Gotta toss this out for comment ( painting)

Well I've got the inside of the ol MONK up to snuff, but I need to paint the outside. I have studied and studied and I still don't have a "good" solution so this is something I may need advice on. She's solid wood, but the flat surfaces of the cabin, boat deck and foc'sle, have all been laminated with glass ( cloth and resin). I have decided that epoxy and polyurethane are NOT good for a repaint as they are so brittle and/or hard. I'm pretty sure I need something flexible. So I have decided to paint with a semi-gloss enamel.. I am trying to choose between Miller spar enamel which I have used for many, many years on my wooden 18 footers.. good coverage, pretty even flow characteristics, and repaints and touchups seem to be at 3 year intervals.. But I have heard much praise about the UNTRIED, Interlux enamel...that it has great roll and tip qualities and is also a finish that stands up to the endless movement of a wooden boat... now is there any kind of primer/undercoat that I can apply over the sanded fibreglass, that will flow and fill little imperfections in the glass coat.. something that I can apply as a "filler" on the old lap joints of the glass to smooth it out?? any suggestions are welcome, and it looks like the weather is gonna break and I'll get my 9 days straight of good weather to paint. Thanx to all for their hints, tips and advice!!!

 

2 part polyurethanes are anything but brittle! Imron was a favorite paint for boat seat cushion vinyl covers. Now the typical epoxy primer/surfacer is another animal; most of those are fairly brittle, mostly because of the high filler loading that is typical of these products. Most one-part paints, unless they are based on vinyl/latex chemistry, are more brittle that 2 part polyurethanes.

This is less true of the acrylic urethanes, however. Those are fairly brittle. But even then, there is always a flexibilizer additive in the product line for acrylic urethanes for those applications that require flexibility.

Jimbo

 

I suggest you fill with West 410, prime with high build single part urethane primer, sand, and (I'm remembering you said three years) roll and tip with Interlux or Petit or any good single-part poly enamal.
You could go with a two-part too, but I'm guessing you are more familiar with the single-part paints.
Solid wood has enough expansion and contraction that single-part paints do well on it. Two part paints may not be brittle, but they do not have the flexibility of single-part paint.
All that said, plywood panels sheathed in glass would go many more years with two-part paint, so it would be a good choice in that usage. Two part all of it, including the solid wood? i am not enough of an expert to say. Maybe Jimbo can suggest a brand of two-part that would be good for solid wood.

 

You are really painting on glass, not wood. All the majors make a 2-part poly system that's good on glass. Though I'm partial to Awl-Grip and Sterling, the Interlux paints, including their 2 part polys, are exceptionally forgiving in application making them well-suited to amateur application without a lot of hand-holding from a local pro. There's a reason why Interlux products continue to be so popular, despite being a 'David' among Golliaths.

A urethane primer is going to be a key component needed to make sure the coating stays flexible. It won't do any good to apply a flexible paint over a primer that is going to crack; cracks look like cracks whether the crack was caused by prime or top coats.

Jimbo

 

Thanx Jimbo and Alan. I've seen a lot of your replies and I think you're both onto what I've been looking for..some of the deck areas will get an aluminum oxide non-skid mixed with the 1st top coat. and then a final coat to "seal the deal" any thoughts on that?

 

My method is to sprinkle the first wet coat with grit until totally covered and allow to dry, then dry brush off excess, vacuum, and recoat. Thios yields a surface I like--- with no unsanded areas to be seen. Some guys use far less grit. Youi don't need the amount I use, and less will work fine, but my method ensures uniformity and a great non-skid surface in wet conditions.
I use a hot dog roller to spread paint and to apply the second coat as well. A third coat is even better, as it puts two coats over the grit.

 

Now to put your help to the test!

Alan n Jimbo, your info and advice was just great! I'm going to utilize your suggestions and I'll post some pix as the job progresses. Great bit on applying my non-skid medium, I was gonna mix it with the paint but I like the broadcast method much better... you guys rock !!!

 

To help with getting an even spread of the grit, putting the grit into a flour sifter can really help out a lot.

 

Just a comment on the 2 part polyurethanes.......

I've been restoring a 73 Silverton over the past few years. Last summer I made the choice to go with Interlux Perfection and I'm glad I did. I painted a couple of large 1/2 inch ply panels (okume) that form the rear of the cabin. Since these were vertical panels I simply coated them with epoxy, sanded, coated with the Interlux Epoxy Primer (404), sanded and finished with the Perfection. I'd never used this product before. I simply followed the instructions. Well, I know why they call it "perfection".

Regarding flexibility....these panels sat in the shop for a few weeks and then went to the yard for installation. Installing them myself, you can imagine the flexing the panels took. Now arguably the paint is new, but there was absolutely no cracking. The surface finish is just beautiful.

Regards,

MIA