scared to start preping

im sorry to bother all of you pro's out there with these rookie questions but i would like some help. i have been asking on this forum about painting my 19' 1975 hustler flatbottom boat because i have to repair some stress cracks and gouges in the gel coat, i dont like the color, and want to re-do the interior. it has a nice shiny gel coat design from 1995 and i am afraid that the new paint job will not look as nice. ive researched all the materials and have all the instructions and ready to start prep work but people think i am crazy to think i can paint a boat with a brush or roller and it look like the nice streak free top coat i have now. can anyone clear this up. i plan on either using an off white intrlux perfection or brightside top coat with the preferred primers/cleaners and follow all the instructions on the prep. the ney sayers say if i dont spray the paint there is no way i can acheive a smooth river boat finish. HELP. are they right?

 

If you nail it, and I mean nail it- a rolled and tipped AwlGrip job can be better than spray. You won't do it on the first hull or even the second but it can be done. You have to have the product thinned right and lay down just the right amount of paint w/ the roller. Tipping requires a light touch. You have to move fast.

Forget it on anything other than big flat surfaces. For anything like deck structures buy a $100 gun and spray. You will nail it or have orange peel or runs but you will get better results than brush work. I do lots of small spray jobs w/ the Binks Mach1 HVLP gun dial down w/ 1mm tip shooting Jet Glow and Awlgrip. Don't kill youself spraying this stuff- use good safety gear.

 

if I was u i run a ad in the craig list for a spray painter lots of really good guys out there looking for side work,the reson I say this is it will be cheaper in the long run.Frist you will have to buy a gun and maybe a commpressor and you may not end up with a good job and thats money down the drain,painters have to spend a number of years doing a apprentancship.So for a couple of hundred dollars you will get a pro job thats if you do the prep and all the painter has to do is pull the trigger.most painters who are good love to show photos of there work.and that paint is nasty stuff if you dont have the right mask you will be spitting up lumps of your lungs, and dont do it in your back yard you should do it in some sort of booth.