Conference vicki::boats

    
>>    an older boat in mint shape, except the paint. The boats fiberglass
>>  16 ft long and has all the goodies. It's one down fall is the darn
>>  paint has faded into oblivion. Can it be brought back or is a paint
>>  job in order. I know nothing about how or if you can paint a boat?
>>  Any ideas out there on how to restore this boats color or what I
>>  have to do to paint it??
    

Unless your boat has already been painted before the faded finish you
are looking at is actually the fiberglass "gelcoat" and not paint. The
gelcoat is actually a colored resin that is sprayed into the mold before
the fiberglass is applied. It can usually brought back to a nice shine,
although it probably won't look quite as good as new.

You can start off with a good fiberglass "finish restorer". There are
several brands available. If this doesn't work well, try wet sanding
with 600 grit paper and a flexible sanding block. Follow it up with the
finish restorer or polishing compund. Once you get rid of all the oxid-
ization frequent waxing will be required to keep it from coming back.

Unless you can afford a professional awlgrip paint job (BIG $$$), a
fiberglass boat should be painted only as a last resort. Standard paint
does not hold up well at all on a fiberglass boat due to people walking
on it with sandy feet, cracks caused by flexing of the hull, scratches
from rubbing against the dock and/or trailer etc. If you repaint it will
need to be redone almost every year. If you can keep the original gelcoat
it will be easier in the long run to maintain than a new paint job.


Rick W.

    Also if you have a lot of algae stain on the bottom I suggest you
    get a good algae remover/cleaner. My favorite is "Slimy Grimy",
    but is not available from a catalogue - at least to my knowledge.
    Some products are specifically called "algae remover" others are
    called "Hull Cleaner".
    
    I've had lots of luck dealing with phone-in catalogue orders. You pay a
    competitive (if not cheap) price, and you have the delivery within 3-4
    days. One of my favorites is "Ski Limited" 1-800-621-6300, open
    24 hours.
    
    The following are order #'s and prices for the above reccomended
    products by "Star brite".
    
    "Hull Cleaner - Instantly removes grassy marine growth, rust stains,
     and scum line. Contains no harmfull acids - safe to use.
     ST-81732 Hull Cleaner 32 oz. $  6.95
     ST-81700 Hull Cleaner Gallon $ 27.95"

    [Note "Slimy Grimy" has a harmfull acid making it work quite well!]

    "Rubbing Compound - Restores original shine and color by removing
     chalk and oxidation.
     ST-81316 Liquid Compound 16 oz. $  5.50"

    "Fiberglass Color Restorer - Brings back original color and lustre
     due to fading chalking fiberglass. Seals surface to protect against
     future weathering. Will not scratch or harm gel coat. 
     ST-81816  Color Restorer $ 5.95"
    
    All in all it will take a fair amount of elbow grease. And don't foget
    - DON'T WAX THE BOTTOM! 

    
    re.2   I'm confused. Why shouldn't the bottom be waxed?  I thought
    wasing was good for a boat.
    
    
    Ray

    Ray,
    
    My dealer (of boats) told me that wax either encourages/promotes
    more bottom-fouling or just plainly and simply makes it tougher
    to remove botoom-fouling.
    
    Mike
    
    I'm sure the x-perts will add the scientific reasoning behind it
    all when they reply. This is just to hold you over till they get
    to work!
    

    I was told that you don't wax the bottom because it adds friction
    (i.e. increases resistance) to the boat. This makes sense to me.
    The wax is in effect a paste that sits on top of the fiberglass
    surface, when pushing against the water the paste would increase
    resistance. Sure, wax looks shiny to the eyeball but it is not
    necessarily a smooth surface.

    I'm also going to take this great advice!! Thanks Bill! I've got
    a 1969 bow rider that needs some work. I call the toll free number
    and a catalog is in the mail. I'll post the results later!

    
    So much for fiberglass.  I have a starcraft aluminum that needs
    repainting.  Can anyone give me any ideas on how to begin ?
    

    Painting Alum---- Clean the hull with steel wool and a good detergent
    until all the oxidation is removed. Then spay it with "ALUM-A-Prep"
    primer ( It's ugly zinc yellow). When thats dry spray with a good
    epoxy color of your choice
    
    That was Easy Eh ?                       Walt