Need Bottom Paint Advice Before I buy a C22 [photos inside]

[ECUmedford]

I am a Tanzer 16 sailor looking to purchase a Catalina 22 or similar cruiser to keep on a mooring at Lake Waccamaw in southeastern North Carolina.

A fellow sailor at my club purchased an extra 22 he really doesn't need from a guy who was going through some tough medical issues. He wants to sell me this one for $3300 with an engine.

Everything on the boat looks great from the waterline up. My only concern is the bottom paint job. I am not an expert but it looks to me like the bottom paint was sanded or scraped in places all the way down to the fiberglass. I would want to keep this on a mooring, but I am thinking that I should get the bottom in good condition first. Also, the keel is a rusty mess.

What do you guys think of the condition? Is it worth the price? It's convenient to buy because it's at my club, but should I just look elsewhere?

I am guessing I would have to vacuum sand this all the way down to the lowest exposed layer and then put on an Epoxy Barrier Coat then put on the antifouling paint?

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Daveinet]

The keel doesn't bother me much, that can be sandblasted, even if some of it is flaking off. Rusted metal expands 12 times its current size, so it is unlikely you are loosing a lot of metal. Do NOT grind it. If you try to grind it smooth, then you will take off too much metal. Sandblast it, and the fair it.
The bottom does make me wonder if the gelcoat flaked off. If it was scraped off, I don't know that you would see the edges so pronounced. It looks more like the gelcoat flaked off like paint.

 

[ECUmedford]

Good to know about the keel.

The paint is definitely peeling of with ease in certain sections.

 

[rpludwig]

keel typical, as Dave sez, suggest you search this forum for keel refurb...plenty here have done it.

bottom looks as though several coats of wrong stuff applied over the years, would take it all off, look at Cloud Diver's and Greg_M's threads...

topsides apparently have been painted, so that'll need upkeep.

trailer looks pretty good from limited pic...

boat, motor, trlr for $3300 not horrible, however considering the bottom work, at least 1k, and keel $500+, given it is an original model, sails condition? rigging condition? motor condition? you could easily sink another 3k into it quickly.

Think you can find better, jmho

 

[greg_m]

Seeing as I've been mentioned I will chip in here...

Firstly... buy the boat, heck buy any boat!

Secondly... yes look at my thread, but, and this is a big but, don't do what i did!

The below waterline area on that boat I would tackle with a good quality paint stripper first. A real good quality paint stripper. It sounds like hard work but is actually way quicker to remove heavy paint layers and will not modify the shape of the hull. By that I mean if you go heavy with a sanding machine there will be uneven surfaces that will need fairing.

So in short, buy the boat, strip the below waterline area with paint stripper, sand it only just good enough to be ready for a undercoat.

In terms of paint: Is the boat going to sit on a trailer or in the water most of it's life with you as owner. Mine is a trailer sailer boat so it won't live in the water for longer than a long weekend or a week at most during the holidays. I went with International two-part polyurethane undercoat and top coat to paint my entire hull. In your part of the world it will be Interlux!

I am very happy with results and after a little bit of application hassles and methods settled on simple rolling on the paint with no tipping. The tipping just left streaks no matter how lightly I used the brush or how fine of a brush I used.

Also, in reality it is a lot easier to do than you think!

Go for it!

 

[Gene Neill]

I hate to say it, but I have to agree with @rpludwig. I'd pass.

Another thousand dollars up front on a better boat will save you many, many hours of very hard, unpleasant labor ... and probably about two thousand dollars. The math alone makes it a loser.

And that's having not seen details of the trailer (needs bunks, has no tongue extension), the motor, or the sails, or the rigging, or the cabin cushions, or tapped around looking for rotten areas in the deck, etc, etc. But from what we can see, that price would be a non-starter.

 

[BigEasy]

Inspect the boat thoroughly inside, rigging, sails, motor, trailer, etc.
Estimate the cost to refurb & determine total sailaway cost. Check to see what other 22’s are available within a reasonable distance from your locale & determine sailaway cost. Compare & contrast pros/cons and cost of each boat and arrive at a decision as to what boat is the best value for your situation. If you do decide on the blue 22, discuss the problems & repair cost with the owner and negotiate the price. I am assuming that you’re going to do a lot of the work yourself; however, your labor has a value. Any way you look at it, this is a “project” boat and it’s going to take some money and lots of time to refurbish it. With the condition of the bottom & keel, I would be thinking in the realm of a 33 to 50% price reduction if you can’t find a better value and as long as you don’t mind putting a lot of sweat equity into the boat. Seeing just the condition of the hull, I don’t see the possibility of a lot of prospective buyers lining up to buy this boat, so negotiate hard. There’s lots of information on this site and the Catalina sites from others who have refurbished 22s; do some serious research to determine common problem areas, repairs procedures & cost to better understand what you are about to undertake. One way or another, hope it works out for you. And, let us know the outcome!

