Painting Canvas on 1950 Snipe

[Rick Amon]

I am in the process of restoring a vintage 1950 Snipe Sailboat. It has a canvas deck and I am trying to locate the best practice on painting the canvas. Should I clean it with Softscrub? Interlux says to use Pre-Kote and one of their enamel paints. My concern is paint cracking after the application.

I am in the process of restoring a vintage 1950 Snipe Sailboat. It has a canvas deck and I am trying to locate the best practice on painting the canvas. Should I clean it with Softscrub? Interlux says to use Pre-Kote and one of their enamel paints. My concern is paint cracking after the application.

The original letters from the manufacturer (dated 1950) suggest using regular house paint. That was 1950's technology and I am afraid today's house paint is not like the products that were available then.

Any help would be appreciated,

Thank you,

Rick

[Jay Greer]

Rick,
The trick with canvas decks is not to load the canvas with too much paint, relying on the weave to offer a non-skid surface. If the canvas is not so loaded with paint to have become "Paint Sick". Then it can be cleaned with TSP and warm water followed by a fresh water rinse. Oil based semigloss house paint is still the best bet as it will oxidise and sluff off. Thin the paint so as not to create a heavy film and apply the least you can get away with to get uniform color. Thinning here is better done with turpintine rather than mineral spirits.
If there is too much paint already on the canvas it can be disolved with a chemical paint remover and scraped with a putty knife that has been slightly dulled so as not to cut the canvas. Follow up with painting as just described.

[Bob Cleek]

What Jay said. I've always had good luck with Rustoleum oil based enamels. It doesn't really matter if it is flat or glossy. The glossy will dull and wear as does the flat, but lasts a bit longer. It's an aesthetic choice. Don't waste money on fancy boat paints for deck applications. You pay a lot extra for the boat on the can.