painting metal toe rails

[Ed Schmitt]

I have black metal toe rails of my 1980 Hunter 33 and am interested in any suggestions for restoring the color which is faded to almost a dull gray. I am not to concerned about the nicks,but just want to get it looking better, without removing it. Any tips on type of paint to use and application technique to avoid spraying the stanchions and screws? Suggestions appreciated.

 

[Terry Arnold]

toerail finish on H33

The toerails are anodized and a very tough finish. Nothing that could be painted will match the toughness of the original finish. A while back I was admiring the finish on the toerails of a friend's H27 and he said that he used Armorall on them. I tried it and it certainly does remove some of the haze of age but they have to be very clean first. Might be worth a try.

 

[Tim Schaaf]

Unfortunately,

I discovered that Awlgrip does adhere to the toerails rather well....a small problem with overspray when I redid my hull. The overspray is still there and I am glad that the area was relatively small. I agree with Terry, however, that you will not find something as tough as the anodizing. Now, if anyone can suggest a way to remove the offending Awlgrip...any ideas, Terry?

 

[Van (Pete) Schaeffer]

Paint it

I tried Armorall and Son of a Gun and found they dont' last very long. I hand painted my toe rail with Rustolium in the spring of 2000 and it still shines.

 

[Peter Roach]

What about Penetrol

Have you tried Penetrol? I had a 78 hunter with a black toe rail and it worked pretty good. I needed to redo it about every year.