| HI THERE
SORRY I DO NOT HAVE THE ANSWER, BUT I JUST BOUGHT A 16 YELLOW HOBIE THATS
LOOKS LIKE IT IS GOING TO NEED NEW PAINT ALSO. I WAS TOLD BE A DEALER THAT
THE BEST THING TO DO IS FIND AN EXPERT ON CORVETTES. SEEMS THAT THE FENDERS
ON THOSE TOYS GET AS MUCH ABUSE AS A CAT. THE THING YOU ARE LOOKING FOR IS
AN EXPERT ON FIBERGLAS. HE SAYS THAT A REALLY GOOD AUTOMOTIVE PAINT WILL DO
THE TRICK IF PREPARED CORRECTLY, IT WILL WORK. I DON'T THINK ONE WOULD NEED
MARINE PAINT SINCE YOU ARE GOING TO PULL IT OUT OF THE WATER EACH TIME.
ONE THING TO BE CAREFUL OF IS NOT TO USE THESE NEW EPOXY PAINTS THAT ARE
USED ON AIRCRAFT. ALTHOUGH THEY WILL STAND UP TO ANYTHING LESS THAN A
4 INCH DECK GUN, THE STIFFNESS OF THE PAINT LENDS ITSELF TO CRACKING AND
FLAKING ON THE FLEX OF THE FIBERGLAS.
I HOPE THIS HAS BEEN HELPFUL. I WILL BE TEARING MINE APART AFAR ONE MORE
WEEKEND DONE THE CAPE. AS SOON AS I FIND A PROFESSIONAL, I'LL PASS ALONG
HIS ADVICE
JOHN
|
| Huh? What do you mean by 'marine resin'? 'Fiberglass' is really a matrix
of fiberglass cloth and resin (usually polyester). There are other types
of cloth, such as polypropylene, that are much more abrasion resistant
than fiberglass. The resin itself, either polyester or epoxy, is not
very abrasion resistant. Gel coat is very soft. One of the linear
polyurethanes (Awlgrip, Imron) is maybe the paint to use, though they
are quite expensive and relatively toxic. The best solution is don't
drag the boat over sand and rocks. (I heard that one of the Carribean
charter companies supplies a nearly indestructable 8' dinghy with their
boats -- it weighs 300 pounds -- which illustrates the difficulty you
are facing.)
Alan
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| HI BILL
BOY DO I HAVE AN ANSWER FOR YOU
I READ UP FOR WEEKS ON HOW TO SHOOT NEW GELCOAT. I ORDERED ALL THE GOODIES
FROM THE MANUFACTURER AND ALSO GOT SOME DISPOSABLE SPRAY EQUIPMENT FROM
MURRAYS IN CAL.
AFTER SANDING DOWN THE BOTTOMS, I MIXED THE GELCOAT WITH 1/6 AMOUNT OF
ACETONE FOR THINNING AND 15 DROPS CATALST PER OZ OF GELCOAT, I THEN SHOT
THE BOTTOMS AFTER TAPING WITH PAPER TAPE AND WAX PAPER. THE RESULT ARE
VERY, VERY GOOD. THIS WILL ALSO TAKE ANY SMALL SCRATCHES OUT OF THE BOTTOM.
I FIND IT TAKES ABOUT 4 LAYER TO DO THE JOB, BUT YOU CAN SHOOT THEM ALL
AT THE SAME TIME WITH ABOUT A 2 MIN PERIOD IN BETWEEN. WHEN DONE, YOU
HAVE TO SHOOT A COAT OF WAX OR "MOLD RELEASE" TO MAKE THE GELCOAT CURE FOR
YOU SINCE IT IS DESIGNED TO HARDEN WITHOUT AIR.
AFTER 8 HRS IN THE WINTER OR 4 HRS IN THE SUMMER, YOU CAN START TO SAND
DOWN THE OVERSPRAY AND THE ORANGE PEEL WITH FINE SANDPAPER, BEST HAVE A
BUNCH OF THE STUFF SINCE THE GELCOAT CLOGS THE PAPER QUICKLY. YOU THEN
USE #400 SAND PAPER TO GET RID OF THE FINE SAND PAPER SCRATCHES, #600
WET/DRY SAND PAPER WET TO GET RID OF THE #400 SRATCHES, AND THEN USE
FIBERGLAS RUBBING COMPOUND TO FINISH OFF THE FINISH. YOU CAN THEN PUT
A COAT OF FIBERGLAS WAX ON TO GET ONE HECK OF A SHINE.
I STILL HAVE A PINT OF THE GELCOAT LEFT ALONG WITH SPARE AIR EQUIPMENT
IF YOU WISH TO GIVE IT A TRY. LET ME KNOW HOW IT TURNS OUT.
JOHN
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