Disaster Strikes!

Well, ok, not disaster, but yesterday wasn't a good day. Saturday, we put on coat three of the finish coat and it came out beautiful - smooth, run free (well, a couple of very small ones), the way it was supposed to, but with some show through, which was expected. However, the overnight dew caused some loss of gloss in a few places. Since that wasn't the last coat, I wasn't worried about it.
So Sunday, we started on what was to be the final coat. Well, the paint wouldn't flow, we got orange peel, it was just not going well. The only difference was that the day was sunny - the day prior had been mild, but cloudy and that caused the paint to set up entirely differently. The end result was disastrous.
Today I called the Interlux technical people for advice, and gave them the scenario. They told me what they thought I should do differently, so tomorrow, we'll be back at it again. I'll get into the details in my next post.
All in all tho, it's coming well and the boat is looking good - just not as good as it will!

Red Enough for You?

Rolling, then tipping the Interlux Perfection, ending up with a high gloss finish that looks professional

The sun is shining at last, and the first coat of Interlux Perfection's Rochelle Red - that's the name of the colour, honest - is now brightly shining on the hull of the boat. For comparison's sake, here's a photo showing the primer coat, the new coat and you can see the boot stripe from the previous post along the bottom.

Raining cats and dogs here...

Stay tuned for more details, plus video showing the roll and tip technique - my arms and shoulders are too sore to type more this evening and it's another long day ahead tomorrow - light sand the first coat, and roll and tip on a second coat.

We're close to being done with this job now....it's taken much longer than expected due to the wet weather we've had...not to mention the earthquake, hurricane, raining cats and dogs....ok, just kidding about the raining cats and dogs, but it wouldn't surprise me, the way this project has been going!

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A Perfect Boot Stripe!

Cutting in a new boot stripe is always a challenge. Most often, amateurs get it wrong due to a basic misunderstanding of the geometry of the boat and just where the line should be. Raising the boot stripe by one inch at the beam doesn't mean you also widen it by one inch at the stern - no, not at all. Because of the angle of the hull, the actual width at the stern may be six inches or more to get that same one inch rise above the waterline. I made this mistake years ago and wondered why my boat always looked as if it were 'squatting' in the water. It wasn't, I'd just not redone the bootstripe properly.
So how do you get it right?

Frank here at Schroeder Yacht Systems has the answer. It isn't how Don Casey tells you to do it. It's actually a better method, both easier and simpler, and a lot less high tech than using a laser projector, which requires the boat be level front to back, and perfectly upright. That's tough to accomplish on stands.
Watch closely. There will be much more information on this in an upcoming post in which I'll go into detail on what the 'projector' tool actually is, how you can make one, and how it works to give you a perfect boot stripe every time. Not only that, but I'll show you how to guarantee that your boot stripe is at the same height on both sides of the boat. And in the right place too.
It's so easy, you'll be smacking yourself in the forehead and asking, "Now why didn't I think of that?"
(If you want to be notified of upcoming posts, sign up for this blog in the sidebar, because from here on in, we start to get down to the real nuts and bolts of painting your boat, the tips and tricks to give you a 'five foot finish' for less than $1000 for a 35 foot boat. Can't believe it? We'll show you how, so sign up now.

Tips on How to Paint Your Boat...

We've all seen poorly painted boats, with orange peel finishes, dings painted over and a generally unprofessional look to them. It doesn't have to be that way.
The key to a good finish is to begin well, and by that, I mean preparation. Unfortunately, that means lots of sanding, and it's tough work. The actual painting is easy. It really is.
Take the time to read the manufacturer's suggestions, which are available online.  Interlux's Information CD on how to paint your boat - on their website at yachtpaint.com, has all kinds of superb advice, including videos, product data sheets and more, on how to use each of their products to get a professional finish. The video, in case you can't find a copy of the CD, is available online, go to Perfection Paint

just look at the reflection there...beautiful...this video is very helpful

This is a four part video series, and the only advice in it I would take exception to is the suggestion of using a badger's hair brush - they get really nasty and bite when you yank their hair out to use for a brush! No, no, ok - seriously, a badger's hair brush is fine, but you'll find it easier to use a foam brush for tipping. You'll see the technique when I post video of my crew and I actually painting the boat.
Stay tuned.

Rain Rain - redux.....

Prined and almost ready to go....

Will it EVER stop raining? The boat, as you can see, is primed and almost ready to paint, it just needs a scuff sanding now. You'll notice the primer is not straight at the bottom, there's a reason for that: the next step will be to bring in a bootstripe line, to which I'll raise the bottom paint, and to which I'll lower the new finish coat. But first of all, it has to stop raining. I keep wondering when I'll find a lineup, two by two of all God's creatures, standing at the bottom of the ladder?

