gel coat or paint

[jdm89supra]

new to the sight and I know from reading some threads that yall have talked about this before. in my case this is a little different. I have a 1989 supra ski boat when I had got it I did not know that the boat had cought fire due to an electrical issue. happy that I didn't pay to much and got to use it for the summer I tore into it this past fall. completely rebuilt the intire boat. I know how to work with fiberglass very well and I refiberglassed all of the burnt and rough places on this boat now that I have done all of the really hard work I had it vinal wrapped and that is a huge mistake to what I am wondering is what to use gelcoat or paint this boat is my pride and joy also this boat is very rare. after blowing three grand on a wrap it is pealing and only three months old and this boat is sanded to 320 grit under the wrap and smooth now that all the glass is done what will bond to old gel coat and new epoxy fiberglass I really don't know how to gell coat eather but need yalls help on what to use

any help whould be apeciated and im not a great typer

 

[gonzo]

You can spray gelcoat with Duratec clear additive. It mixes 50% with the gelcoat. I have been successful with it.

 

[jdm89supra]

I am going to have to do the entire outside and inside I wanted to go white inside and black stripe on outside with white at water line but what can I put under the waterline being confused on above waterline paints and below waterline paints the hull is ok not in bad shape

 

[gonzo]

You can either gelcoat or paint the whole thing. Automotive acrylic enamel works fine, Urethane is better and not much more difficult to spray. Gelcoat it thicker and allows for sanding and polishing deeper scratches.

 

[tunnels]

Two pot polyurethane paints are as hard if not harder then gel coat and will out last the gelcoat weather wise !! plus they are easy to use and match if you do get scratchs !!.

Over the years i had great success with industrial grade two pot polyurethan paints from my local paint manufacture just a couple of ks away from where i lived !! sprayed nice , covered a breeze and 2 coats in quick succession with a 15 minute dry tme between coats , On some of the boats i painted are coming up to 6 and 8 years old and look just as good as when first done !!.

 

[sean9c]

You have to remember that it's not just spray the gelcoat and you're done. Lots of wet sanding and polishing has to happen before it's done.

 

[sean9c]

The only LP that's repairable is Alexseal. It's the only one you can buff out and polish. You can't do that with Awlgrip, Sterling etc.

Two pot polyurethane paints are as hard if not harder then gel coat and will out last the gelcoat weather wise !! plus they are easy to use and match if you do get scratchs !!.

 

[jdm89supra]

OK well all of these products that y'all are mentioning will Polly stick or adhear to epoxy fiberglass of am I going to have to use a epoxy style paint I finish cabinets for a living the standarrd spray gun is not a stabbers to me so if poly will work that would be great buy I don't want to have to mess with it for a few years and be able to buff it

 

[gonzo]

Imron is my preferred paint. However, NAPA has a paint that is quite good too.

 

[PAR]

If this is your first gel coat job, I wouldn't recommend you try it on your pride and joy. I've never seen a novice, do a gel coat job, other than small patches, and get good results, particularly on a whole hull.

The automotive acrylics come in four basic types; acrylic enamel, acrylic urethane, acrylic lacquer, and water-based, but I would strongly recommend the acrylic urethanes, rather then the much more difficult to apply acrylic enamels. These are water borne (not necessary water based) and much tougher then the other automotive paints. They "lay down" like the lacquers and can be buffed out. They do now have water based urethane acrylics, which show promise and the automotive industry is using it with success, but I think the jury is still out on them.

Given the size and pride of your project, you'll likely have a much better chance of success with paint, than gel coat, particularity if environmental conditions are less than perfect.

 

[jdm89supra]

well that answers my question but I have a buddy in an autobody shop that said he would smoth everything out and fix anything that needed to be if I would buy the filler and paint style he would do it for eight hundred turn key now I have to decide on a brand and color

 

[PAR]

$800 is a good price for the inside and outside of an 18' boat. Use a good primer.