Re: 1968-71 Naden N-16 Big Fisherman Restoration
Pressure Washer Boat Paint Stripping
OK - so I tried the 3000 PSI pressure washer, using several different size heads for the wand. It was largely unsuccessful at stripping paint from the boat. In a few spots, the paint came off like butter. In others, a lot of time spent going back and forth stripped the paint cleanly from the metal, without marking it up like a wire wheel would do. In others, the pressure washer stripped off the top layer of paint, but didn't take anything off from underneath. Where the paint was peeling, the washer took the paint off, but for the most part, the pressure washer didn't make that big a difference. The pressure washer renters told me it would work well....but it didn't.
What the pressure washer did really well was take off a layer of dirt on the paint that I didn't even know was there - which will presumably make it easier for the paint stripper to bite into it.
I couldn't get more of the aircraft paint stripper, so I picked this up instead from Home Hardware - their paint department reccomended it - and it worked well. It comes with a spray bottle, and sprays on much thinner than the aircraft stripper - but it did a good job.
Today's question:
So I have done the first full coat of stripper on the inside of the boat. As you can see from the photograph below, it had cleaned off a fair bit of the paint, but if I want a complete strip, I have a long, long way to go.
I also tried out a wire wheel on what was left. It worked fairly quickly - I figure it would take 2-3 hours to wire wheel the entire interior of the boat (please let me know if I'm wrong, so I can plan). I have pictured the wheel I used, and the results.
So my question is this. I have two options in front of me. The first is to simply wire wheel the interior of the boat, and leave it as bare aluminum. It will have wire wheel marks as in the photograph, unless I give it an acid wash. The second option is to paint the interior of the boat. Either way, I want to do a proper, high quality restoration, and will spend a reasonably necessary amount of money to do this. I want to make sure that the boat will last, and that whatever finish I put on (whether bare or painted), will last well, and look good for as long as possible. I don't want to just chuck on some cheap paint and hope it sticks.
Which of these options (bare boat, or painted) would you reccomend? If I paint the interior, am I making a mistake using a wire wheel? If I can use a wire wheel, am I OK using the one I have? If I paint, should I wire wheel the entire boat down to bare metal, or should I do something else? If I am going to paint, I know I have to use an etching primer, and I will want to use an HVLP spray gun, but what additional prep should I be doing? I am nervous leaving any paint that has had stripper on it still on the boat.
Pressure Washer Boat Paint Stripping
OK - so I tried the 3000 PSI pressure washer, using several different size heads for the wand. It was largely unsuccessful at stripping paint from the boat. In a few spots, the paint came off like butter. In others, a lot of time spent going back and forth stripped the paint cleanly from the metal, without marking it up like a wire wheel would do. In others, the pressure washer stripped off the top layer of paint, but didn't take anything off from underneath. Where the paint was peeling, the washer took the paint off, but for the most part, the pressure washer didn't make that big a difference. The pressure washer renters told me it would work well....but it didn't.
What the pressure washer did really well was take off a layer of dirt on the paint that I didn't even know was there - which will presumably make it easier for the paint stripper to bite into it.
I couldn't get more of the aircraft paint stripper, so I picked this up instead from Home Hardware - their paint department reccomended it - and it worked well. It comes with a spray bottle, and sprays on much thinner than the aircraft stripper - but it did a good job.
Today's question:
So I have done the first full coat of stripper on the inside of the boat. As you can see from the photograph below, it had cleaned off a fair bit of the paint, but if I want a complete strip, I have a long, long way to go.
I also tried out a wire wheel on what was left. It worked fairly quickly - I figure it would take 2-3 hours to wire wheel the entire interior of the boat (please let me know if I'm wrong, so I can plan). I have pictured the wheel I used, and the results.
So my question is this. I have two options in front of me. The first is to simply wire wheel the interior of the boat, and leave it as bare aluminum. It will have wire wheel marks as in the photograph, unless I give it an acid wash. The second option is to paint the interior of the boat. Either way, I want to do a proper, high quality restoration, and will spend a reasonably necessary amount of money to do this. I want to make sure that the boat will last, and that whatever finish I put on (whether bare or painted), will last well, and look good for as long as possible. I don't want to just chuck on some cheap paint and hope it sticks.
Which of these options (bare boat, or painted) would you reccomend? If I paint the interior, am I making a mistake using a wire wheel? If I can use a wire wheel, am I OK using the one I have? If I paint, should I wire wheel the entire boat down to bare metal, or should I do something else? If I am going to paint, I know I have to use an etching primer, and I will want to use an HVLP spray gun, but what additional prep should I be doing? I am nervous leaving any paint that has had stripper on it still on the boat.
