Considering topside paint.

brian3820 · Jan 26, 2012

Ed, I am interested in having the deck painted... I will keep an eye on this post to see what people respond with. I am much more interested in spraying the deck rather than roll and tip, can only imagine the finish will turn out nicer that way.

thinwater · Jan 26, 2012

Ed Schenck said:
It might be time to paint over the thirty-three year old gelcoat. I always figured when the time came I would just roll and tip. Now as I get older and lazier I find that I would rather be sailing than working.

Question is have there been advancements in hull painting? Is there spray equipment that works for DIY? Are there newer paints? Maybe some of you have done this recently. I am leaning toward blowing the 201K and having a pro do it.

a. With a mohair roller and the correct amount of thinner, there is no "tip" requirment. I've painted numerous boats with boat Perfection and Brite Sides. I dislike foam rollers. The temperature and thinner is critical, so test it on something else JUST before starting.
b. 80% of the work is surface prep and taping. The painting is fast.
c. Get the best rollers and brushes.
d. Pick a nice 80F day. Don't try this in cool spring weather. The paint won't flow or cure correctly.
e. I would try not to do the topside and deck the same day.

Chuckbear · Jan 26, 2012

Paints like Brightside will only last a year or two on the hull then have to be redone. With all of the prep work and time in painting it makes sense to use a paint that will give you a longer life. We've painted our sailboat Sea Trek from the waterline to the masthead with AwlGrip, our new to us trawler is in the process now and much of it is posted on our two websites. It's not that difficult and the results will last you ten years if you take care of it. We roll the paint on, seldom even having to tip, depending on humidity, etc. The results have been great and many comment how it looks like it was sprayed. Unless you have experience with a spray gun, I would not recommend it. Chuck

Maine Sail · Jan 26, 2012

Ed Schenck said:
It might be time to paint over the thirty-three year old gelcoat. I always figured when the time came I would just roll and tip. Now as I get older and lazier I find that I would rather be sailing than working.

Question is have there been advancements in hull painting? Is there spray equipment that works for DIY? Are there newer paints? Maybe some of you have done this recently. I am leaning toward blowing the 201K and having a pro do it.

Ed,

Reconditioning your gelcoat, unless gouged, crazed or has had multiple non-matching repairs will be considerably less money. It can usually be made to look new or better than new for a few hundred dollars or less and about 20-24 hours of your time or you and some friends..

If you must paint I would consider using one of the buffable acrylic urethane paints such as Awlcraft 2000 or Imron MS600.. They make future repairs easier and can be buffed where a linear polyurethane should not be buffed. Alexseal claims their LPU can be buffed but I have heard conflicting reports from professional painters as to just "how" buffable it really is and what happens when you do buff it.

With any paint work the prep is 80-90% of the job. If you can do the prep you may be able to find someone to shoot it. Prep with any of these pants is very, very critical as they are very glossy and will reveal any minute defects in prep work. Darker colors are even worse. As such some painters may not want to allow you to do the prep and then have their "name" on the paint job for reputations sake..

I would not suggest you try and "cut your teeth" on a full re-paint as your fists job. Marine paints are very expensive and are easy to mess up. Can it be done? Sure, but the learning curve is quite steep and mistakes quite costly. Personally I would not be caught dead doing all that prep and then cut costs on a single part paint, it is just not worth it.

Our now 6 year old Awlcraft 2000 paint can not be discerned from a brand new paint job even by a pro.. One of our local yard owners asked me this past fall why I did not let them paint it. When I told him it was six years old the owners jaw almost hit the ground. AwlCare and AwlWash are all that have hit this hull since the day it was painted, other than a spring wash down with Naptha before washing with AwlWash and applying the AwlCare.....

RichB · Jan 26, 2012

Like Ed, I too have reached the tipping point. It is time to paint.
Although I have already tested some Brightside in a couple of lockers with good smooth results, The legendary AWL grip has to be more durable than the one-part poly.

Considering the preparation time and cost, it would be false economy to skimp on the paint.
I'll check ChuckBear's website, search the history here at sailboatowners and keep a weather eye out.

Tim R. · Jan 26, 2012

Do not waste your time with Brightsides. It is a good paint but is simply not durable enough for a long lasting finish. It will show scratches and scuffs very easily if you use a dark color.

Perfection is much better and I would consider it a good choice for the DIYer.

If you get the chance to use both of these, you will agree with me.

Spend the extra money on the paint now so you will not be doing this again in 5 years.

RichH · Jan 26, 2012

Enthusiastically agree with ALL posts so far.

the 'downsides' of painting is that the boat cannot be covered' (especially with shrink-wrap, etc.) ever again without a good risk of the paint 'lifting' under the cover. No topside paint can withstand such 'high humidty' conditions without 'risk'.

For me and I heartily recommend to learn how to do DIY Gelcoat repair and gelcoat spraying ... it isnt that hard, and especially if you use computer color-matched gel, etc.

If the re-sale value of your boat is important ... a painted hull, etc. will always have considerably LESS value than a properly repaired and restored gelcoat finish that is maintained to 'original' or 'show room' condition.

robertsapp · Jan 26, 2012

Here's a question for you

Let's say your boat has some history. Maybe while a previous owner had it it's been a bit beat up by a few hurricanes.
And let's say the PO patched some of the damage (or had it repaired) and then decided that the best way to even out the appearance was to apply Awlgrip on the hull and deck.
And let's say it's now ten years later, and the paint is looking pretty tired.
What's the better way to go (as in easier and more cost effective):
Sand, smooth and prep the paint job applied by the PO and then repaint
or
Strip away the old paint completely and have the boat reshot with new gelcoat and then wet sand and polish?
Is it even possible to go back to gelcoat once someone had applied paint?

Maine Sail · Jan 26, 2012

RichH said:
the 'downsides' of painting is that the boat cannot be covered' (especially with shrink-wrap, etc.) ever again without a good risk of the paint 'lifting' under the cover. No topside paint can withstand such 'high humidty' conditions without 'risk'.

Rich is correct however painted boats CAN be covered with shrink wrap. It has to be done correctly and you need a shrink wrapper who has a clue how to do it...

Ideally I would love a Canvas cover but can't get anyone, including Fairclough, who thinks they can build one like this. I won't even let canvas touch our topsides...

RichH · Jan 26, 2012

THATS the way to shrinkwrap a painted boat ... the ONLY way. If the shrinkwrap 'touches' the paint the forming/condensing moisture (and NO matter how well 'vented' the shrinkwrap is) will cause the paint to lift !!!!!! Got the teeshirt ... got the shoulder bursitis from the 'rework'.

tommays · Jan 26, 2012

I had to really fight with the shrink wrap guy to keep him OFF the topsides

Tim R. · Jan 26, 2012

Not that hard. I do it every year. My boat is not painted. I do it for air circulation. Not a drop moisture under the cover.

RDS2012 · Apr 25, 2012

I know this is an old post but I have a question on what equipment I can use to spray Awlcraft 2000 on with when I paint topsides. I have a Kremlin air assisted airless and also a Binks pressure pot and gun. I use Kremlin in my cabinet/millwork shop everyday so I'm the most familiar with it.

Any help is appreciated,

Ron

tommays · Apr 25, 2012

Awlgrip support has the most setup info

Considering topside paint.

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