old boat, first boat

[SPD]

Just joined the forum and this is my first message, I'm glad to be aboard. I just purchased my first boat and know nothing about boating in general. I got a old 60's vintage Larson All-American 15 footer, that I can knock around in the small lakes here in Iowa. I plan to buff up the finish for now but want to paint it this winter as part of a restoration project. Cost is a factor for me. How I would I go about getting a fiberglass hull painted, what is a "gel-coat", and any guesses as to what this could cost? (I presume that taking it to "Maaco" and telling them to slap a coat on, would be a bad thing...)

 

[Chris1956]

Re: old boat, first boat

SPG, Gel coat is thickened polyester resin. It forms the top layer of the fiberglass boat and is usually sprayed into the hull mold first. It is a job that requires special spray gear and experience. Likely you should have your boat painted with a good marine paint. ALll the big yachts are painted to provide the high quality finish.<br /><br />I have heard that there is marine paint that may be applied with a roller or brush that gives a very good result. I have not tried it. I did have my 16' speedboat painted by a local bodyshop, who has lots of experience painting boats. They used a 2 part polyurethane (Awlgrip). I stripped off the hardware filled the gouges with marine putty and wet sanded to 400 grit. The bodyshop then primed and painted the hull. It came out very good. Total price was $400 for them, many hours sanding for me.

 

[Realgun]

Re: old boat, first boat

Chris 1956 would you have a picture of your Pride and Joy? I wanna see that Awlgrip stuff.

 

[Catchem]

Re: old boat, first boat

Welcome to the forum SPD.Pretty sure you'll get lots of help here and if you look at some of the other posts here you will find this question is asked quite often.Basicly comes down to what your budget can afford I guess,and the effort you want to put into it.