Rookie needing some advice regarding paint job/polish

[DangerousPirate]

Hello,


so basically what I have is that my boat looks the attached pictures. Its the entire topside of the boat, the deck, the cockpit, even the hatch.

I am unsure what to do to get the best result and figured Id ask here.

My approach would be to use some elbow grease and sandpaper to get it all off, then paint the boat and put a layer of polish ontop.

So far Im fairly sure its ontop of the original gel coat, but Im not sure wether or not Id possibly damage that if I scrape the old paint off. Not sure about the grid but Id find a way to get in there.

Is that how you do it? I might mention that I never worked on boats before. If not, what are the steps I need to do and what materials would I need?

Im determined to learn and put in the work.

Thanks in advance for all your answers!

 

[V1701]

I think I would give it a quick sand to remove loose stuff and even the surface where needed, use a wire brush to get into the non-slip areas a bit, then use International toplac for the smooth areas, International Interdeck for the non-slip areas. You could spend an inordinate amount of time on preparation prior to painting but you bought the boat to go sailing...

 

[DangerousPirate]

So if I get you right youre suggesting to just make the surface just smooth enough to paint over it instead of wearing everything down to the gelcoat and polish?

That honestly was my very first approach, too, until someone came up and said that polishing would be easier and cheaper.

 

[johnalison]

The smooth fibreglass would originally have been shiny with a smooth finish. The patterned, non-slip area would probably have had some shine as well. For such an old surface, I doubt if you will be able to recreate the old gloss. In this case, you will need to prepare a smooth surface for painting, and the more elbow-grease the better. It will only look as good as its base. The patterned surface would have been non-slip for a reason. The pattern may not be enough for a secure foothold and there are non-sli paints available. There is no need to polish over paint, of course, but you could try a sample area and see if it will polish up to the old gelcoat instead.

 

[DangerousPirate]

Thank you for your answer. Provided its sunny I know what Im doing in the next few days then.

 

[Stemar]

you could try a sample area and see if it will polish up to the old gelcoat instead

But don't use a polish with silicone in it. Should you need to paint subsequently, it's next to impossible to remove and the paint won't stick to it.

When I, assisted by Milady, finally decided my topsides were beyond renovation, I used Hempel multicoat for the smooth bits , and non-slip paint for the textured bits I walk on from here

UK Anti Slip Deck Paint for boats - Premier Marine Paints

We used the beige, which is a lot sunnier than it looks on the site. I like it, Milady isn't so convinced, but hasn't decreed a change of colour yet.

 

[[159032]]

So if I get you right youre suggesting to just make the surface just smooth enough to paint over it instead of wearing everything down to the gelcoat and polish?

That honestly was my very first approach, too, until someone came up and said that polishing would be easier and cheaper.

He lies. Keell heem.

Looking at the finish on your paint at the moment there is a shed load of work there. Unless the boat is of a particularly special value I would suggest it is a waste of time. I've been there and done that. Go sailing.

 

[V1701]

And if the original gelcoat was in reasonable nick the previous owner wouldn't have felt the need to paint. On the subject of which paint to use I've tried Hempel Multicoat in the past & found it to be not very hard wearing. In my experience International Toplac and Interdeck (which is basically Toplac with granules to make it non-slip) are more hard wearing...