Refurbishing wooden boats

[jakemildren]

I have an old wooden mossie i need to sand back to bare wood then paint. I have a few queries, how course sand paper do you use (don't want to go to course to fast). is it better to paint or varnish (if the wood looks any good).

any other advise or pointers would be much appreciated

Cheers, Jake

[QB2]

I had a QB2 and usually painted the decks every year because they constantly cracked. trial various sandpaper grades so that you can use the smallest number sandpaper without gouging too much of the ply .. in other words you want to remove just the paint and the thinnest possible layer of ply. You will be tempted to go with a very coarse paper to maximise paint removal but don't go to hard and heavy because you will then have to use micro ballooons or other fillers to provide the best possible surface for repainting. Sand back to bare timber and then see if the ply comes up well or has scarf joints, faults, voids or cosmetic blemishes that would be highlighted if the cat was varnished. I love varnished boats but it only takes a few blemishes and they start to look crappy.

[madboutcats]

G'day Jake I've stripped 4 timber cats in the last 6 years and it really comes down to what paint was used to determine the best method of removal. Sanding all the paint off is a very long tiring process, it is also quite expensive as you will use a lot of sandpaper, you really want a sandpaper that goes as deep as the top coats but not through the undercoat as your first cut and then take off the final layer. I found wet & dry doesn't clog as quick thereby lasting longer. My personal preference is seeing whether the heat gun will get the top layers off, this is the cheapest and can be the fastest method ( don't use a crappy $30 gun). The other way is paint stripper, try some on a small area first to see if it works properly on the paint. I am about to paint a stripped wooden mozzy and will use everdure as my first coat, this is a type of resin that soaks into the wood sealing it. When you do your painting make sure the different layers of paint are compatable and follow the instructions, some paints you sand between layers and other you don't. Good luck with the project and keep us up to date with your project

[jakemildren]

thanks to all replies, i have stripped the deck after using the heat gun. and a lot of sanding now going down on the grits, I've sanded the bottom of the hulls soon i'll be redoing the fiberglass on the bottom as it has worn through... about painting should I get a spray gun or paint with brushes? any useful tips for a really smooth? and i will keep you informed

Cheers, Jake

[madboutcats]

In my opinion, on wooden boats you are limited to spray for a really good job, on fibreglass boats you can use perfection paint which is brush on and tip. I have brushed on and tipped with international brightside with a reasonable finish but wasn't that impressed.

[knobblyoldjimbo]

there's a ton of information on the web about roll/tip and of course some very nice results. search Sailing Anarchy too because the subject has been discussed many times.

most importantly though, be very careful spraying stuff, particularly two pack as the mist (apparenty) is pretty nasty stuff.

from what I understand 99.9% of the final result is in the preparation.

[dave66]

Any effects on glues or resins when stripping back paint with a heat gun ?

[knobblyoldjimbo]

From memory of what I've read (not what I've done) it's better with a heat gun than sanding but I guess if the gun gives off lots of fumes then it might be risky.

Ask Uncle Google, or Sailinganarchy.com/forums

[madboutcats]

Different paints give different results with a heat gun. If you make the paint that hot that it gives off fumes you will probably burn the paint onto the wood which would be hard to remove, you just want the paint to lift so you can scrape it. You might soften the resin a little while it's hot but if you heat the paint right it should come off easily. Be patient the first little bit might take 4 hours before you have your technique sorted but then the rest of the boat gets done quickly and easily with just a pile of paint shavings to sweep up instead of a shed full of sawdust

[jakemildren]

I have finished the deck with the heat gun, with out it the paint in the sun became impossable to sand... The paint that was on the deck was some sort of grip paint. Any way the heat gun worked.. Then we bogged up all the dings holes and scratches then sanded it. Looking good! To answer your question Dave no only some fumes but i'm doing it out side.

all up it took about 4 hours to heat gun the paint of..

Also we fiber glassed the bottoms of the hulls, all in all a very productive easter long weekend )

[jakemildren]

A query about Mosquito tramps are they cut wide and short so you may get them on easy then pull tight? or if it means anything the tramp is diagonal cut...

[jakemildren]

what a busy two weeks holiday it has been, since sanding back hulls and deck we primed the hulls with a white primer, this past week i've been applying the final coats of exterior paint.. do know if its orange enough [ATTACH=CONFIG]1402[/ATTACH]

[Pirate]

reminds me of ....

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[jakemildren]

where does this boat sail?

[Pirate]

Western Victoria

pic taken @ Lake Bolac Easter Regatta

http://www.facebook.com/groups/387514437936120/