Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

[redwhite_blue]

I am rebuilding a 93 SeaSwirl SE190. The boat is not that old, but my brother put her on the shore in July 2010. the damage was minimal along the keel, and the boat bottom. The worst damage was to the nose of the bow. I was crushed pretty good. Bottom line, I decided to gut the boat and redue it inside and out. Enough about my project.

I have been soaking up as much as I can from this forum, but I am not sure I can do what I want to do with the gel, when I re-gel my boat.

My question is about masking and gel-coat. Is it practical to mask and stencil onto gelcoat?

For example, I am looking to spray the body color, then the candy stripe, and as a last step I want to stencil over the body color with a different color. The name of the boat will be "Faded Glory" So you can imagine an antique white body, an antique red candy stripe with stenciled stripes on the body, and then stars stenciled on the body in an antique blue.

does the masking have to come off before the cure, or can it be pulled off after the cure. Or is it just an impractical expectation to do this detail of work with gel coat?

Thanks for your time.

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I am rebuilding a 93 SeaSwirl SE190. The boat is not that old, but my brother put her on the shore in July 2010. the damage was minimal along the keel, and the boat bottom. The worst damage was to the nose of the bow. I was crushed pretty good. Bottom line, I decided to gut the boat and redue it inside and out. Enough about my project.

I have been soaking up as much as I can from this forum, but I am not sure I can do what I want to do with the gel, when I re-gel my boat.

My question is about masking and gel-coat. Is it practical to mask and stencil onto gelcoat?

For example, I am looking to spray the body color, then the candy stripe, and as a last step I want to stencil over the body color with a different color. The name of the boat will be "Faded Glory" So you can imagine an antique white body, an antique red candy stripe with stenciled stripes on the body, and then stars stenciled on the body in an antique blue.

does the masking have to come off before the cure, or can it be pulled off after the cure. Or is it just an impractical expectation to do this detail of work with gel coat?

Thanks for your time.

Ive been waiting for this question .. 55 views and NO answer comments. Hmm..

I have to eat din din now .. Ill bump this to the top and come back in one hour or less ( I eat quick when Im hungry ).

YES..NO to answer your question .. its Very simple .. oops fork in hand here .. BBS.

YD. Bump

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

Okies.. Im back ..

RWB .. you can do many things with gel that you can not do with paint .

What you want is an Inlaid stripe and Inlaid name With Gel ..

No problem.

Im going to give you and Iboats a Trick of the trade with Gel inlays ..

1. Prep everything for gel ( 80-120 ).
2. Acetone Wipe All surfaces to be gelled.
3. Fine line stripes/mask and/or Stencil your graphics.
4. Spray your large surface ( white in this case ) on your hull.
5. When the primary coat starts to gel .. then remove your second color coat masking.
6. Apply the second color coat with gel ( You Do NOT mask off the second color stripe .. overspray right on top of your Primary coat ( your going to sand that down to the inlay ).
7. Rinse and repeat for your Stencils ( Remove the stencils as soon as possible from your primary coat as long as its not too close to your secondary ( if your Stencils are too close to your secondary spray .. double up on the fine line tape and pull them off as soon as your secondary gels)). Spray the Third color ( overspary as least as you can ).

8. Wet/Dry sand Until the Lines come sharp .. 400g is used to final sharp sand your inlay sanding..

9. Final sand and buff..

You can have a very nice inlay gel job with this method ..

Questions will be answered.

YD.

 

[alligatorgars]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

That sounds like a 3 man job min. Cleaning guns, mixing new gel colors, unmasking areas. I bet it looks like a symphony when done correctly. Not for the faint of heart.

 

[redwhite_blue]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

YD,

I am so glad I asked. What you describe is priceless. I am very excited to put my hand to it. I can't thank you enough, I had not imagined the inlay process but I had been thinking that I was going to have edges from my mask, now I am aware of the fascinating concept of inlays.

I hope to work with my HF pressure pot this weekend, and finish up the filling and fairing, so the next weekend I hope to shoot. I am going to need to grow 2 or 3 more pairs of hands do all of this. Any chance you want to come down to phoenix for the weekend.

Thanks again, I will put up some pics when I get the gel done.

 

[jones01m]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

redwhite_blue,

It would also be nice to see some in-process pictures. I can picture what YD is speaking of, however, it is also helpful to see some detail of how this takes shape.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

YD,

I am so glad I asked. What you describe is priceless. I am very excited to put my hand to it. I can't thank you enough, I had not imagined the inlay process but I had been thinking that I was going to have edges from my mask, now I am aware of the fascinating concept of inlays.

