First Boat /project 16ft Aluminum (Starcraft)

[AZSunDevil]

Success!!!!!!It's a 1981 starcraft. They found it in the system using a combo of old registry numbers off the bow and the old trailer license plate. They're going to give me a new Hull ID plate for it. Last time it was registered was 1992.

Whewwwwww

 

[Johnny]

wow - CONGRATS !!!!! (this is a learning lesson with old boats - next time you will know).

now - onwards and upwards into your project !
have fun - be safe - enjoy the summer !



.

 

[Fire1386]

Awesome, congrats.....

 

[Brandtcountry]

awesome! I was gonna drive out there and give you 200 Lol

 

[AZSunDevil]

Started stripping paint today. Decided to try "Citristrip" about $12 per quart from Lowes. I am about 3qts in and have almost the entire boat exterior stripped. I tried some on the inside of the boat but the interior paint seems to be much more stubborn...to be fair I only used a small amount on one of the benches. First things first, I figure I 'll get the exterior stripped and then move to the interior. I know some guys say they just sand or rough up the existing paint and paint over that as it is easier and less expensive (less materials & time involved) to prep bare aluminum for paint but this thing had several layers of "rattle can" camo and then a base layer below that which was pretty old too....so I didn't want to risk it. Would rather start with a blank canvas so to speak.

With the citristrip I find it takes that rattle can layer off right away, then the second coat (OEM paint?) below it requires some more touch up as you can see in the photo below there's some "almond" colored base paint that appears to be the original layer in patches that I had to go back and touch up. I'm waiting on a second coat of citristrip to soak in now.



Does anyone with experience on citristrip know if it matters to remove it BEFORE it dries? It's extremely tough here because it is so HOT and DRY. I am working in the garage to keep it out of direct sun, per the citristrip instructions, but not sure if I should be removing it before it dries.

 

[nccatfisher]

Stripper in conjunction with a turbo nozzle with a pressure washer will do wonders. Make sure to wear protective goggles, that stuff in the eyes is bad news.

 

[AZSunDevil]

Stripper in conjunction with a turbo nozzle with a pressure washer will do wonders. Make sure to wear protective goggles, that stuff in the eyes is bad news.

There's a greenish bottom layer only in some areas that seems impossible to get off with the stripper / pressure washer combo. Is this some kind of paint prep leftover from factory? Any thoughts on another angle of attack for removal?


Noticed on the bow there's some brown epoxy like substance. Some is loose and coming off or is missing now. Thinking I may have to hit this area with Gluvit but I believe most only use Gluvit on the interior?

 

[Johnny]

any paint that can not be chemically removed can be sanded smooth
after the final cleaning and just primed and painted over.
ensure the edges are feathered down smooth so the area won't ghost through the final coat of paint.

in my world, any open seams such as the ones you show,
I would force caulk or sealer deep into the crevice and wipe smooth
with the finger or cloth. please avoid any and all of that spray seal stuff you see on TV.

doing great so far - keep up the good work !!

 

[Shaugh]

Any thoughts on another angle of attack for removal?

Wow that's looking good. You won't be sorry if you do the extra work to bring it back down to bare aluminum. Bare aluminum is so much more durable and good looking compared to chippy paint imo.

To get that last bit of paint and corrosion off try one of these brushes in an electric drill. They're soft so they're easy to use (unlike metal wire brushes) but they still remove most anything:

https://www.amazon.com/Dico-541-778-4-Nyalox-4-Inch-Orange/dp/B00004YYD8/ref=pd_sim_469_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00004YYD8&pd_rd_r=EDSP99DHNEZB0FH15GB0&pd_rd_w=MjmDA&pd_rd_wg=19jPz&psc=1&refRID=EDSP99DHNEZB0FH15GB0

 

[AZSunDevil]

any paint that can not be chemically removed can be sanded smooth
after the final cleaning and just primed and painted over.
ensure the edges are feathered down smooth so the area won't ghost through the final coat of paint.

in my world, any open seams such as the ones you show,
I would force caulk or sealer deep into the crevice and wipe smooth
with the finger or cloth. please avoid any and all of that spray seal stuff you see on TV.

doing great so far - keep up the good work !!

I ended up using a dark red (maroon color) scotchbrite pad cut and fit to my little Makita finishing sander to finish the sides man what a difference maker. Wished I had figured that out earlier. It has that "brushed" aluminum look to it now all along the sides. So for the bottom of the hull I'll need to take the boat off of the trailer and flip it over. It isn't painted but I guess it could just use a once over with the scotch bright pad -- maybe some soap and water or is there something else you guys would recommend for scouring and cleaning the bottom?

