Gelcoat or Paint??

newellchunker · #1 06-11-2010, 04:39 PM

I'd like some opinions and reasons for or against each of these please. I'm on a strict budget and will be spraying one or the other myself.....and I am a novice from hades!! Any and all opinions are appreciated!!

everybody · #2 06-11-2010, 04:42 PM

Definatly not gell coat. Interlux perfection it easy to apply durable and much cheaper than awlgrip. Just my 2 cent

FELLOW-SHIP · #3 06-11-2010, 05:25 PM

If you did a lot of fiberglass work on your boat and used epoxy resin gel coat does not adhere to most epoxy resin’s very well. If you like the very glossy wet look on your boat expensive two part paint is the way to go. If you keep the boat in the salt water over two to three weeks at a time with no bottom paint gel coat is the way to go. If you want to patch your work 5 -10 years down the road you can paint a fresh coat of paint on and it looks new again. If you use gel coat and want to patch things up in 5-10 years its hard to match up the old with the new. If you spray gel coat you will have to sand with a couple of grits of paper re spray some of the locations you sanded through then rubbing compound then wax and then wax again and again. If you spray your paint you don’t have to sand between coats if you time it correctly and you never have to wax. If you roll and brush you do have to sand between coats. If you talk just price gel coat would be cheaper. If you want to make a 30 year old boat look brand new for a very long time Painting is the way to go. If you want your 30 year boat to look like a 10 year old boat in 3 years from the time you gel coated it but it was cheaper on your budget Gel coat is the way to go.

I am starting to run out of comparisons. Bottom line is They both have good and bad points to them.

The key is what’s best for you and your circumstances.

I had the bottom of my boat gel coated white because it sits on a trailer and the rubbing of the boat on and off a trailer would mess up a top coat paint over time. I painted with roller in tip the inside and outside to the water line with expensive paint. I like the wet look and I only used epoxy resin.

FellowShip

………………………….

Just for the Grins

Official Antique Classic SeaCraft Owner

uncleboo · #4 06-11-2010, 05:27 PM

I'm no expert, (not even a novice), but, had a friend that had his 18' Privateer CC sprayed with gelcoat about a year ago. Cost was around $3k and it looked to be ALOT of work sanding and buffing after the gelcoat was applied. (Lots of orange peel to smooth out.) [img]/forum/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img] There are lots of posts related to this topic. Do a search if you don't get much input. BTW, where do you splash your craft?

newellchunker · #5 06-11-2010, 05:55 PM

Thanks Fellowship....thats a GREAT looking boat of yours!! It sounds like an excellent idea....gelcoating the bottom (as we trailer) and painting topsides.

Uncleboo......we're down south......I usually go out of Topsail Inlet. My son lives at Topsail Beach and he usually keeps the boat there with him....however its under construction right now and hopefully will be splashing again soon (well in the next year anyway!!) I appreaciate the responses......

Bushwacker · #6 06-11-2010, 07:16 PM

If you use Signature Finish, you can use it on the bottom too. Unlike most urethanes, it holds up fine below the waterline, plus it's easily repairable if it get's scuffed up on the trailer. The rest of my boat is original gel coat, but I went with Signature Finish after I had the old bottom paint stripped off. Here's a link to the post I did on the bottom web page .

workinpr0gress · #7 06-12-2010, 12:06 AM

I would always pick paint over gelcoat if you need to do a topcoat anyway. Now if someone is a bit of a yahoo around the dock and/or with a dipsy then have fun trying to blend two part paint to cover the chips. It's really preference, one gives a custom boat look and one a more common look. SC's have lines that almost beg for two/part paint but they're so pretty they don't need it.

uncleboo · #8 06-14-2010, 09:05 AM

I misinterpreted what my friend told me about the cost. He paid $3k for the gelcoat AND a new aluminum trailer. He said he paid around $900 for the gelcoat, but, he did alot of the prepwork. (I better get my facts right before I start talking.) [img]/forum/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

eggsuckindog · #9 06-15-2010, 01:08 AM

The gelcoat in my drain runners is chipping away and looking crappy, no problems on the deck area just in runners. Can I just brush some new gelcoat in there? as it doesn't have to be smooth and pretty - the guy gave me almost a gal with the boat. All I have ever done was fix chips, which I have some of those too.