project - Shoalwater boat - paint or gelcoat the inside?

I recently boat a shoalwater boat 16ft.
The deck on the inside and rails are a nasty almond color and show dirt and imperfections. My goal so to paint or gelcoat the inside with some dark grey and maybe put so cobwebbing.. Anyone know which rout I should take? I really would like to gelcoat and spray some webbing if I can do it on my own. Anyone have any experience with this process.. Do I have to completely remove the the almond first:? The floors is not smooth its got some bumps etc from use.


https://drive.google.com/file/d/0By53yw3mM8Y-cks5RnJWM1ZXY0E/view?usp=sharing

 

hi ..

i'm very familiar with paint .. been an auto body guy 10 years ..

and recently have begun dabbling in gelcoat and composites ..

.. i recommend paint for this application .. gelcoat is much more difficult to work with .. for a few reasons .. gelcoat is very thick .. between ketsup and mayonaise .. and you need a 'cup gun' to slobber it on .. it won't be smooth and you would need to sand it .. also the hardner in gelcoat gels pretty fast .. making small batches or fast work necessary ..

also .. mekp and styrene in gel isn't too healthy .. overall i would use gelcoat in .. say the back of a molded piece you're gonna laminate .. but if re-applying a surface coat i say go with paint ..

i just repainted my boat .. the same size as your own .. i use and recommend PPG MTK urethane .. it's a 2pack .. single stage .. urethane that is tough .. user friendly .. lays flat .. sprays easy .. reasonably inexpensive .. and just all around good paint .. also i suggest fast hardner and a wee bit of medium reducer .. shoot in a regular 1.4 hvlp and use a water separator and practice cleanliness and proper surface preparation ..

i would abrade the surface with 320 grit paper and wipe it with prep solv and lacquer thinner .. mist bulldog adhesion promoter .. and paint it ..

good luck .. Leroy