This weekend really took it out of me getting the exterior stripped. The interior is really going to be a nightmare I think. The citristrip stuff works but it works slowly and sometimes takes multiple applications. In hindsight, not sure it was the most cost effective route. Probably should have just bit the bullet and used Aircraft Remover like I see a lot of guys recommend, then pressure wash the hell out of that.

So for the interior do you think I can get away with a light scouring (with same scotchbrite pad on sander?), clean with soap and water, wipe down with Acetone, self-etching prime the bare aluminum spots and then prime & paint? I already pressure washed the interior and most of the paint is adhering very well. Still a couple of chalky areas I missed that the sander would probably address.

 

[Johnny]

do you think I can get away with a light scouring (with same scotchbrite pad on sander?),
clean with soap and water, wipe down with Acetone, self-etching prime the bare aluminum spots
and then prime & paint?

A B S O L U T E L Y !!!!!

( please keep in the back of your mind that you are working on a BOAT - not your grandmothers china cabinet )

and, if you over think it - - - it will surely be over thunk !!!









.

 

[AZSunDevil]

do you think I can get away with a light scouring (with same scotchbrite pad on sander?),
clean with soap and water, wipe down with Acetone, self-etching prime the bare aluminum spots
and then prime & paint?

A B S O L U T E L Y !!!!!

( please keep in the back of your mind that you are working on a BOAT - not your grandmothers china cabinet )

and, if you over think it - - - it will surely be over thunk !!!









.

Well I started one section with my 4.5" angle grinder and a wire cup brush but realized it was probably too harsh for the aluminum. I like the suggestion above to use the Nylon wheel which will help me get between the rivets on the outside of the boat.

Once I get it sanded and cleaned then wiped with acetone, I am going to GLUVIT the interior seams and rivets. Although I only had one leak in the front, I figure it's not going to hurt to use it since I have the entire quart.

Self-etching primer I can just buy at autozone or o'reillys in the rattle can. Do I need to prime again on top of that for the non-bare metal portions (where factory paint remains?) and if so, do you have any recommended primers for that?

I like the idea of spraying the interior battleship grey, maybe a non-skid type texture or material if such a thing exists. I haven't decided to stick with just low profile and simple flooring or if I want to put a casting deck into a portion of the boat. I may do low profile floors to start, just enough to cover the ribs and then add on to the boat later as my needs/desires dictate.

For exterior paint I like the idea of the top portion being either a Glossy Forest/Deep Green or Maroon with White or battleship grey on the bottom portion of the hull. I've never been very good at putting what I visualize into reality...my "artistry" skills are zero to none. I'm really a hack.

 

[Shaugh]

There's a greenish bottom layer only in some areas that seems impossible to get off with the stripper / pressure washer combo. Is this some kind of paint prep leftover from factory? Any thoughts on another angle of attack for removal?

The green stuff is likely just aluminum corrosion like this:


The orange nylon brush should take it right off.. better than scotchbrite... This is a 57 boat with 60 years of corrosion built up ... It was like a coat of black paint.

 

[AZSunDevil]

There's a greenish bottom layer only in some areas that seems impossible to get off with the stripper / pressure washer combo. Is this some kind of paint prep leftover from factory? Any thoughts on another angle of attack for removal?

The green stuff is likely just aluminum corrosion like this:
View attachment 2

The orange nylon brush should take it right off.. better than scotchbrite... This is a 57 boat with 60 years of corrosion built up ... It was like a coat of black paint.
View attachment 1

OK good! I ordered the Orange Nylon Brush and a $50 quart of Gluvit from Amazon...both are scheduled to arrive tomorrow. Hopefully I'll get to spend a few hours here later in the week on it. I should also have some time over the holiday weekend to work on the boat.



The interior looks pretty ugly, mostly on bottom of the hull and bench tops. Otherwise the paint is really clinging. This is after I went over it about 3 times with a 2800psi Gas powered Pressure Washer with a 15 degree nozzle, holding it about 2 to 3 inches away from the surface. If this is truly factory paint not sure why there's so much overspray on the inside of the gunwale. I definitely need to strip that part as my plan was to polish out the gunwale (not paint it).

I'm going to try to read back through some of the painting threads but to be honest I'm feeling a little intimidated by it. I put so much work into getting the boat prepped, if the paint doesn't turn out really nice I'm going to be pretty disappointed. I definitely don't want to have to go back and do all of that stripping and painting work again.

 

[Shaugh]

Stripping the interior is probably too much on that boat. sounds like you're on the right track and have it near ready to paint. Just sand down any rough parts.... put some bare aluminum primer on the spots that don't have any paint and start laying on the Rustoleum gloss... You'll be surprised how good it looks compared to what you started with.... that's one of the big satisfactions in working on these boats imo.

