Hull Refurbishment

Biggles · 02 September 2004, 20:29

I have just bought an old Ex MOD Sea Rider which is in need of some tender loving care.

I have got the console and interior up to quite a respectful standard and I am happy to leave the tubes in their present state. Worn but rugged looking.

What I need to do next is the hull. It was orange gelcoat originally but has been painted over several times with a white glossy paint. You can see where it has peeled in the past and then just been painted over.

What should I do. I have only standard DIY tools at my disposal.

Should I just rub the paint down to give a rough surface for an anti fouling paint to hide the blemishes. Will Anti fouling cover up blemishes sufficiently and if so what make and type do I buy and will I need to keep painting it on every year. The boat will be store on its trailor most of the time.

Or is their a chemical that will strip the paint off so I can get down to the Gelcoat and see what state that is in. This would be my preferred option as I believe it would give me a smoother finish to apply anti fouling paint.

If anybody has done this before and has a foolproof way of getting a tired and battered hull back to decent state with limited tools then I would appreciate any advice.

Regards Nick Reis

PS I am taking this boat out this weekend for its maiden voyage. If it proves reliable then I think we should consider doing the IOW trip during september.

Rogue Wave · 02 September 2004, 20:33

is the sea rider 4 m

Hightower · 02 September 2004, 20:45

Nick, you can buy something from a chandlry secifically designed for stripping anti-fowl and paint off the hull, just brush on and jet wash or scrub and wash off.

Can't think of the name right now but I'm sure someone knows

Andy

Biggles · 02 September 2004, 20:49

Rogue wave. Yes its 4 metre.

Hightower (Andy) Thats the sort of stuff I need. I shall ask at the Chandlers over the weekend.

Regards Nick R

Rogue Wave · 02 September 2004, 21:22

Ok

then you can unbolt all the bits and flip the boat over to make the work a lot easier. rest the tubes on 4 fenders to avoid any problems.

If the paint is bonded on to the hull then you could key it with a flap wheel in your drill (be gentle with it) and slap the Antifoul straight on. you will need a roller and a paint brush to do this , some masjing tape on the tubes wouldn't go amiss. XM, Blakes and International do a range of Antifouls in various colours including a grey that is close to the tube colour.

you can buy the strippy stuff and get back to the original hull but it might not look to clever. without sounding like a bodger I'd be inclined to go for a quick bit of rubbing down and antifouling and get the water in for the rest of the summer, you have ever such a long winter to make the Avon into a nicer boat

www.screwifix.com then Garryson Flap Wheel 30 x 15mm 80grit

remember play nicely with this as it can cut quite deeply also wear all the safety kit. Goggles, mask, gluvs, portable VHF, bouyancy aid and a TPA

Biggles · 02 September 2004, 21:40

Rogue wave

Thanks for the info. I shall look up the bits of kit.

I am in absolutely no rush to do this hull. It might be even be Feb/March by the time I get round to it.

Would it be wise to anti foul a boat over the winter. I'm just thinking of moisture getting in to paint.

It sounds like a reasonable idea. I've just had a look at the Gerryson wheel. Using one of those does it mean going along very patiently rubbing the hull down or is it very aggresive and mean and strips in seconds. Will I need to get a couple to keep up the stripping ability. I like the idea of stripping the boat down. Never thought of that.

I've never used Anti fouling how thick is it? Is it a good cover of imperfections. Like you I don't want to bodge it but I also know that I am not going to get a 16 year old ex Navy Hull looking like new. I just want it to look decent.

Also I do not want to spend a lot on refurbishing this boat as it is only a bit of a stop gap until I get a larger Sea Rider early next year. Hopefully.

Therefore I like the sound of your rubbing down idea but I shall do it only once and would like to make it look half decent.

Regards Nick R

Rogue Wave · 02 September 2004, 22:15

the thing with sea riders is that they are built like brick khazis and come up looking good after a bit of work. Antifoul is thick but you can apply it with a roller.

I'd get 5 of the flapwheels cos they do clog up. but i would just key up the paint and put the antifoul on. i wouldn't take it back to the hull, if i was i'd think about using chemicals

Biggles · 02 September 2004, 22:35

what I think I'll do is get a small tub of what Andy (Hightower) recommends and strip the outside rear of the transom. See what that looks like. If it looks crap then I'll go for Rogue waves idea.

Thanks Chaps.

Regards Nick R. (Biggles)

Scary Des · 03 September 2004, 09:03

Why are you antifouling it? are you going to keep it on the water?

I used some of the chemical stripper (I can’t remember the name either) on a boat that looked like it had been painted with a trowel. You have to leave it on for several hours and then just scrap it off. When I finished about 90% of the original gel coat was in good condition and all I need to do was a little filling and faring for a very good finish, boat looked like new. Des

Biggles · 03 September 2004, 11:45

Scary Des

Would that be Nitro Mors you used.

I have used it on cars and woodwork, no problem at all but I'm a bit concerned about using it on Gelcoat.

I would like to just strip it back to its original finish but if its too badly marked I was going to antifoul it to hide the scars etc.

If I get it back to the Gelcoat and its not too bad but faded is there a way to get the shine of the Gelcoat back ?

Regards Nick Reis

Scary Des · 03 September 2004, 12:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Biggles

Scary Des

Would that be Nitro Mors you used.

I have used it on cars and woodwork, no problem at all but I'm a bit concerned about using it on Gelcoat.

I would like to just strip it back to its original finish but if its too badly marked I was going to antifoul it to hide the scars etc.

If I get it back to the Gelcoat and its not too bad but faded is there a way to get the shine of the Gelcoat back ?

Regards Nick Reis

No, it’s not nitromors it’s errrrr can’t remember

, but it is specifically for removing paint and antifouling from gel coat.

Fading is difficult you can cut it back again with specific compounds/ cleaners but each time you loose some of the gel coat, having said that if its never been done before it might work. You can wet and dry out some of the scratches providing they are not too deep.

If the surface is bad, fill and far and once you get a flat surface roller-on a good marine paint that’s the same colour as the gel coat that way any subsequent scratches don’t show.
Des

Biggles · 03 September 2004, 14:29

Scary des

Thanks for the info I shall raid the chandlers over the weekend and see what I can come up with.

Regards Nick R