 

[ECUmedford]

I really appreciate everyone's advice. I am going to pass on this boat. I am driving 4 hours this weekend to checkout a C22 from a motivated seller (baby on the way and deployment).

It's $2000 and has:

• fresh coat of bottom paint (score!)
• 3 year old Tohatsu 6hp motor
• Two solar panels and a small alternator on the motor
• new fuse panel
• galley with a sink and stove
• pop up top
• table that converts to a bed
• new Radio with Bluetooth
• sump pump
• VHF radio

It's on a mooring in a Lake. He is going to trailer it so I can look at the bottom before committing. Hoping to come home with a new boat Saturday!

 

[rpludwig]

here's the REAL question IMO, having seen many in your shoes (including myself), do you want to become a boat worker-bee for quite some time with plenty sweat equity AND outta pocket, or do you wanna go sailing? We have many here, who are still working on their boats 2+ years, and yet to get 'em wet....then you can look at Scubaguy, who spent a bit more $$$ (wisely IMO) and was on the water within a few weeks and chillin'....keep shoppin', plenty of these boats out there...

2 cents.

 

[rpludwig]

ECU...was typing when u posted that, (they crossed), you are wise, and good luck with the next one....as said plenty out there, get one to get out there and sail this fall, prime NC time for it!

 

[ECUmedford]

Heck, I am hoping to sail this Sunday. I'm not afraid of a project. But I do want to sail this year and leave the major work for the off season.

 

[Grotto]

Hey ECU We’re neighbors! my project 22 is currently on boat stands. IF you want a comparison etc drop me a message.

 

[ECUmedford]

Okay, so for the $2000 C22 I am looking at tomorrow which has:

• fresh coat of bottom paint (score!)
• new keel bolt cable
• 3 year old Tohatsu 6hp motor
• Two solar panels and a small alternator on the motor
• new fuse panel
• galley with a sink and stove
• new Radio with Bluetooth
• sump pump
• VHF radio
• Saw a video of the trailer, looks to be in excellent condition.

He sent me a video of a section of dry rot he found when cleaning the boat. The seal next to the hatch was letting water in and there is a square foot section of dry rot. For $2000, I think I can live with this and do this repair myself. What do you guys think?

 

[rpludwig]

ECU...think you have enough feedback from us folks here as to what to look for from your last boat option questions...take a really close look, and tap around with a plastic hammer (or your knuckles) for soft spots....if rot there, likely more elsewhere, all can be dealt with, just don't wanna have too much to tackle...good luck on your search, don't leap, as said, plenty out there....on the surface, sounds like a good deal, emphasis on "SOUNDS"! What year is it?

 

[ECUmedford]

It's a 1977.

 

[ECUmedford]

I am officially a C22 owner of hull #6939 (1977)! Drove to Lake Moultrie near Charleston, SC from Lake Waccamaw, NC to pick it up today.

I feel like I got a steal at $2,000. The bottom paint and hull on this one looks perfect. It has the Tohatsu 6hp motor with only 20 hours on it. The trailer was in great condition and held up well on my trip home.

Biggest issue is the soft spot on the deck on the port side of the hatch. The leak that caused the issue has now been fixed. I plan to work on this over the winter time unless I get the itch to go ahead and knock this out.

Other future plans:

• reupholster the original flanel cushions in naval blue
• oil the teak
• wax the hull
• repaint the top deck and inside cabin
• change the laminate table to wood
• figure out if I want to keep the sliding stove (not really necessary since our club has a kitchen)

Hoping to put her on the mooring tomorrow!

 

[Gene Neill]

Congratulations, she looks great!! Keep the pics coming!

 

[rpludwig]

Score!!! fresh water boat+, good bottom+, motor worth 1/2 the price paid++, congrats, you did good!

 

[greg_m]

here's the REAL question IMO, having seen many in your shoes (including myself), do you want to become a boat worker-bee for quite some time with plenty sweat equity AND outta pocket, or do you wanna go sailing? We have many here, who are still working on their boats 2+ years, and yet to get 'em wet....then you can look at Scubaguy, who spent a bit more $$$ (wisely IMO) and was on the water within a few weeks and chillin'....keep shoppin', plenty of these boats out there...

2 cents.

@rpludwig : Noted!

 

[rpludwig]

greg.... certainly wasn't referring to you, you're building a boat, not working on one!!!