Masking Prior To Spraying

I was in a shipyard last week looking over a workboat that was in its final stages of completion. A crew was on board masking some some lines and other things in the machinery spaces in prepartion to start spray painting. I immediately noticed that they were using aluminum foil to mask small lines and irregularly shaped items. The foil goes on fast, covers well, comes off fast and, if your so inclined, can even go in the recycle bin. I realize that perhaps not a lot of you guys spray paint your boats, and that there are not a lot of things on small boats that lend themselves to masking with aluminum foil. BUT, the foil seemed pretty clever and I though I would pass it on. - Woodnaut

Edited Note (Addition): Foil is propably only good for masking small items that the foil can wrap all the way around.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

Is it just regular aluminum foil or more like that heat tape stuff you can get from the home improvement centers? Heat tape looks like foil, but it's got an adhesive side on it, seems to me that would be easier to work with than plain jane grocery store foil. Though I don't know how wide of a strip it's available in, I've only ever seen the 2" -- but then I also never looked for anything else either.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

I used to be in the auto repair business. We used masking paper, tan about 18" wide, taken from a "masking machine" which simultaneously stuck the tan tape to the paper and fed both out. Today, masking is often done with a self sticking white thin plastic. The plastic is much quicker and neater, but does add to our waste pollution problem. I'm no longer in the auto business, so the only masking I do is when I paint something at home or on the boat. I don't have a machine, so I do it by hand with the 12" wide rolls of masking paper I can get the Home Depot or Lowes. The only concession to change i've made is that I usually use the blue tape rather than the tan; less pull off of paint. Aluminum foil type masking should work but it's more expensive than paper, and more likely to be torn during installation. Use either one; just don't use newspaper - paint bleeds through it. Good luck and safe boating. Hy

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

I agree that for masking flat surfaces, or for edges, tape and or paper/plastic seems like the best way to go. Aluminum foil - the plain Jane kitchen type - appears useful to quickly mask things like fuel lines, small struts or brackets, or any other small items that the foil can easily wrap all the way around. I guess it just wouldn't be appropriate or cost effective for covering large sections. It would be useful, however, for some of the small, hard to mask stuff.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

I see what you're saying.. I must have misunderstood your original post. For some reason I was thinking you meant to use the foil for masking around intricate details, like if you were doing a logo or something like that..

Don't mind me, my brain is preoccupied with the boat I'm picking up on Saturday.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

TC-

New boat on Saturday? Outstanding! Have fun, be careful dude.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

Woodnaut said:

TC-

New boat on Saturday? Outstanding! Have fun, be careful dude.

Click to expand...

Well that, and it'll also be my FIRST boat that I'm getting on Saturday...

Gonna run her as is for the remainder of the season then tear into the floor, etc over the winter...

Here's the only photo I have thus far... She's a '61 Larson Playboy 14' with a 75HP Johnson. Trading the motorcycle I no longer use for the boat & $100.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

Hey TC, That is a lot of power on a 14 boat. I recommend you accelerate slowly and keep an eye on the transom and hull. if they start to flex or bend, cut the power and head for shore. Normally a standard 14' boat would max out at about 40HP.

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

Seeing a boat taped prior for paint would tell me it's a cheapo job, can't do a good job unless you remove all the hardware that's on the boat and I mean all of it , like a car

Marc..

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

Marc, While I tend to agree, there are some parts on a boat that are not worth removing for painting. I had aluminum trim on the transom of a runabout I owned. it was glassed on. I also have a run rail that I would need to drill out all the rivits to remove. These get masked

Re: Masking Prior To Spraying

We always used a lint free blue paper almost like gift wrapping paper and blue edge tape around fine details and teh brown paper for the bulk of the overspray. We also sprayed the entirre vehicle with spray masking.... stuff was great! Just spray it on with an old paint gun and let it dry for a few mins. After painting you just wash it down and the spray masking just turns to suds.