Been thinking, maybe I can just go with battleship grey?
I am so tired of being on the hard...
Update - 
It's stopped raining at last, so I'm on to doing the bottom paint, but only the waterline at the bootstripe. Tomorrow, when the paint is dry and there is only a 10% chance of rain, we'll mark in and paint the new bootstripe, and then be ready the next day for the first coat of Interlux Perfection.
Soon, soon....
Further Update - 
It's raining again....how do those weathermen keep their jobs when they're this inaccurate? Sheesh!

Supplies are important...

Nothing worse than running out of boat painting supplies on a hot day...

Almost ready to paint...

Gypsy Wind looks like she's suffering from the measles...I've been filling in the various dock bites that have accrued over the years with Interlux Watertite, then sanding them back.

Dock bites....

What puzzles me though is, every morning this week that I've gotten back on that ladder, there seem to be still MORE dings and scratches. Now either my vision is failing rapidly, or those dock bites are getting together at night and procreating! 

Today should see the last of the scratch and ding filling. Then I'll sand the boat down one more time and wash it down with Interlux 202 to clean it up for painting.

Lots and lots of dock bites!

A special project later today. My boot stripe has always been too low in the stern, so the guys from Schroeders Yacht Systems are going to use a special technique to set it right. I'll be doing video of this process, if this is a project you're looking at, the video may well help you to get it right.

Time for lunch, then back to it!

The sun is shining...

...and that means back to sanding. Will be done the sanding later today, then it will be puttying in the dings, scratches and other dock bites to smooth out the hull. Then another round of sanding to get everything nice and smooth. If the weather holds, should be putting paint on by early next week.
It won't be soon enough....climbing ten feet up and down, and no head on board until I'm back in the water, is no fun.

Here we go again....

We got a pass on Katia and Lee - now, here comes Maria. Allright already, this track is enough south of Katia's that it could hit the US coast.

Predicted Storm Track for Maria. Click to enlarge

later today - update - Maria seems to be destined to remain a tropical storm, high winds but less than 74mph. So that's good. If she follows the usual pattern, she'll head west and then start curving north - you can see a hint of the curve beginning, taking her north and east of the Bahamas.
We can hope!


This second graphic is of the central North Atlantic and the Gulf of Mexico. You can see Kate at the top, Nate in the Gulf, and Maria coming along at the bottom. That's a lot of wind out there.

Rain, rain....

Go away. It's on and off drizzle today, meaning I can't work on painting the boat today - but what I will be doing is putting together the 'www.youcanfixyourboat.com' website. Our first project on this website will be - You CAN Paint Your Boat. I will be giving specific instructions on how to do your own boat - and get a professional finish and appearance, all while saving thousands - perhaps as much or more than $10,000. Tell me that isn't cool!

Ok, so this has nothing to do with painting...

but it's interesting all the same. A giant crocodile, 21 feet long, has recently been captured in the Philippines. The story is at http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/story?section=news/bizarre&id=8342468 Just look at the size of that monster.

Yup...ran out of sandpaper with only a few feet of the hull left to sand. Hurt all over, it's tough work, so I showered and the pup and I headed for the bar for a couple of ice cold Yeungling.
Feeling much better now...if it doesn't rain too hard tomorrow, should finish the sanding, then begin to fill the various scratches and dings. Once those are sanded back, some Interprotect as primer, sand again, then....ready to paint.
That is, if it doesn't rain all week.

Sanding halfway done...

My hands are tingling from my morning spent fondly caressing my orbital sander, but the boat is now half sanded....time for lunch, something ice cold to drink, some playtime with the pup, then back to it. I may run out of sandpaper before the day is through tho...

Hurricane Katia

Hurricanes are a fact of life in the south, particularly at this time of year. A week ago, Gypsy Wind was buffeted about by Irene, but was well protected and no damage was done. I've been sweating blood for the last several days about Katia, a category 1 storm that has been coming up the coast. This morning, as you can see, NOAA.gov showed a substantial change in the track, and I shouldn't have to worry any longer...until the arrival of Maria, Nate, Ophelia, Philippe, Rina, Sean, Tammy, Vince and Whitney.
And people ask me why I normally return to the Great Lakes every summer!
If you're interested in the history of hurricane naming, go here>http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames_history.shtml

Stuff, stuff and more stuff...

Here's a photo of just some of the items and Interlux products I'll be using to paint Gypsy Wind. Along with the usual paint supplies, cleaners, and fillers, there's the special roller covers for use with two part paints, foam brushes to tip with (I'll explain later), breathing mask and dust suit, scrapers for those nasty barnacles that you saw in the previous blog. It seems like a lot but it's not.
Really!

said Barnacle Bill....

Here's GW coming out of the water, and just look at the crop of barnacles
and other nasties she's got on her bottom.