To Paint or not to paint???

[Guest]

Hello all,

As some of you are probably aware, I am in the process of restoring a "Devon Potter". She is a little 15 foot Gaffer, clinker mahogony on oak frames. Now at the moment, she is varnished all over, no paint on her at all except for her antifouling.

I am restoring her with the intention of selling her on when she is finished, and am sparing nothing in the pursuit of getting her right, whatever she needs she is getting..........anyway, my question is this.

I have been pondering on whether or not to paint her hull, just her topsides but leave the transom and everything else varnished. Her hull is in excellent condition, as is the existing varnish, but I am concerned that in painting her I will de-value her? So what do you folks think, I know that a lot of you have a better handle on the classic boat market than I do, so your opinions would be appreciated.

 

[Mirelle]

Keep the varnish.

Varnished clinker sailing dinghies sell much better than painted ones.

 

[old_salt]

Don't even think paint oribull stuff.
If as you say she is in good order she will look far better varnished My little clinker with the cannon is very old and batted but I would never dream of painting her.
Now Mercia III is a different matter she is caravel and has had 100s of plugs in old sister rib holes so paint will be the only answer unless we can come up with an answer to the large amount of filling and paying up with seem-flex and putty. If she had been pegged and splined then she would be varnished with out question.

 

[Casey]

Keep the varnish. Kala Sona, clinker built, had been painted when I bought her and I toyed with the idea of varnish as I had to strip her back to bare wood. The idea was really a non starter but I always wish she had had a decent varnish finish from her original build.

 

[Woodlouse]

Clinker boats just don't look right painted. Oiled or varnished is the only way. The only time you want to paint a clinker built boat is if the topsides have had repairs or have gone dark around the fastenings.

 

[trouville]

Yes dont paint! I have a 5 meter clinker run about and the varnish makes her! Ive seen others painted and they look medeoca!

Even my FB has lost value by painting,though she looks better can change her cloths from white to green to cream and protects the wood from the sun.

As your doing it for money varnish!

 

[Boatmik]

Howdy,

A useful trick I have learned from removing layers of paint from old boats.

If the boat was varnished first then it can be sanded lightly and painted without the paint getting in the grain.

I had one old boat I restored and it had been varnished under about 20 layers of different colours of paint.

It felt sort of miraculous to find a beautiful varnished boat under that lot!!!

Michael

 

[Guest]

Thanks all for your feedback, well I guess the consesus is, don't paint it Smiffy! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I must admit that I had my doubts about doing it, I suppose I just wanted somebody else to tell me it weren't a good idea.

Anyway, thanks again. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif