Restore a "free"...Quicksilver Dinghy

[freeheelbillie]

I know there's no such thing as a free boat...but when I went to look at this https://detroit.craigslist.org/okl/boa/6017039371.html the guy said, I could have it for free before I could offer to pay the 50.00. Its needs a good scrubbing and has a small hole in the port side where the previous owner swore on his life that some type of river rat in the Detroit River bit a hole in it. No dry rot issues and the bottom is in good shape. I'll repair the hole, refinish the the wood floor and transom and repaint the entire boat with flexible paint which, brings me to my question(s). What are the best products IYHOs for cleaning/prepping for paint as well as patch kits.

Thanks again!

 

[MattObjects]

The best cleaning product, in my experience, is dish soap with water and a soft bristle scrub brush. You can also gently use Softscrub for any tough stains. There are products made especially for cleaning inflatable boats but they tend to be quite harsh and I would not use them on an older boat that already has aged tubes.

As for painting the boat, I'd suggest fixing the hole, inflating it, and leaving it in your yard for a week to see if it holds air over that time. Paint that is truly flexible enough to be applied to an inflatable is quite expensive- around $100/quart and you'd need several quarts if you planned to paint the entire boat properly with 2 coats as the paint manufacturers recommend. It would be easy for the cost of fixing up this dinghy to exceed the cost of buying a new or newer boat in better shape-- which is probably why the prior owner was trying to get rid of it in the first place.

Good luck!

 

[freeheelbillie]

The best cleaning product, in my experience, is dish soap with water and a soft bristle scrub brush. You can also gently use Softscrub for any tough stains. There are products made especially for cleaning inflatable boats but they tend to be quite harsh and I would not use them on an older boat that already has aged tubes.

As for painting the boat, I'd suggest fixing the hole, inflating it, and leaving it in your yard for a week to see if it holds air over that time. Paint that is truly flexible enough to be applied to an inflatable is quite expensive- around $100/quart and you'd need several quarts if you planned to paint the entire boat properly with 2 coats as the paint manufacturers recommend. It would be easy for the cost of fixing up this dinghy to exceed the cost of buying a new or newer boat in better shape-- which is probably why the prior owner was trying to get rid of it in the first place.

Good luck!

Good points, I hadn't considered the number of coats of flexible paint. I have the 3 holes located, none are more than an 1" to 1.5" long. I will need to reattach a small portion of the port side pontoon to the concave section of the transom. Other than that and some elbow grease it should be good to go. Valves all appear to be in good shape too. I'll post up this progress as it comes.