Gelcoat Vs. Paint

[dvideohd]

Hi....I seek advice. I am getting ready to do a good bit of fiberglass work on my "rescued Katrina boat". Repair the Transom, repair and replace the rudder, and fix all the scratch and worn Fiberglass abrasions on the side. There are a LOT of abrasion - scratches to repair on the boat... I have no doubt that if a professional company did it, that they would use Paint - instead of Gelcoat to coat the hull. But - since it is just me and my children (10, 13, and 16)- I have other choices... Where do your draw the line of (a) repairing the Gelcoat or (b) just stripping the Gelcoat off and going with Epoxy Barrier coat/ paint? I don't see the hard line - or even some advice on this forum. I have read Casey's books - repeatedly. Similiarly, I have read Nigel Calder's works. I read - and repeatedly RE-READ Allan Vaitses's book "Fiberglass Boat Repair Manual". I even watched ALL of the West System's tapes. There appears to be good argument for Styrene wash with Gelcoat repair - on all the scratches... but for 1-2' Diameter Abrasion spots, the choices are not so clear. The Transom (top) will have to be reworked - within bounds - altogether. There is good argument for doing the repairs with EPOXY and 10 Oz Biaxial weave - then following West System's insructions for Gelcoat overlay... they think it works. There is the choice of NOT useing Gelcoat - but stripping the Gelcoat off the entire hull and painting - AWLGRIP or something similiar....Trick is in making the decision of which approach to take. I won't be using a professional service - and my boat is "on the hard" in my back yard. ************ I would welcome advice.... In the meantime I am practicing my Epoxy - Fiberglass skills on the Mac 25.. it is simple and fun to work on... the H37C - next to it - just truly overwhelms the Mac 25 in size.... I have to say.. the H37C has been a true JOY to work on... I am really learning a lot - and don't feel that time pressure that folks sometimes have.... thanks..Jerry Robinson

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

did something similar

with my son over the winter on his Mumm36 which had delaminated creating the same choice of going with either gel or paint. He decided to paint for a number of reasons: easier, more forgiving to mistakes by amateurs, less selective about the type of underlayment epoxy choice to which it must properly bond and durability as it was on deck rather than the hull. Not sure you have the same considerations.

 

[KennyH]

I think paint is the way to go

I think paint is the way to go. I visited the Hatteras Yacht Plant in Newbern NC. They awlgrip all their yachts. Seems like if it is good enoough for them it should be good enough for a redone yacht. I also repainted the Cove Stripe on my Cheoy Lee Clipper with Emron and the results looked good and shiney for 15 years. Hard to beat these two paints but you do need an expert spay painter to get it done properly. I used an expert car painter who made me do all the grunt work. He just came in and sprayed 5 or 6 coats. He said it was going on so well he just kept coating it. He had sprayed Emron before which I guess is important.

 

[TJ-LJ Champion]

We're an elite group! ( 37C)

Hi Jerry,Not that I can comment on this topic since I've yet to begin the same process as you. My deck needs so much work and I've decided to do the gel coat repairs then use Poli-Glow to restore the surface.We're interested in your progress and would enjoy sharing methods of restoration and techniques. I'm about as clueless as they come on some things and really appreciate someone who has experience or about to undergo the process.Best of luck with your 37 C, we love ours as much!Laurie

 

[Vinny]

I vote paint.

I'm not a painter nor do I do gel coat worth a damn. But my boat had some surface gel coat work done by a yard in FL and Pros or not it doesn't color match. And that's with White. The good news is down by the water line and you can only see it when it is on the hard but non the less it's there. Fix everything then paint it. It will all be one color then and I'm sure better looking than if you try to match gel coat.IMHOVinny

 

[Mike C.]

Don't Fret About It...

Jerry,I've done fiberglass repair (also paint and body work) for years and we have a 33.5 Hunter that was a Hurricane Charlie boat. Gelcoat... Don't worry about it. The thing about gelcoat, the air has to be blocked/shielded for it to set up. That means spraying a coat over the final finish or covering it up with wax paper. I did spray some Evercoat white gelcoat on my transom... the Evercoat is the only gelcoat that I know of that doesn't require a barrier coat to harden. The thing about gelcoat... When building the hull it is the best thing to use. For repairs, it's not, it's a pain and not worth the trouble. Gelcoat is basically the outer coat that carries the Color. On repairs below the water line, don't waste the time (or $) on color since your bottom paint will cover it. I know you've seen Marine Tex(?). I've used it and I don't like it. In most cases the repair color looks like crap, it will get kind of a pale green tint under close inspection but on small scrapes it works as a good filler (paint over it, in my opinion). Evercoat makes a filler for marine and I like it. I've used it above and below the water line. Go to the Evercoat (dot com) site and look at their information. If you're going to paint the entire hull and you don't have access to an air-compressor, rooooooll it. I've seen some excellent results from rolling the pain on. On the Rudder, if you have it... repair it. Mine was damaged. I straighted the shaft and repaired the damage. (Did it bust the quadrant?) There's a major trick on getting the 150 pound rudder out. Get a 5/8" rod and cut it to 3" (if your shaft is 3") and grind the ends back 1/3 of the OD and about 3/16" deep. Block the rudder up and pull the steering quadrant off the top, there's a 5/8" bolt that goes through the quadrant and shaft (this is where you're emergency tiller goes). Take the part you made and place it in the hole where the 5/8" bolt was (it should lock in the shaft when you pull up and Nothing should extend farther than the O.D. of the rudder shaft). Now get a 10' 4"x4" and lay it across the top of boat above the rudder, connect a cheap come-a-long to the 4x4 and the pin you made, now you can drop the rudder by yourself and it's a heck of a lot easier to install. I think I have pictures of my damaged rudder if you'd like to see how bad mine was. Don't made the mistake of thinking the prop shaft is still straight. While the rudder is out, pull the shaft and check it. Two blade prop? Can it and get a three blade. Mike