Repainting A Mast + Boom

[Ducati]

Our black anodized/painted mast and boom is really starting to look bad with plenty of scratches and scrapes. I'm already thinking of how to deal with making it look new again. I can repaint it next season or maybe having it soda blasted down to the bare metal.

Aside from leaving it alone any suggestion?

Thanks

 

[tommays]

Biggest issue is getting someplace to work on it

Second biggest issue is taking ALL the stuff off

Then you will have a heart attack trying NOT to damage the great looking paint job

Seriously its a monster job due to the size

 

[Tim R.]

I had a painted mast that needed repainting. If you decide to paint, here is the article I wrote on painting my mast using Interlux Perfection.

http://www.tkronaboat.com/Projects/Ericson%2035%20Projects/Mast%20Repaint/index.html

 

[Deadline]

Powder coating

My bowsprit couldn't hold a paint job, with all the nicks and dings. I recommend powder coating for aesthetics and durabiity.

<LI class="g w0" style="MARGIN-BOTTOM: 8px">Gallery - Peninsula Powder Coating, Inc.

Gallery. Click on an image below to view a larger picture... Copyright ...
www.peninsulapowdercoating.com/gallery.php - Cached - Similar

 

[CalebD]

Tim,
Nice photo gallery and wonderful job on your spars. It seemed as though some of your text was chopped off though. It could just be my browser (firefox).

I had a painted mast that needed repainting. If you decide to paint, here is the article I wrote on painting my mast using Interlux Perfection.

http://treilley.myphotoalbum.com/view_album.php?set_albumName=album36

 

[Tim R.]

Tim,
Nice photo gallery and wonderful job on your spars. It seemed as though some of your text was chopped off though. It could just be my browser (firefox).

Thanks Caleb. They are going under at the end of this month so it could be the website. I am struggling to find a way to transfer the folder structure so it will be easier to update all the links I have posted.

 

[Joe]

Tim,
Nice photo gallery and wonderful job on your spars. It seemed as though some of your text was chopped off though. It could just be my browser (firefox).

Same problem, just going to the site article was insufficient. Go one step further and click on the first picture... then use the slideshow function at the bottom left of the page. The complete text will show below the abbreviated text... as will all the pictures.

 

[CalebD]

Thanks Joe.
Tim did a thorough write up of this project so it is nice to be able to read the complete text.

 

[joker460]

There is a very good write up in DIY Boat Owner Magazine.

The issue is #1 2009. They professionally restore a mast.

I was a bit taken back by the cost for a professional job. They said the typical price was $100/foot

http://www.diy-boat.com

 

[Rich M]

How does one read the article in DIY-Boat? Seems to require a subscription..

 

[Slade]

Ok, I'm sure some will point out the error of my ways..but I'm a rookie at this boat restoring hobby and I don't have much cash to throw in that direction. But for less than $10.00 and some elbow grease I painted my mast and spreaders with Rustoleum Professional enamel. Went from a scratched, faded, old mast to a lovely gloss black finish. Masked off all the fittings (didn't have to remove them) and sprayed on two coats. Dries fairly quick and looks great. No cracking or peeling from moving the mast around that I can see. We'll see how long it lasts...but it can't look much worse than it did.

Ended up looking so good I painted the rudder housing as well.

My boat is quite a bit smaller so maybe it's not feasible for you but on my little Starwind 223 it looks pretty decent. I'll try to figure out how to get some pics on here.

 

[Old Skool Neil]

Back in the 70's black anodized spars were the trend. I bought a used Catalina 22 with a pretty severely oxidized mast and almost no budget to do anything about it. I did the Rustoleum spray can job in flat black as Slade mentioned and followed it up with 3 coats of Johnson's liquid floor wax. The floor wax brought the paint to a satin luster and the finish was durable as all get out, held up well for years.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

Painted with Interlux Perfection ....

I was able to do ours indoors as a winter project. Getting SS screws and bolts free was the biggest headache and I left a few fittings attached and painted around them (such as the gooseneck and the vang saddle which were riveted with SS rivets). PB Blaster did not help for me in this instance.

