Painting 1989 Evinrudes

[biglurr54]

I have a 1989 30hp Evinrude on my pontoon and a 1989 120 Evinrude on my Bowrider. both are low hour great running motors. The both suffer from the same issue, paint!. The paint is blistering on both motors and it makes them look like crap. I would like to paint the cowls and put new decals on. I bought rattle cans of evinrude blue from the dealer and i got decals from ebay What is the recommended prep work to ensure the new paint doesnt blister or chip? Im assuming the primer is what failed on the original paint. Do I need to sand down to the original fiberglass then prime then top coat? should i just sand the blisters and then prime and top coat? Heres a pic of the 30hp to show the blistering.

 

[racerone]

Take some time to research painting of ---plastic parts ---I am not sure those cowlings are actually fiberglass.----Perhaps they are a polycarbonate item.

 

[Sam2001]

First you need to remove the old decals and the glue , xylene works good to get the glue residue off , Single edge razor blades or a razor blade scraper work well to get decals off . Some times all you need to do is get an edge up on a decal and they peel right off. Sand the cowls down removing all the loose paint and put what's called a "feather edge" on the remaining paint that's bonded . You can sand by hand with loose sand paper or a palm sander both work well . Wipe clean with solvents to get all the dust off . Don't skip the primer ,I'm not sure what the factory evinrude paint is but i would think its probably urethane or epoxy ? , you can go to any paint store , hardware store and buy some primer. Probably wouldn't hurt to bring the can of paint with you and ask them to get you something compatible. The over spray tends to get every where so i would take the cowl off and set it some where card board works well. Good luck with you project ! I repainted my 1990 Johnson 70 which is in salt water all the time , looks almost brand new , i didn't go all out with the decals.

 

[Kplusten]

Perhaps I can add a few tips to Sam2001's excellent advice. Over my lifetime of 75 years, I have spray painted a number of cars to include an antique Mercedes and two sports cars, and learned some lessons along the way. I applied them to painting my 1991 25HP a couple of years ago. Based on what I read on this forum, I used a high quality acrylic urethane automotive paint. I have also used Imron single stage paint on boats in the past with success. Here's some tips for consideration:
Avoid the spray cans, too hard to apply smoothly without erratic drops/drips, low quality, not hard enough, and uneven overlap. Use a high quality sprayer and compressor setup. You can even use a Harbor Freight sprayer and just throw it away if you hate doing the cleanup afterward. Hint: it takes forever to disassemble and clean the gun with the reducer.
Preparation is the key to a great result. For the hard to remove remaining paint on the cowling, I used Kleen Prep aircraft paint remover and did the stripping and sanding of the cowling on my workbench.
If the paint on the rest of the outboard is intact, lightly sand and/or use a deglosser for best adhesion before priming.
Because I had some bare metal spots, I used a self-etching primer and applied enough coats to be able to sand smooth.
You will still end up with some pinholes, I used DFL17 Red Cap red oxide spot putty to fill them and resanded lightly.
For the blue topcoat, I used a high quality automotive paint, Shop Line JAU#1, Direct Gloss acrylic urethane. Paint shop mixed exact 1991 Evinrude blue metallic color for me.
You will need reducer, I used Shop Line JR506, to thin the topcoat based on temperature and add a medium topcoat hardener, I used Shop Line JH6680. The specification sheet that comes with the paint will tell you how much.
I masked everything meticulously and applied thin coats to avoid orange peel.
I did not buy the decals because I would have had to apply a clear coat over them. Since you have already bought them, be prepared to buy the clear topcoat and more hardener and do this extra step. Don't be surprised if they start to peel off in a number of years of constant sun exposure.
Good luck with the job, take your time during the offseason and you will be pleased with the outcome.

 

[biglurr54]

Thank you for the advice. i already have the rattle cans from the dealer. I have used them on the leg of the 120 in the past with good results. My father sprayed the motor hood on the 120 for me when I first got the motor and it peeled in some areas. I tried to touch it up with primer and rattle cans and when I pulled the masking tape off, it pulled all the blue and decals under off as well. I think i may strip the hoods, then sand and fill, then prime with a high end primer, then use my rattle cans for the blue, apply the decals and do a couple coats of clear coat. I think the key is to get the right primer for what ever material the hood is made out of. I love the look of that 25hp but that's a lot of work to get there! way more time than I will have in the near future. But i would love to do that one day!