Re: Restoring 1959 Starcraft Speedster- Aluminum Boat
Re: Restoring 1959 Starcraft Speedster- Aluminum Boat
There are many different brands of paint you can use, but lots of folks here have had luck with good 'ol Rustoleum Marine paint. If you have the budget, you can go all out and use Interlux brand marine paint, but be warned it ain't cheap. Of course, the key to any good paint job is the prep. For starters, remove any loose/old paint by sanding with 220 grit, then wide down the entire boat with either a 50/50 mix of water and vinegar, or acetone. After the wash dries completely, apply several LIGHT coats of Zinc Chromate, Self-Etching Aluminum primer, which you can get at any auto parts store. After the primer is dry, you can apply the paint. Do a search here in the forums for "Roll and Tip Method" of painting. Lots of the guys here have had luck using it. Of course, you could go all out and take the hull down to bear aluminum and polish it up like a WW II bomber. To do so, your best bet is to have the boat soda blasted. It's like sandblasting, but much more gentle and won't damage or warp the hull. Once it's bear you can buy a polishing kit and a buffer and go to town. It's a lot of work, but it is certainly cool when the Silver Bullet goes zooming by. Hope that helps. Keep us posted. We love pics.