My first step was to sand all the black paint off with a random orbit sander, which was a pretty painless step. I etched with the Interlux Prime Wash and then used the 2-part primer and Perfection and did it in Snow White. I simply applied with a high quality brush and did 3 coats of the Perfection. The finish looked great when all done and still looks great after at least 5 years now. I've had some scuffing of the finish where the shackle for the main halyard attaches to the head because I don't remove it when covering the sail. The prime has held up well so I think I can repair with finish when I get A Round Tuit. I like the high gloss finish.

I'm not a perfectionist so this DIY was fairly easy for me and came out great in my view.

It was very important to use a good respirator when mixing and using those products, BTW.

 

[Slade]

Ok, I'm sure some will point out the error of my ways..but I'm a rookie at this boat restoring hobby and I don't have much cash to throw in that direction. But for less than $10.00 and some elbow grease I painted my mast and spreaders with Rustoleum Professional enamel. Went from a scratched, faded, old mast to a lovely gloss black finish. Masked off all the fittings (didn't have to remove them) and sprayed on two coats. Dries fairly quick and looks great. No cracking or peeling from moving the mast around that I can see. We'll see how long it lasts...but it can't look much worse than it did.

Ended up looking so good I painted the rudder housing as well.

My boat is quite a bit smaller so maybe it's not feasible for you but on my little Starwind 223 it looks pretty decent. I'll try to figure out how to get some pics on here.

Sorry this took so long but here's a pic of the completed mast and spreaders:

 

[knothead]

There are some recent posts on this topic in the yachtpaint.com boat maintenance forum. They recommend specific products but the general information is also good. Apparently whether the substrate is bare metal or old paint matters. If you don't go back to bare metal the aggressive two-part paint solvents will not allow you to reliably apply two-part paint over one-part paint. Lay a rag soaked in two-part solvent over the old paint for 24 hours and you'll know. The PO apparently didn't do that so our mast paint was cracking and peeling badly. Good luck because, as someone else said, it's a big job. I started at the top so my learning curve mistakes were 30' away. My regular old mistakes I can still see.....

 

[Ed Schenck]

OK, so I have studied Tim's project, very nicely done. And I have read many other posts. But what about those of us with serious time constraints? Is it possible to feather and prime the bare spots and then paint over the existing paint?

In the past I have touched up my old Kenyon booms(2) by sanding, priming, then spraying just the bare spots. There is a Rustoleum off-white that is not quite a match but looks better than bare aluminum. But I think this time around I want a color match on all the spars. Especially since the mast is now horizontal for the first time since 2000.

 

[Tim R.]

OK, so I have studied Tim's project, very nicely done. And I have read many other posts. But what about those of us with serious time constraints? Is it possible to feather and prime the bare spots and then paint over the existing paint?

In the past I have touched up my old Kenyon booms(2) by sanding, priming, then spraying just the bare spots. There is a Rustoleum off-white that is not quite a match but looks better than bare aluminum. But I think this time around I want a color match on all the spars. Especially since the mast is now horizontal for the first time since 2000.

I do not see why not as long as you use a compatible paint. The only problem is that the spots you touch up will make the rest of the mast look old.

 

[Slade]

OK, so I have studied Tim's project, very nicely done. And I have read many other posts. But what about those of us with serious time constraints? Is it possible to feather and prime the bare spots and then paint over the existing paint?

In the past I have touched up my old Kenyon booms(2) by sanding, priming, then spraying just the bare spots. There is a Rustoleum off-white that is not quite a match but looks better than bare aluminum. But I think this time around I want a color match on all the spars. Especially since the mast is now horizontal for the first time since 2000.

If not for the weather interfering I would have completed the mast and spreaders and the rudder housing in a weekend easy. As it was the coats got to set for several days waiting for the temp to come back up and that may have been a good thing. I masked over all the fittings, removed those that were easy and painted the whole thing. 2 cans of Rustoleum Professional laquer for a mast, spreaders, and rudder housing and I still have a bit left over.