoxy in past projects. I really wanted something that let the textures in my woodworking to show and not be under a layer of epoxy. I made my dad a quilt square to hang in his pipe fence and have sealed with this. This stuff goes on so easily and dries quickly! Clean up a breeze!!!! No fumes and I love the satin finish!! Will be using this for many projects to come!!!!! Just try it!!! You won’t regret it!!

I am now hooked on the Halcyon Satin clear varnish by TotalBoat. Once I found the right process for application, it’s almost bullet proof. For anyone considering this for their outdoor projects, quit thinking and just do it. Here is my process. Sand to 220 grit, tack cloth, then wipe down with denatured alcohol. Let dry for about 15 minutes. Brush on coat one. Second coat in one hour. Third coat an hour after that. Then I give it a couple of hours. Then I sand with 320 grit, tack cloth, then wipe down with denatured alcohol. Let dry for about 15 minutes. Brush on fourth coat. Fifth coat after an hour. Then it sets overnight. In the morning, I buff with a green 3M pad. Wipe with a soft cloth and it’s ready to go. Is this a lot of work? Yes! But it’s so worth it! And the customers love the soft glow the satin finish gives the project. The picture I shared is of some white oak I am using to refinish an outdoor bench for a customer. Like I said in the beginning, if you have been thinking about trying this, stop thinking and order yours today! And no, I am not being paid by, or a spokesperson for, TotalBoat.

Research showed this to be a frontrunner for sealing over epoxy for outdoor purposes, and it has proven to be a great product. Applied 4 months ago on outdoor wooden tables, still looks as good as the day I applied it and has gotten wet and been in the sun.