I hope to work with my HF pressure pot this weekend, and finish up the filling and fairing, so the next weekend I hope to shoot. I am going to need to grow 2 or 3 more pairs of hands do all of this. Any chance you want to come down to phoenix for the weekend.

Thanks again, I will put up some pics when I get the gel done.

Make sure that HF gun works correctly before you use it, and/or buy the warranty. The last one I bought didn't work and then last week one of my customers picked several and none of them worked. I had used them for years and while they are low quality, they had worked OK.

 

[oops!]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

i just saw this thread.....

but i gotta run to work.....if i get back from the job early enough....ill post.....but you hit it.

 

[redwhite_blue]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I am very excited to get to work on this inlay business. I have never done any of this, but that has never stopped me from trying. I will put up pics as I go.

Ondarvr,
I just bought the gun, and I have plumbed the quick connect to hook up my 3HP Campbell Hausfeld, 4 Gallon compresser. I just want to check my setup.

I will run my compressor at to generarte max pressure (140 psi) run it through a regulator to bring it down to 70 psi max, run a 50 foot 1/2 hose into the pot, dial the pot down to 10 psi or so and adjust the gun/pot for the viscosity of my product. Do I need another regulator on the air line between the pot the gun.

 

[alligatorgars]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

Which gun do you go with, this
http://www.harborfreight.com/professional-spray-gun-kit-93312.html

or this

http://www.harborfreight.com/professional-hvlp-spray-gun-kit-93305.html

 

[redwhite_blue]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I went with the non-HVLP one (93312) based on the recomendations in other threads. Pressently HF has a mail flyer with a 20% off coupon, makes the gun 35 bucks after tax.

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I will run my compressor at to generarte max pressure (140 psi) run it through a regulator to bring it down to 70 psi max, run a 50 foot 1/2 hose into the pot, dial the pot down to 10 psi or so and adjust the gun/pot for the viscosity of my product. Do I need another regulator on the air line between the pot the gun.

All you need is a cheater valve at the base of the gun .. so yes. .. but a cheater and not a regulator.

Your compressor setup might be a tad low. I have never used such a small compressor so I cant say for sure.

Which gun do you go with, this
http://www.harborfreight.com/professional-spray-gun-kit-93312.html

or this

http://www.harborfreight.com/professional-hvlp-spray-gun-kit-93305.html

The first one .. NOT the HVLP.

Gator has a point about the "That sounds like a 3 man job min. Cleaning guns, mixing new gel colors, unmasking areas. I bet it looks like a symphony when done correctly. Not for the faint of heart."

But thats ONLY if you are going to try to meet a window for PVA. You can use wax or use Patch Aid ( my personal favorite ) and have basically no rush at all. Yes you need to unmask all of your stencil and stripes when the Gel is gelling ( USE FINE LINE TAPE wherever you can ).

Inlays are fun .. peeps will ask you " how in the heck did you do that ! " .

Prep is key m8.

YD.

 

[proshadetree]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

Get the biggest tip you can find. I have a 2.5 and will have a 4.5 before I try this again.
\

 

[redwhite_blue]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I plan to thin with sytrene as needed to get the right flow. I was not going to use PVA. I already have the wax to add to my gel for the second coat. I am planning to put down 15-18 mls each coat. That leads me to a question. My new gell will be pretty close to the original white (off white), I am going to pre spray and resand the repair areas before I do a full spray of the topsides and below the candy stripe. Do I need to go 15 -18 mls in two coats, or can I go with one coat with wax and get it down in one shot?

About the styrene, I have read that it yellows the gell. I am trying to go for an antique look, so i welcome the yellowing of my original colors. So I think I just need to make sure I only thin for flow and not exceed the 10% limit, right?

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I plan to thin with sytrene as needed to get the right flow. I was not going to use PVA. I already have the wax to add to my gel for the second coat. I am planning to put down 15-18 mls each coat. That leads me to a question. My new gell will be pretty close to the original white (off white), I am going to pre spray and resand the repair areas before I do a full spray of the topsides and below the candy stripe. Do I need to go 15 -18 mls in two coats, or can I go with one coat with wax and get it down in one shot?

About the styrene, I have read that it yellows the gell. I am trying to go for an antique look, so i welcome the yellowing of my original colors. So I think I just need to make sure I only thin for flow and not exceed the 10% limit, right?