Not painting the gunnels and the bumpers is also a great idea... less chipped paint that way...

Rustoleum smoke grey is what I used on mine and it's a little dark imo...seems like it gets extra hot in the sun....If I was going to do it again I'd go lighter than that... Maybe consider buying a quart of grey and a quart of white and mixing them ?

 

[AZSunDevil]

Stripping the interior is probably too much on that boat. sounds like you're on the right track and have it near ready to paint. Just sand down any rough parts.... put some bare aluminum primer on the spots that don't have any paint and start laying on the Rustoleum gloss... You'll be surprised how good it looks compared to what you started with.... that's one of the big satisfactions in working on these boats imo.

Not painting the gunnels and the bumpers is also a great idea... less chipped paint that way...

Rustoleum smoke grey is what I used on mine and it's a little dark imo...seems like it gets extra hot in the sun....If I was going to do it again I'd go lighter than that... Maybe consider buying a quart of grey and a quart of white and mixing them ?

Wow yours looks great. Did you use a HVLP gun ? I was looking at one of the ~$50 HVLP spray guns because I don't think I want to mess with rolling it on. Also temperature here is a concern. At best I can get up at 5am and paint it when it's 85 to 90 degrees out, in the garage with door open but at least in shade that way. By 10 or 11am it could be 100+ degrees outside. Wondering how that might impact my painting process.

So I can just put the gloss right over the existing paint, unnecessary to prime on top of the existing paint --just Self Etch prime the bare spots.
Would you add a clear coat?

 

[Shaugh]

If the original paint is sound there's no reason to prime it. Only prime bare aluminum. I just used a foam roller. Spraying paint is very messy and harder than you think to do a good job... I like rolling because you have so much more control and a lot less mess to clean up. You also can do it in the shade of a garage... with a beer in one hand..

 

[AZSunDevil]

Decided to put some work into the trailer this week. Yanked all ofnthe old crappy rollers and brackets off of it. Bought four CE Smith Bunk Bolster Brackets online, to try and go with bunks Instead. Also bought some 2x6x10's at big blue box store for $14 went with kiln dried Douglas fir. Cheaper and better weight displacement than to replace the old crappy rollers and rusted brackets. Not entirely sure I'm doing this right but it seems to work. I mocked it all up to see if everything will align. Next need to spar varnish the 2x6s and carpet them.



Need to find some short shaft "large flange" 3/16" rivets for the bench spars. Decided too much work to pull all the benches out. Don't want to deal with all of that riveting to remove and replace. So in need of a blind rivet to replace factory blind rivets that attached the spar to the bench.


Bought these off boltdepot.com but they will obviously be far too long. Didn't think about rivet length when I bought them. Flange (head?) Size is dead on however.


Not sure where to get shorter length blind rivets with this head size. They will have to be blind rivets as the benches are full of foam and I will not be removing them.

 

[AZSunDevil]

It is very hot and dry here, upwards of 105 to 110 degrees on average right now by 1pm. Is there a Maximum working temp for applying Spar Urethane? Can I apply it in the warm temps in the shade of my garage? Or should I wait and only do it in the AM when it is 80F to 85F?

I have been searching google for the answer to my question but have not found anything on "highest" temperature for applying spar urethane. Plenty of discussion on Cold weather application.

I bought a can of this Minwax Spar Urethane at HomeDepot and was going to use it on my Bunk boards before carpeting. Maybe 4 or 5 coats starting with very thin coats per Johnny's suggestions in another write-up I saw. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Minwax-...-Indoor-Outdoor-Spar-Urethane-63210/100156304

Nothing on the can about maximum application temps.

I am considering using the same stuff on my transom when I get ready to make that.

 

[Johnny]

Sun - modifying paints and varnishes only comes with experience.

in the sign painters world, we have no control over the environmental conditions
when painting outside.... when it is hot and dry, we would use the slowest evaporating
thinner we can find plus a few drops of kerosene.
Naphtha and Turpentine are slow evaporating thinners and mineral spirits and is a bit faster.
so in your condition, I would suggest Naphtha or Turpentine as the thinner and another conditioner
such as Flotrol or Penetrol as a modifier ..... some are specific to latex water based paints
and some are specific to oil-based paints.... be sure to use the correct one for your products.
follow the directions on the label.






you could perform your own experiment with putting equal amounts of each thinner in
the same size container - such as bottle caps and compare the evaporation
rates under controlled conditions - such as in your garage or outside under cover and check them daily.
the slowest rate of evaporation would be your choice of thinner for 100* temps with low humidity.

mix only the amounts you think you will need for the project at hand
do not return any modified products back to the original container or the whole can could ruin in a short time.



.