New boat - Needs to be painted

[DFisher]

Hey everyone,

My dad just bought me and my brother our first aluminum boat.

The paint on the boat is peeling off and we are wanting to redo it.

Does anyone have any pointers on what is best to use? We were considering using rustoleum products? (primer and paint)

Also if anyone has any pictures of their paint jobs done to their aluminum boats I would love to see them.

Thanks in advance!

 

[bonz_d]

Rusto works very well just keep in mind that if you have any bare aluminum it needs to be treated with self etching primer first or the paint won't stick.

 

[DFisher]

For the self etching primer do you need to let it dry for a long time?

I have seen various opinions.... some saying you need to paint it within 30mins - 2 hours after priming and others say you have to let it dry completely before painting for best results.

 

[Skiffing]

I used rustoleum and let it sit 30 minutes to maybe an hour then base coated. I let the base coat dry 48 hours then light sanding and several clear coats w/ ~ 30 minutes between each.

 

[SumDumGuy]

rustoleum

gloss white & handicap blue



Hunter green mixed w/red primer & almond

 

[lugoismad]

1 coat of this as primer: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C011CO/

2 coats of Valspar "Safety Blue" oil based enamel

 

[lugoismad]

For the self etching primer do you need to let it dry for a long time?

I have seen various opinions.... some saying you need to paint it within 30mins - 2 hours after priming and others say you have to let it dry completely before painting for best results.

I just did one coat a day.

 

[DFisher]

Thanks for all of the pointers and pictures! Looks awesome.

One more question, does Rustoleum hold up ok when driving on gravel roads or is there something that would be better to use?

 

[rich250]

SEM self etch primer,Limco white automotive basecoat then Limco blue automotive basecoat and then Limco clearcoat on top

 

[DFisher]

Looks awesome I hope to start painting mine in the next couple weeks.

Did all of you end up sanding down to bare aluminum?

 

[Johnny]

a photo of YOUR boat would be nice too . . . .


There is a whole forum here dedicated to photos of members boats.

 

[rich250]

Took mine down to mostly bare aluminum

 

[Johnny]

does Rustoleum hold up ok when driving on a gravel road ?

depends on many factors - your speed, size of gravel, how many miles on a gravel road,
how many times do you drive the gravel road, do you have mud flaps on the tow vehicle.
is the tow vehicle some jacked up rig that can throw baseball size rocks, yada yada yada . . . . .

just paint your boat and go enjoy the water - worry about gravel chips later.

 

[TangoTracer]

Does a wax job on the bottom do anything for speed? I've raced sailboats and waxed those before, but doesn't seem like it would have much of an effect on a fishing boat under motor power

 

[Johnny]

Does a wax job on the bottom do anything for speed?

oh heck yeah !!! Simonize the fool out of it and you will be fastest one on the lake !!
Two hand rubbed coats, 24 hours apart.
It also prevents gravel chips when driving on a rocky road.

 

[safetyfast]

a photo of YOUR boat would be nice too . . . .


There is a whole forum here dedicated to photos of members boats.

That's beautiful. How'd you get it so smooth with a brush?

 

[BassAddict]

The fish really seam to turn on to a rainbow paint scheme!

 

[Johnny]

Thanks Safety, I get a lot of compliments on that boat.
Especially at a marina or crowded boat landing.
The original color scheme was like a seafoam green and white with light tan speckled interior.
That will probably be the colors next year. This is not a fishing boat.
Just for fun running around the lakes and rivers.

I just posted a thread on PAINTING YOUR BOAT in the Hobby Forum . . .
https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=38237

 

[lugoismad]

Does a wax job on the bottom do anything for speed?

oh heck yeah !!! Simonize the fool out of it and you will be fastest one on the lake !!
Two hand rubbed coats, 24 hours apart.
It also prevents gravel chips when driving on a rocky road.

I used rainex on mine. It actually hovers just a few millimeters above the water.

Then, I replaced the two stroke with a cat with a slice of buttered toast glued to its back.

 

[PBRMINER]

I just used ace oil based enamel... Held up for 3 years sitting outside just redid it. I didn't want to use any paint actually but the po painted it poorly so I had no choice