Custom painting boats: question

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PostPosted: Tue May 26, 2015 10:12 am
I know this is an automobile website, but a few body/paint shops here in California advertise painting boats as well. This would be in the realm of MARINE painting. I have a question or two about custom boat painting if any fellow here is knowledgeable in that craft. I might consider to paint an aluminum hull boat in an automotive color that is available on a stock Toyota truck. This is an exclusive factory color called: Inferno. Should automobile paints be avoided on boat hulls including aluminum hulls? Do aluminum boats require special paint types and methods? Can paint designed for aluminum hulls be made up in a custom color that closely resembles a stock car paint color? I also want to apply letters, numbers and custom decal graphics to my hull. Is it recommended that a clear, colorless paint be applied over decals to seal them in after they are applied? I should also mention that my hull would just be painted ABOVE the water line. I might also not want an automotive color and have something special in marine paint such as chartreuse, lemon yellow or victory red as shown below.
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Last edited by JonDavenport on Thu May 28, 2015 9:21 am, edited 7 times in total.
Jon Davenport



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PostPosted: Tue May 26, 2015 10:52 pm
As far as i know marine paints like auto paints can be bought tinted any colour. Auto paint are a no-go unless you want to be painting every few months. You will be needing a primer and them your top coat. You can be just as creative with marine paints as you can with auto paints, theres different reducers etc but its a case of paint is paint. God luck and i hope i havent sent you down the wrong path

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PostPosted: Wed May 27, 2015 4:17 am
troppolad wrote:As far as i know marine paints like auto paints can be bought tinted any colour. Auto paint are a no-go unless you want to be painting every few months. You will be needing a primer and them your top coat. You can be just as creative with marine paints as you can with auto paints, there's different reducers etc but its a case of paint is paint. God luck and i hope i haven't sent you down the wrong path
troppolad wrote:As far as i know marine paints like auto paints can be bought tinted any colour. Auto paint are a no-go unless you want to be painting every few months. You will be needing a primer and them your top coat. You can be just as creative with marine paints as you can with auto paints, there's different reducers etc but its a case of paint is paint. God luck and i hope i haven't sent you down the wrong path


Thanks a million, laddyo. I should stick with boat paints only for marine applications. :happy:
Jon Davenport



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PostPosted: Wed May 27, 2015 4:57 am
JonDavenport wrote:
Thanks a million, laddyo. I should stick with boat paints only for marine applications. :happy:


No worries mate, i cant help much around the forum as i dont know as much as many other menbers but try to help where i can.
Good luck with the boat and i`d love to see pics.
Cheers
Troppo

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PostPosted: Wed May 27, 2015 7:53 am
disclaimer: I've never painted a boat.

however, above the water line should be fine with automotive paints - is there a reason why they would not be ok?

Aluminum has its own challenges. You have to get it coated within an hour of sanding it otherwise oxidation will kill your adhesion. I'd do it in sections and use a good wax/grease remover and an epoxy primer - that would give a great foundation for paint.

The folks at Tamco who I resell paints for have a lot of experience with marine applications. I know their "high impact clear" is rated for continuous use below the water line on boats.

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PostPosted: Wed May 27, 2015 7:32 pm
chris wrote:disclaimer: I've never painted a boat.

however, above the water line should be fine with automotive paints - is there a reason why they would not be ok?

Aluminum has its own challenges. You have to get it coated within an hour of sanding it otherwise oxidation will kill your adhesion. I'd do it in sections and use a good wax/grease remover and an epoxy primer - that would give a great foundation for paint.

The folks at Tamco who I resell paints for have a lot of experience with marine applications. I know their "high impact clear" is rated for continuous use below the water line on boats.


I'll leave this up to a professional paint shop that knows how to paint aluminum hulls. A reputable outfit should warrant their paint work against oxidation for a number of years.
:allgood:
Jon Davenport

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PostPosted: Thu May 28, 2015 10:39 pm
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Last edited by JonDavenport on Fri May 29, 2015 5:46 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jon Davenport

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PostPosted: Fri May 29, 2015 5:26 am
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Jon Davenport

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PostPosted: Mon Jun 08, 2015 2:48 am
I'll stick with two-tone dark brown:
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PostPosted: Wed Nov 11, 2015 4:08 pm
1st. clean alum soap water, next wax and grease remover then sand lightly.
2nd Treat Aluminum with Alumaprep 33 metal prep and then Alodine surface with 1201 gold or 1001 clear please read all instructions carefully and adhere to ALL safety instructions bad stuff read MSDS.
3rd. Paint with Zinc Chromate Primer again very bad stuff please read & adhere too MSDS
4th Paint with Regular 2k automotive primer still bad stuff read MSDS
5th Base coat, & finally clear coat and again Bad stuff again read your MSDS

works on Aluminum Jets don't see reason it wont work on a aluminum Boat

Just me but I would wash boat aluma prep it Buff & Polish till shiny new and apply Shark Hide your done. Looks a whole lot better last a heck of a lot longer and its easy to redo.
Not to mention Hi resale value of a Polished boat that doesn't dull doesn't get water spots low maintenance finish that will last for years.

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/c ... cfer=19618
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/c ... ecfer=6733
http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/c ... recfer=217
Aircraft spruce can supply Zinc chromate primer Epoxy may be used as well.

http://www.sharkhide.com/mpinfo.html
Dennis B.
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Line Maintenance A&P Mechanic and MOC Tech specialist.
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