Bali Hai tiki ... 911?

I went to the Bali Hai today for the first time and I was a bit alarmed by this tiki while I was wandering around the grounds.

It appears to be this tiki from their site.

It was just lying in the back of the restaurant, by the old tables. Kind of like a make-shift storage area. I hope it's not being tossed. I asked a few people that worked there and they just kind of shrugged their shoulders. The working manager was too busy with a party to talk to me.

Hopefully someone on here as some connections to help this tiki!

It's your duty as a tikiphile to GO RESCUE THAT TIKI !

This looks like a job for our Tiki superhero BOSKO - to the rescue. I think he has a safe home for this little guy.

DC

Man, I wish I could rescue it. I drive a small VW Golf and this tiki is about 6 ft tall. (Not that I know if I could take it anyways. It is still their property, obviously.)

I posted it on here hoping someone on TC may have a contact or know someone in management inside the Bali Hai. Then hopefully they can find out if they plan on preserving or to see what was going on with it.

If they do plan on getting rid of it, hopefully a skilled artisan (Like Bosko) can preserve this fantastic piece of history.

Actually, does anyone know Kevin Kidney? Isn't he the one that refurbished the Mr. Bali Hai? I'll go to his site and email him this thread.

Also, Dustycajun posted this pic on another thread, this appears to be what the tiki originally looked like.

[ Edited by: Tiki Shaker 2008-10-24 22:15 ]

[ Edited by: Tiki Shaker 2008-10-24 22:16 ]

For the past two Pre-Tiki Oasis kick off parties at the Bali Hai he was hiding in the plants near the dock. In 2007 Al-ii gave Mai Tai, Coco Loco and I a tour of some of the cool hidden things around the Bali Hai and he was a part of it.

I really hope they are just moving him to a better location on the property.

That is the Tiki which was stolen a few years ago they never got around to putting it back into its rightful place. The weird thing was somebody went to the bother of ripping it out (of concrete) hauling it to a waiting vehicle, kept it for a couple of days (?) and dumped it back in front of the Bali Hai? I have offered to take it and do what I can to save it but management says it's going back one of these days so I don't press the issue. Not that I am implying anyone here is, but before somebody gets any ideas, we as Tiki preservationists are bound by their wishes to re-install it.
Both the Tikis there (that are the same style) used to flank the dock entrance, they did things big back then.

Bosko

It's a shame they don't take you up on that offer. It's looking pretty sad sitting there upside down and rotting. I wish they would let you help them put it back in it's proper place!

Didn't the Bali Hai allow Kevin and Jody to restore Mr. Bali Hai himself a few years ago? It's strange that they are not in any hurry to reinstall and restore him to his former glory. At one point it seemed the owners/management were gung ho about restoring and preserving the place..... :-?

[ Edited by: Tom Slick 2008-10-25 09:55 ]

I just emailed the jerks and included this thread. Let's hope they care.

I suggest more do the same to get their attention

[ Edited by: Coco Joe 2008-10-25 10:07 ]

Tiki Shaker I'm sure I was just as shocked as you to see him back there (it is pretty shocking) but when I've asked they say he's going back.
Tom when I said try and save it that's just what that means I was hoping to stabilize it, get the piece out of the (damp) weather so the problems didn't go any further. Palm wood unlike the solid wood (I don't know what type) that Mr Bali Hai is made of, (palm) is very difficult if not impossible to restore or repair. Palm is a monocot (orchid family) the only "solid" wood is the outside inch or two and once they start to deteriorate the fiber begins to crumble there isn't much you can do. Consider also their location, right next to the bay, it's the worst place for any type of wood it is a wonder they are still in one piece.

Bosko

Yes, I've seen rotted/deteriotated tikis and they are not pretty. The fibers completely break down and you can literally pull the fibers with your fingers. I hope it hasn't gotten to that point with that tiki. If it has gone too far, and the base is destroyed, maybe a replacement carving session is in order? (hint) :lol: ...I guess time (and money) will tell.

The TiKi from Tonga Lai in Malibu was like Styrofoam when I found it buried in bamboo. I used the West System epoxy to stabilize the wood and restore it. It darkened the wood and gave it a slightly gloss sheen but it's strong again.
I have the equipment, material, truck and time to fix it if they would let me.

Great job bb!
So the face and the head are epoxy?

The West System is a low viscosity epoxy resin that permeates rotted wood and fills the voids. I used a large hypodermic with big needles to inject the epoxy into the wood, then as the middle became solid, I started working it to the outer surface. I finished by brushing on coats until saturated.
When I started the entire TiKi weighed around 30 lbs, when done it was near 100 lbs, in the beginning, the wood was soft enough to push your finger almost through, when complete there was no give at all with full pressure.
The only down side is the color, it darkens it quite a bit and gives it a bit of a sheen. Having been outside for a year now, the resin has lost the sheen and in a couple of places that I slathered the resin thickly, it has discolored a little. I took a wire brush to those areas and that solved the problem. Next time, I will use less resin on the surface, unless the TiKi is either kept indoors or is painted.
The West System is used, among many things, a repair method for wooden boat parts that have rotted or eaten by critters. I started using it back in 1975 on wood sailboat restoration projects.

I'm kinda new around here, please help me understand the difference between your resin tiki and the resin tikis at PartyCity :lol: Just kidding BananaBob! Great restoration of a wonderful historical tiki