I have found that MEK solvent works well for thinning spots. In the ol days we used to thin with 50% styrene and 50% acetone ( not styrene alone ). The basic way I was learned is if you have enough air pressure at the tip..30% of the reduction will flash off at the tip.

2 coats is IMO not enough for gel depending on the reduction rate.

You Can NOT apply Gel in one application ( spray ) period. wax or no wax ..

10% is just a guide. Some gels are soo thick you need to reduce it more for pot life and sprayability. There is a consistency/viscosity that us gellers are used to. Its not just sprayability its also pot life depending on what additives we use.

25% patch aid with mebbe a splash of acetone normally gets us what we want. Patch spraying will differ from full sprays.

YD.

 

[oops!]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

actually.....due to the fact i work alone.....i havent done more than 2 colors.
im a big fan of a chemical bond....wet on wet for gellcoating.....so i actually had to turn away a few.....this is one i turned down

i would of loved to do this one.....but with the cleaning of my equipment between sets and properly catylising the gook,,,,i just did not see how one guy could pull this one off.
(and besides.....the owners budget was only 600 bux....cost me more in factory gell/flake for this one) i told him it couldnt be touched properly for anything under 1500.

but YD.....you say you can pva, and then have all the time in the world?.......time to practice on some glass i guess !

cheers
oops

btw......i shoot a 3.5 tip on a pressure pot for big jobs........and gravity feed for small jobs

 

[redwhite_blue]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I plan to have my son work with me. He will handle the cleaning of the gun and catylising of the gel. I think I can pull it off. I am used to being in over my head. I think things through and when there is not much wiggle room with time, I get everything lined up to stream line the whole process. I know I will be busier than a one legged man in a fanny kicking contest.

I do have a gravity gun that I used to shoot some gel as a test of my ability, and I will have it staged for the third color. I plan to have the thinning done, and have the wax added in a batch for the last coat of each color, I will just need to add the MEPK and mix.

I will see if I can put up some pics of my prep this weekend, I hope to shoot next weekend.

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

but YD.....you say you can pva, and then have all the time in the world?.......time to practice on some glass i guess !

Gator has a point about the "That sounds like a 3 man job min. Cleaning guns, mixing new gel colors, unmasking areas. I bet it looks like a symphony when done correctly. Not for the faint of heart."

But thats ONLY if you are going to try to meet a window for PVA. You can use wax or use Patch Aid ( my personal favorite ) and have basically no rush at all. Yes you need to unmask all of your stencil and stripes when the Gel is gelling ( USE FINE LINE TAPE wherever you can ).

I May not have made the PVA point clear .. If you are using PVA then its darn near Impossible to meet the window with that many inlays ( One stripe sure but not stars and stripes and names and stuff lol ). Thats why I suggested that if your using wax or patch aid Then there is really no rush. You can clean your gun with peace of mind.

YD.

PS. I would still use PVA over everything when your done spraying .. but NO rush rush on the pva.

 

[proshadetree]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

Red sorry about the one leg thing. I have not heard that in years. Cant wait to see your updates. I just keep learning about this gel thing. now I need to get off my rump and get my winder ready to gel.

 

[oops!]

Re: Applying Gel Coat with Stencils and Applying and Removing Masking

I plan to have my son work with me. He will handle the cleaning of the gun and catylising of the gel.
I know I will be busier than a one legged man in a fanny kicking contest.

I do have a gravity gun that I used to shoot some gel as a test of my ability, and I will have it staged for the third color. I plan to have the thinning done, and have the wax added in a batch for the last coat of each color, I will just need to add the MEPK and mix.

I will see if I can put up some pics of my prep this weekend, I hope to shoot next weekend.

look.........people that are new to gellcoat, just dont take on a job like this.......so i think you have done gellcoating before, ar at least have some idea of working with gell.

but im kinda worried about the comment of "my son will handle the cleaning of the gun and mixing the gell..

the cleaning of the gun takes about 20 minits to do correctly....if you use patch aid.....you have less time. (patch aid is so "hot" it wants to kick in the can it came in lol)

i dont know how old your son is,,,,,,so, may i suggest that your son be well versed in the proper cleaning of a gun.

as far as mixing the gellcoat, just give him a drill with an egg beater on it and tell him 5 minits of that on high speed. get that vortex going !

please understand......i mean no disrespect towards you or your son, but a badly cleaned gun will fail, and if it fails in the middle of your job......you are hooped.
then its order more gell.....start the grinder and re prep.

i really hope this works out for you......it can be done.....its done all the time....you CAN do it.
im looking forward to seeing the results.

cheers
oops