Rhino lining a work boat interior??

[TomMcKinney]

Armedmariner and I have been kicking this concept back and forth--he made the post in the resources forum, but I thought it would still be appropriate here and maybe get more response :D :D
(negative and positive- we want both) :cool:

Anyway- what about using rhinoliner- the truck bed stuff- to do the inside of a plywood or other wood working/sport fishing boat-- should be strong, stop the checking and help keep the underlying wood dry--

Previous comments--which are appreciated seemed to say something like "Person XX put that on the bottom of some boat he really abused by dragging over rocks and other nasty stuff and it held up really great under the punishment."

Any other thoughts or comments- I've been told it comes in colors other than black-- I'm thinking gary or tan would be my choice.

Cheers
Tom

[imported_Conrad]

Hi Tom- I've used similar products, as has Sam Devlin for the purposes you suggest. The product we have experience with is the Norton brand bed liner sold to autobody shops and for hobby use. It comes in a variety of colors which can be intermixed to give you an even wider range of tints, and while designed to be sprayed through a "spritz" gun can also be applied with a rollor or perhaps brushed, but I have no personal experience brushing it.

Like Rhino Liner, it's a urethane based product with a high silicon content, very tough and a bit slippery to the touch, at least when new. It dries/cures with a high gloss finish. I know Devlin used it on the coach roof of his trawler, and I've used it for flooring in 4X4's, trailers, and small boats. On the plus side the stuff is very tough, resiliant, and easy to clean. It grip as a non-skid is average- while the actual surface is shiny and a bit slippery, the texture compensates to an extent leaving you with about the equal of the non skid patterning on a fiberglass deck. It looks good to most people's eyes when sprayed, and wears very well.

On the downside, it's expensive, about $50 per ready to spray quart, and a quart doesn't go very far given the thickness of the finished product. I figure an import truck bed and sides will take at least two quarts, three if you want to really lay it on. And it is difficult to repair without a fair amount of experience, and even then good luck helps.

A similar product which might serve better is sold for exterior decks (home) and designed to be applied directly over bare plywood. It too is a urethane/rubber like product, waterproof, and high wearing. But the non-skid qualities are better, it's a low gloss so application eveness isn't so critical, and it's cheaper. I don't think I would use either on the exterior hull sides or bottom- there are better choices for strengh/toughness, like kevlar. Check around! Good luck! smile.gif

[Gresham CA]

Hi Tom,
I have to disagree with Conrad about the non-skid abillities of the RhinoLinings brand. It will peel the skin off of your knees, I KNOW! As for the other brands I can't speak for them one way or the other. He is right about the cost though.

[David Usitalo]

Tom, I noticed your question today, and I posed it to the chemist who designs our products - mostly polyureas and epoxies. We make a top quality spray-on bedliner, and our chemist is very agressive with new applications. He recommends an epoxy based material which has a pot life of about 45 minutes. It can be rolled on, and then have sand or marble chips "broadcast" (sprinkled on) for traction. I might be able to conjure up a sample set which would do a small boat's interior. (You would only pay for shipping) The guys in my shop are always threatening to bedline my two boats, a lapstrake classic skiff and a Star, but I'm choosing to scrape and paint for another fifty years... Let me know if you're still interested. I think we've done this product in sand color and grey.
David Usitalo usitalo@att.net