Question:
Painting an old sail boat?
I'm seeking advice about having my 1973 Bristol 30 painted. Now,
the gelcoat is very porous and stained, so a paintjob would really
help out the look of the boat. But a fancy Imron or Awlgrip job
seems out of the question. Our yard has given us an estimate (about
$2K) to paint it with monourethane.
My questions:
1) what can we expect from a monourethane paint job? How long will
it last? Does color matter? (That is, will dark color last
longer/shorter than white?)
2) we think that even if we go ahead and have the hull painted,
we'll wait until next year to do the topsides. Any problem with
that?
3) Any questions we should be asking about this paint job?
Answer:
-I did my last boat, a 1969 Columbia 26 in white Interthane, a two part
paint from Interlux. I was amazed at the results. It was a notch
below a profesional Awlgrip spray job, but exceeded my expectations by
a wide margin. One side of the boat was done in less than ideal
circumstances, temp. ~40 degrees and excessive moisture, it was
pouring rain outside. (I really had no choice, it was a combination
of a rented shed and the limited manpower available). The only
difference between the side that was done in much better conditions is
that the one done in the cold was more 'orange peely'. The Interlux
tech support was great. I called them the morning I was going to
paint and the tech rep. quoted the instructions, 'temp should be at
least ..", but once I explained my plight, he said, 'I am not
recommending this, but if I had to do it in those conditions, I would
mix it this way....' It turned out great. When I sold the boat, the
person buying the boat was amazed when I told him I painted it myself
and I pointed out the less than perfect sections. Since then, I have
painted a Flying Scot dark blue under almost ideal conditions using
this same paint and it turned out great. I would consider using this
paint or something similar from another supplier.
-On two occasions with a third about to start, I have taken tired old
boats and hand rolled and tipped Interthane Plus with their brushing
catylst. I got great results.
Awlgrip makes a similar catalyst for hand vice spray applications
which is dangerous if you are not well equipped and trained to do it.
Both Interlux and Awlgrip have a video out. Get it! Follow it
religiously. they both have primers which fill in pourous gelcoat.
Careful prep is the secret. Also pick your day carefully for the
paint (the primer is not as critical). You want a day with no
possibility of rain. You want to finish up early enough so that the
paint has time to cure before the dew falls or condensation occurs.
This will dull the boat. It this as good as spraying...probably not
although people have to look real close to find my few screwups.
On my boats a spray job would cost more than the boat is worth.
The two part is a viable alternative and lasts longer than one part.
I have done one part on a mast and that did work OK however.
