Wrapping my boat question
- Thread starter xavpil
- Start date
jssailem
SBO Weather and Forecasting Forum Jim & John
- Oct 22, 2014
- 22,208
I explored the idea. Visited with two companies in 2019 who do that work, one in Vancouver Canada and the other in Seattle WA. Costs were greater than the boats value, $25K. The warranty was 6-7 years. When it begins to chafe or gets dinged, they told me, there was no way to repair the wrap.
Decided against the project for my boat.
Decided against the project for my boat.
No flames at the front or waves at the back? You are missing an opportunity here.
I have not heard of anyone using this approach, and would not want to be the beta tester for this, especially with the price.
I can see various issues regarding durability, the aforementioned "dock rash" issue being one of them.
When I painted the underside (below the waterline), I used black vinyl tape for the boot stripe. It did not adhere well in some areas, and pretty much every time I have it out of the water there is a section that needs to be re-done. Had I painted it on, I doubt I would be having such issues. If the wrap gets damaged, it could lead to loss of adhesion in the area surrounding the damage. Any patch would most likely be evident and subject to the same problem.
I had my motorcycle tank & plastic wrapped. Getting it off when it showed its age was a bitch. I can't imagine getting it off a boat. The adhesive leaves a residue. Zylol took it off but it also damaged the paint. Maybe the "Pros" have a method, as they wrap & unwrap cars. I wouldn't do it after my experience.
We wrapped our 2000 VOYAGE 37' CAT 3 years ago. It's not a full wrap but does cover 80% of both sides. It updated the looks of the boat by years. Total cost was $1740, including labor. There is very minor dock rash, which happened in a close hurricane. We use velour covered fenders. This is a captained charter boat which is used extensively year-round. The wrap was done in 4 pieces per side, so we can replace any single section as needed. We always dock on starboard, with the helm being there, so the port side is perfect. If you're not great at docking or have rough docks, I would not recommend.
That does look very slick. Definitely sets your boat apart. Have you ever had to remove any sections? If so, how did that go for you?
3M makes a rubber eraser wheel for this purpose. The Chinese knockoff I used worked well when I updated registration numbers
beautiful!!!!
where did you it done? I’m having a hard time to find companies under $6,000