Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

redfury

Commander
Joined
Jul 16, 2006
Messages
2,655
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

i have two questions for you. first off, i was looking at the rustoleum marine paints nd they have top side and under coating paints. do i need to use the under coating paint? im just doing a 14' alluminum boat which will be on the trailer unless we are out fishing. it's in minnesota so all fresh water up here. second question i have is about this roll tip method people keep talking about. what is it? i am doing my first rebuild on my first ever boat and have been on this site a few times a day but i still am just learning.

Topside paint is all you need. Bottom paint is ablative...self sacrificing. It's only so that you don't have garbage holding onto the hull as it sits in the water for extended periods...prevents growths because it has copper in it. Pick up the two cans and notice the difference in weight.

You can roll the finish on and roll it smooth. Just have 2 rollers handy. One for paint, one for smoothing out the paint. You will want to thin out the paint by volume by 10-20% at least...possibly more depending on the paint. Expect to put on at least 4-5 coats for a decent paint job and good thickness.
 

Recruit

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Nov 14, 2008
Messages
33
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

Thanks a ton. That helps alot redfury! and i will definetly look that up before i paint it agua ski. unfortunatly like mot of us, i found this site after i already started my boat project but i am thinking i should put my project on here.
 

Matrex

Seaman
Joined
Aug 2, 2008
Messages
54
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

This looks REALLY nice. Good job!
 

bowman316

Lieutenant Commander
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Oct 21, 2008
Messages
1,822
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

I Kinda thought that you had to use marine fiberglass paint to paint a hull. I know they will not see a lot of continous water time, but i thought you still needed a top side fiberglass paint, not rustolium. I think that might deterioate after a few months. But it is a hell of a lot cheaper than the $30 per qt fiberglass paint.
 

jcsercsa

Captain
Joined
May 21, 2007
Messages
3,401
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

I Kinda thought that you had to use marine fiberglass paint to paint a hull. I know they will not see a lot of continous water time, but i thought you still needed a top side fiberglass paint, not rustolium. I think that might deterioate after a few months. But it is a hell of a lot cheaper than the $30 per qt fiberglass paint.

Nope have you ever seen TD's boat , he did it a few years ago, and it still looks great , a lot has to do with how well you do the prep work !!John
 

redfury

Commander
Joined
Jul 16, 2006
Messages
2,655
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

Nope have you ever seen TD's boat , he did it a few years ago, and it still looks great , a lot has to do with how well you do the prep work !!John

Paint is paint. It's the additives that change it. Certain colors are going to lose pigmentation in sunlight no matter what you do to them. Some paints are just better at protecting the pigment better than others. There are so many variables in paint though. Slow to dry, fast to dry, dries to a hard finish, dries to a malleable finish, goes on thick, goes on thin.

Yes, there are certain paints that are designed for certain applications, but in reality, what makes a fiberglass boat different than a Corvette? Both are exposed to water, both are exposed to sunlight. The Corvette obviously doesn't get submerged into water, but the boat doesn't necessarily drive through the occasional mud puddle. Where paint really makes the difference is when you are talking below the water line if the boat isn't dry docked.
 

betayv

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 13, 2008
Messages
706
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

hey man congratulations great job boat is looking great I was going to use the same paint on my boat just on topside, but now I know can work good for the bottom of the boat and above the water line great job as soon I start mine I will post pics.
 

bowman316

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
1,822
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

yea, now i feel like i wasted money buying fiberglass topside paint for my boat.
i agree that it is all about prep, making sure the paint won't chip off.
 

rightcoastrob

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Jun 18, 2008
Messages
101
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

Great job man it turned out very well...I,v been starting to research the best and cheapest way to paint my boat.And i deffinatly think ill at least do the bottom side of mine with the rustolium.If mine turns out half that nice ill be happy.
 

redfury

Commander
Joined
Jul 16, 2006
Messages
2,655
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

yea, now i feel like i wasted money buying fiberglass topside paint for my boat.
i agree that it is all about prep, making sure the paint won't chip off.

You didn't go wrong buying that paint. The better the quality of the paint, the easier it usually is to work with, and the better the paint is. Perhaps I was simplifying it too much for the sake of the rustoleum solution to painting boats.

High quality anything is exactly that...high quality. That should be readily apparent to anyone that has bought anything built or made in China VS a company that has a reputation... IE. Chinese built cars vs American or Japanese..hell, Korean built cars! The higher the quality, the better the car, and the better off you usually are.

The point of the conversation is that for the average boat guy that isn't looking for a show quality boat, just something he can be proud of for a few years, you really can't beat the price and performance of properly applied Rustoleum paint, especially when we have real world data/experience to back it up.

The difference is, that if you bought Interlux Perfection, or Petit Easypoxy paint, you'll have a nice looking boat for a lot longer, and it might handle dock rash a little better.
 

jcsftwre

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Nov 7, 2008
Messages
181
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

I like it! There is nothing about the looks of your paint job that I can see that I could not live with. Like it was said it may never look like it did from the show room floor but even when the boat is new it only takes a short time to see it?s no longer new.
See it?s threads like these that keep me excited about my boat project!
Keep the photos and details coming.
Rick
P.S.
Just how much Orange peel can a person possibly see as your going by towing a water skier or running around looking for that elusive fish?
 

Wcsweb

Seaman
Joined
Oct 22, 2008
Messages
54
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

Hey Everyone,

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that has commented on the boat. I have to say I'm very happy with the results.

I got the rub rail back on, it makes a world of difference. I just ordered some gauges (Teleflex Sportsman $35 new) I'm gonna put some rattle snake skin on the gauge panel.

I'm still putting her back together. More pics will be on the way soon..

I'm cleaning up the wiring, and getting things fastened back into place. I had to replace the drain hose for the live well and had to cut a hole in the live well in order to do the repair.

I can't wait to get fishing but theres more projects I need to tackle. I went out to Stuart inlet last week and was catching red snapper, drum, jack. The SNAPPER........:) Was catching them as fast as we could get bait on the hook.......
 

jlsperko

Cadet
Joined
Sep 3, 2008
Messages
12
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

Hey Wcsweb, just curious if you could give us an update as to how the Rustoleum has held up on your boat. I know that with a lot of these paint threads, most people would like to know how they have held up over time. Thanks!
 

boatnut74

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Aug 29, 2010
Messages
1,835
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

This is a 3 year old thread.
 

jlsperko

Cadet
Joined
Sep 3, 2008
Messages
12
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

boatnut74, I realize it is an old thread, but it is someone who went through a detailed process on a question that MANY people ask about. Everyone's last questions are, how long does it last? How durable is it? You can't very well ask someone who painted their boat last week. If the OP is willing to answer the question, I am sure many would appreciate it when they are researching painting their boat as another point of reference.
 

ezmobee

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Mar 26, 2007
Messages
23,767
Re: Going to try Rustoleum to paint entire Boat

The OP hasn't been back to iboats in 2 years. Anyway, I painted my Jupiter with Rustoleum in rattle cans (don't do that) and although the finish sucked (rattle cans) the paint was quite durable for the 4 years I ran it after painting it prior to selling it. I would not hesitate to paint another boat with Rustoleum, especially with the hardener added to it that some of the guys are using now. I did NOT have a good experience with their clear coat though. That started flaking pretty quick on my top side and seemed to be easily damaged.
 
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