Here goes nothin'... 16 ft aluminum Blue Fin, 1st timer!

Grub54891

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jun 17, 2012
Messages
5,908
I use spray guns, by the time ya buy enough primer, and paint in a rattle can, you may have just as much in it, and not as nice of a job. I don't have high priced guns myself, but they do work good.
 

mickyryan

Rear Admiral
Joined
Apr 18, 2016
Messages
4,210
paint guns all the way, check out wood on glass paint tips also i just did a bass boat with raptor bed liner , i had it tinted the color i wanted , makes for a great nonskid and not all lumpy like cheap bed liners, truth is its just extremely thick urethane based paint that you put on with a Schultz gun highly recommend for inside the boat :)
 

mickyryan

Rear Admiral
Joined
Apr 18, 2016
Messages
4,210
harbor freight hvlp gun or the one from home depot both worked well, also Schultz gun comes with the raptor kits if you are using automotive paints , I am sure there are better guns but for the weekend warrior like myself these guns worked great and applied a nice finish .
 

Grub54891

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jun 17, 2012
Messages
5,908
I'm using the atd-6900 set from Napa, less than $100.00 for a 9 piece set, 3 guns. works good for me.
 

Watermann

Starmada Splash of the Year 2014
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
13,747
I have the Husky HVLP spray guns from home depot. Painted my 3 boats for a total of 52 feet of boat so far. You need a good compressor too. No rattle can job will turn out well enough to make you happy.

Start visiting the numerous threads here and in the Starcraft section, there's volumes of info on everything. None of us tin heads are going to recommend using truck bed liner on anything except your truck bed and steel trailer.
 

EddyMoney

Cadet
Joined
Mar 24, 2016
Messages
24
Thanks for all the info guys, definitely making note of it. Painting is on the horizon, but not the next task. Right now I'm hoping to find a way to get her stripped and painted before the end of summer/mid-fall, which I'd say is a pretty reasonable goal. Save the woodwork and all that stuff for the winter or next spring.



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Did a small project repainting the cowl for my outboard. It doesn't look amazing up close, and I would do it over again if I could, but it is a lot better. These aren't the original decals, but they were $7 off ebay and I think they'll be serviceable:


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Coach Dave

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 3, 2014
Messages
117
Hey Eddie. After you jumped on my post, I checked you out. Lotsa potentiaI with that boat of yours. I was looking at the same type boat as yours before I ended up with my Jet. Your paint questions were very similar to the ones I struggled with. I absolutely agree spraying is best. But......You need to have a compressor with the proper CFMs to spray successfully. My compressor (6 gallon twin hot dog type - used primarily for air nail guns) didn't fall within the specs of any of the guns I looked at. I coulda tried it and maybe it woulda worked, but I feared the gun spitting due to lack of CFMs would ruin my job. And I wasn't gonna buy a gun AND a bigger compressor just to spray my boat. So.......I did the "roll and roll" method. Our boats are similar sizes so it's not that big of a job to roll it. Woodonglass on this forum has a great formula using Tractor Supply's Implement and Tractor paint, hardener, and reducer. My finish paint is HARD on my bottom. You can also spray this formula. If your gonna primarily trailer the boat like I am, the Tractor Supply paint is an excellent inexpensive option. Using quality foam rollers and a good eye and especially PROPER PREP, I think the "roll and roll" method can and will give you as close to a spray finish you can get without spraying. Just my humble opinion.
 

EddyMoney

Cadet
Joined
Mar 24, 2016
Messages
24
Dave, thanks man! I appreciate the thoughts and will definitely consider them. I might make the investment for a spray gun/compressor just so I have them (or shop craigslist until I can find a good deal), otherwise I will probably do what you did and it's good to know someone else has had success with it!

I will say though, I do envy the structure of your boat a little bit. The ribs on mine get more pronounced from the stern to the bow, and I am a little concerned that this will be an issue as I try to make my floor/have balance in my boat. I like that a lot of the Starcrafts are even all the way through.

Last thing... is weight (of the paint itself) a valid reason to strip over sand the paint? There's currently two coats of paint on the outside (original and the addition of the PO) and I'm fighting my dad as to whether we should strip it or sand it (me being in favor of stripping... just looking for more ammunition on my end ;) )
 

Watermann

Starmada Splash of the Year 2014
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
13,747
All the time and money will be wasted if the 2 layers of paint cause the top coat you lay on to fail so why on earth take a chance? Stripping with Jasco 5 min and a pressure washer to blow it off makes quick work. So far I've stripped the paint from 3 boats and repainted them for a total of 52 feet of boat. My first boat I just sanded the bottom and didn't strip it. 2 years later the paint started coming off the bottom but the sides stayed just fine since they were striped bare. I think the issue was compatibility of paint from the 70's of an unknown formula and the SE primer or maybe the alkyd oil base I used. Either way I learned and just stripped to bare AL.
 

Coach Dave

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 3, 2014
Messages
117
What WM said....I'd at minimum strip everything below the waterline. You'll probably find the last primer coat from the factory kinda tough to strip. Get good thick nitrile gloves at minimum, and wear long sleeves. That stripper burns. You may be surprised what you find underneath all that paint that wasn't evident before stripping. I found a few poor previous repairs, gouges and even a hole I didn't notice before stripping. I was able to remedy those now, as I NEVER want to deal with the bottom again. I used Woodonglass's formula found here: http://forums.iboats.com/forum/owners-groups-by-manufacturer/m-r/portland-pudgy/585593-paint-your-boat-for-under-100-bucks Gave me a super hard finish very inexpensively. I am going to trailer my boat, so this works fine. If not, appropriate bottom paint would be in order.
 

Watermann

Starmada Splash of the Year 2014
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
13,747
or like I did on my SS and just leave the bottom bare AL.
 
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