Primer needed for painting bottom?

I plan on using Interlux Brightside polyurethane paint on my Wood Duck 10 bottom.  Do I need to prime the sanded epoxy prior to my first coat of enamel?

 Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Rich


13 replies:

« Previous Post       List of Posts       Next Post »

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

I would use the primer. Most of it will get sanded off but it definitely fills in the scratches that you can't see but the paint will show. I used a foam brush to put on the primer and a 6" foam roller to apply the topcoat, tipped out with a 4" foam brush. Looks like a sprayed on finish.

George K

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

George, you're up early today.

Rich, normally I would absolutely agree with anything George says about finishing (he's a prize-winning boatbuilder whose veneer work on the Mantunuck has got to be seen to be believed) but this time I feel the need to point out that the bottom will be getting the worst of the bumps, dings and scrapes that your boat's going to be accumulating over its lifetime. So unless the paint requires primer to bond with the epoxy (check the manufacturer's data sheet), I'd skip the extra work. It's just going to get messed up anyway.

And that boys & girls is why George wins prizes and I don't.

Laszlo

 

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

Had to be at work at 0315 this morning. Laszlo is right, of course, about the bottoms of our boats taking a beating but I still like to start out with a showroom finish! And he shouldn't sell himself short in the finishing department. He's got a pretty neat little Duck and the sailing dinghy he just finished is pretty sharp as well. At any rate, I believe Interlux recommends 1-2 coats of primer on bare epoxy or fiberglass followed by 1-2 coats of paint. You might consider doing what Laszlo did with his duck and that's to use epoxy/graphite on the very bottom for abrasion resistance. Looks pretty cool, too!

George K

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

Using a high-build primer is quick and easy. As George said, you sand most of it off, but you will be astonished at the extent of little dings and cracks that it fills. Scroll to near the end of my blog to see a photo of a primed hull. http://twofootartist.com/merganser-construction-notes/ I rolled and tipped out the final finish of Interlux Brightside and it looks as good as any sprayed job you can find. -Wes

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

Interlux Pre-Kote will help adhesion and fill in what you can't really see. I have heard reports of Brightsides sticking without a primer to some epoxies but YMMV. This was after one coat of Pre-Kote and sanding.

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

Thanks to everyone who responded.  The info was detailed and helpful.

Rich

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

i am at the stage that i am prepping my boat, Matunuck, for the primer and paint.  i have never done any body work, be it boat or car.  although i do watch car and truck shows and they show things about body prep.  so i am using that knowledge and applying that on my kayak.  seeing the primer on  Wes' and dehager's boats, iam wondering if iam trying to go too far, too smooth, with the epoxy. when i sand/block my boat i get what i see in the pics.  should i get it close and let the primer fill the  rest?  some parts are smooooooth.  damn addiction!!  i can tell where i am utilizing different coats of epoxy as my smooth finish. pics in mext post.  don't want to lose this one

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

first time with pics here.

[IMG]http://i40.tinypic.com/14sl1jo.jpg[/IMG]

 

[IMG]http://i41.tinypic.com/2h6bz9x.jpg[/IMG]

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

second try

http://tinypic.com/r/2h6bz9x/5

 

http://tinypic.com/r/14sl1jo/5

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

i know some parts need more attention.  i just wonder if i need to get it next to perfect or let the primer do more work?

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

Dave,

You've got more sanding to do. The entire boat should be a dull white finish. The primer isn't going to fill in all those shiny epoxy spots. Sanding is fun. Sanding is fun. Keep repeating.....

George K

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

I agree, you need to do some more sanding. Take you time and try to get an even dull finish without cutting into the glass. I hand sanded my MC 16.5 and it was not that bad. I found that I had more control and made less of a mess sanding by hand.

RE: Primer needed for painting bottom?

i agree i need more sanding, i was just wondering how much is the primer able to build?  since i am building a small boat. the sanding on a side doesn't take too long, especially with a sander.  i sanded as much as i thought i could and started to show glass in a few spots.  i stopped.  i epoxyed.  after i sanded it looked good, not too many shiny spots.  i wiil just do what i thought which is what i get from the responses.  i will use the sander and then hand block it.  i will post more pics later.

Dave

« Previous Post     List of Posts     Next Post »


Please login or register to post a reply.