Boat paint suggestions?

[CateP]

I have a sunfish (1976) and have never heard of painting the bottom. Why paint over the gelcoat?

Best marine products pricing I have found is at defender.com (in CT)

[fatlazyless]

I have a 1980 Force 5 sailboat which is about 14' long and sort of similar to a Laser. The surface on the bottom was in such rough shape when I bought it and so ugly that painting it with the Rustoleum fiberglass primer and a finish coat of bright blue glossy Rustoleum made a huge improvement. After years of neglect, the gel-coat got so beat up that the boat could either get discarded at the town transfer station or revived with Bondo, primer & paint. The Rustoleum boat paint goes on with a 4" roller and 2" angle brush and is definitely not as good as Awlgrip or Pettit done with a spray gun, but is probably much more doable for a do-it-yourselfer. The boat cost me $300 on craigslist about four years ago.

[Belmont Resident]

Being a painter I can tell you that 80% of doing a job the right way is in the prep. I can also say that prep is also 100% of what people hate about doing it themselves and usually cut corners to save time, not money.
Also wondering why you don't just buy the $40 recommended bottom paint instead of taking a chance with other options that would have you possibily having to redo the work? Good luck either way.

[shoppes on the bay]

bigdog, i have been boating for over 20 years in saltwater and longer if you count freshwater, there is no need to paint the bottom of your sunfish if you keep it out of the water. bottom paint is to keep growth off of it and growth will not grow on a boat that is kept out of the water even if you keep it in for 2 or 3 days. just give her a good waxing and enjoy using it.

[bigdog]

Shoppes On The Bay... I understand and agree with your comments, that I really don't need or require "bottom paint" in fresh water.... Only reason I'm painting is b/c the bottom was originally had bottom-paint applied, and was in salt-water by previous owner in R.I. Bottom is now showing chipping & peeling.

New paint covering, really is only for aesthetic appearance.
That being said, can I just sand and spray on some regular "primer" ?

Thanks,
BD

[ITD]

BD, I painted an old sunfish many years ago. The fiberglass finish was dull and oxidized. I sanded the whole boat and applied an epoxy paint, it came out great, almost like new and still looks good many years later. There are epoxy paints made for fiberglass, they are not cheap and as mentioned before, prep is very important, but I think it's the best way to go.

[CateP]

Originally Posted by ITD

BD, I painted an old sunfish many years ago. The fiberglass finish was dull and oxidized. I sanded the whole boat and applied an epoxy paint, it came out great, almost like new and still looks good many years later. There are epoxy paints made for fiberglass, they are not cheap and as mentioned before, prep is very important, but I think it's the best way to go.

For my dull and oxidized sail boats I use Marykate On & Off to remove stains (amazing stuff, works great) and then use a buffer with oxidation remover.

A shiny gelcoat bottom on a Sunfish (and topsides on other boats) should last longer than our lifetimes with proper care. Once you start down the "painting" path you are in for a lot more maintenance as paint scratches and wears off. It doesn't take much to make a paint job look crappy after a little wear and tear.

[ITD]

Originally Posted by CateP

For my dull and oxidized sail boats I use Marykate On & Off to remove stains (amazing stuff, works great) and then use a buffer with oxidation remover.

A shiny gelcoat bottom on a Sunfish (and topsides on other boats) should last longer than our lifetimes with proper care. Once you start down the "painting" path you are in for a lot more maintenance as paint scratches and wears off. It doesn't take much to make a paint job look crappy after a little wear and tear.

This boat was beyond buffing, it was a $150 special that was in good shape except with a few holes and a couple of cracks and the finish was beyond buffing out. Some glass and resin to fix the holes and cracks, a lot of sanding then about 2 quarts of epoxy paint and it still looks great, about 25 years later. YMMV

[CateP]

Originally Posted by ITD

This boat was beyond buffing, it was a $150 special that was in good shape except with a few holes and a couple of cracks and the finish was beyond buffing out. Some glass and resin to fix the holes and cracks, a lot of sanding then about 2 quarts of epoxy paint and it still looks great, about 25 years later. YMMV

Ahh. Epoxy paint!! Never used it , but sounds like a solution.

[Grady223]

Originally Posted by bigdog

Shoppes On The Bay... I understand and agree with your comments, that I really don't need or require "bottom paint" in fresh water.... Only reason I'm painting is b/c the bottom was originally had bottom-paint applied, and was in salt-water by previous owner in R.I. Bottom is now showing chipping & peeling.

New paint covering, really is only for aesthetic appearance.
That being said, can I just sand and spray on some regular "primer" ?

Thanks,
BD

Interlux makes particular products for priming and bottom coating lake boats (non-ablative, ultra low friction) I would suggest using them. I had White Mountain Fiberglass do my Grady and they did a great job (603-254-4478).

[Irrigation Guy]

Love yer boat Grady!