Finishing a wherry. Suggestions?

[colestyron]

I've done quite a lot of searching in the forum for primers, sealers, paints, etc., but would like to hear some advice from members with experience.

Anyone have suggestions on brands/combinations of primers, sealers, and paints for a small okoume ply boat? The transom, walnut, will be finished bright, and the outboard planking painted white. I live in an area with no retail availability, so everything must be ordered online, so suggestions of online distributors are also welcome.

[Jim Ledger]

I made a Nutshell pram out of okume and finished the topsides with Interlux primer and their Hatteras Off White enamel. It's glossy but it looks great and has held up really well for three years, now. The primer sands very easily and the paint goes on very nicely with a brush with a little Penetrol and thinner added.

[Omay Elphick]

I just finished a okume ply boat. After consulting numerous boat builders I used the following schedule:

-Okume
-two coats west system
-various layers of microballoons/fairing compound.
-two coats of Awlgrip 545, which stinks like hell and probably gave me cancer, but is the best paint I've ever worked with. mixes easily, rolls on evenly with great coverage and sands like a dream, especially when compared to sanding epoxy. An additional plus is that if you use the cold cure additive, it kicks and is ready to sand in hours.

-Top coat is two coats of petit easypoxy

You'll have major sticker shock with the Awlgrip 545, there maybe equally good primers availible, but I liked the durability of a two part. In hindsight, I think I would have paid the extra money to use a two-part topcoat too. Who knows? There is just as much disagreement on paint systems as there is about anchor choice or having guns on board. Opps. Didn't mean to open a can of worms.

Jamestown distributors is my chosen source. When I lived in CO, they were my only source. Now I live up the road, so I just stop by.

[donald branscom]

I just finished a okume ply boat. After consulting numerous boat builders I used the following schedule:

-Okume
-two coats west system
-various layers of microballoons/fairing compound.
-two coats of Awlgrip 545, which stinks like hell and probably gave me cancer, but is the best paint I've ever worked with. mixes easily, rolls on evenly with great coverage and sands like a dream, especially when compared to sanding epoxy. An additional plus is that if you use the cold cure additive, it kicks and is ready to sand in hours.

-Top coat is two coats of petit easypoxy

You'll have major sticker shock with the Awlgrip 545, there maybe equally good primers availible, but I liked the durability of a two part. In hindsight, I think I would have paid the extra money to use a two-part topcoat too. Who knows? There is just as much disagreement on paint systems as there is about anchor choice or having guns on board. Opps. Didn't mean to open a can of worms.

Jamestown distributors is my chosen source. When I lived in CO, they were my only source. Now I live up the road, so I just stop by.

Yes i used to use Interlux, but I now use Petit EasyPoxy. The Easy Poxy is really tough.

[JimConlin]

In my mind, whether the bother and cost of two-part primers and topcoats is worthwhile depends on whether the boat is left to the weather and whether it's subject to the abuse of gravel beaches, dinghy docks, etc.
A conventional finish that subject neither to weather nor abuse will hold up fine. No more is needed.
A finish, whether conventional or LPU, that is subject to abuse will not tolerate it and will require refinishing fairly frequently, so use the conventional system..
Only the situation where there's low-moderate abuse and a need for weater resistance justifies the aggravation of two-part finish systems.

[Tom Hunter]

I use a 2 pounder signal cannon with solid shot to take out my old cans of California oil based paint. There, paint and guns:D

Jim Conlin makes a good point that I strongly agree with. If the paint is going to be knocked off by abrasion (mine is) then going really high end makes very little sense.

[colestyron]

I'm liking the durability of the easypoxy and other two-part solutions, but this is primarily going to be a very lightly used lake rowing boat, so a conventional finish would be fine. The hardcore suggestions are duly noted for the next boat, however. Just what comprises a conventional finish, I'd like to know? Anyone have favorite brands, methods?

[JimConlin]

Easypoxy, in spite of the name, is pretty much a conventional paint. Enjoy it.

[Bruce Hooke]

One issue you need to decide on is how high gloss you want to go. The usual "modern" desire is for very high gloss, which various of the standard marine enamel paints can deliver (e.g., Easypoxy or Interlux Brightsides) to a degree and which two-part paints are pretty much the ultimate at. If you want a somewhat lower gloss, more traditional look (and more traditional colors), many people like the paints made by George Kirby, Jr. Paint Company: http://www.kirbypaint.com/

For standard marine paints I think Jamestown Distributors has pretty good prices, but it has been a long time since I've checked.

Various experienced people have reported good results with high-quality oil-based enamel paints made by the standard paint companies and sold for non-marine use by your local paint store. Some people also like latex paint, but that is probably a bit more of a fringe viewpoint. I can't speak specifically to either of these options since I've never tried either one. I can say that a sign I made using the best exterior oil-based paint from my local paint store has lasted very well outside year-round on a house a couple hundred feet from the ocean in Maine, which is a pretty rugged environment.

[Bruce Hooke]

If you are new to painting boats I'd recommend picking up a copy of Walter Simmons' book Finishing (or some other similar book, if there is one), which is available from the WoodenBoat store and other sources. It explains a lot of the details of how to go about painting small boats...