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View Full Version : Boat painting options? Help!



Clancy72
08-31-2007, 10:38 AM
Anyone?

shaky
09-10-2007, 02:45 PM
The best thing to use is gel paste. If you cant find gel paste, make it with gel-coat and baby powder. Use it to fill the holes. I worked for a fiberglass repair shop for six years in havasu and that is what they used for everything. it takes paint or gelcoat really well.

Clancy72
09-11-2007, 06:36 AM
Thanks, i'll try it

DUCKY
09-11-2007, 08:34 AM
Yeah that will work if you want it to crack down the road.
THE ONLY WAY TO FIX IT RIGHT IS WITH GLASS!!!!!
Put a tiny shot of body filler in each hole, grind each spot out about the size of a nickel, and put a small piece of mat on each one. Then sand that down, and if you go too far, but a skim coat of filler back over it, but you have to use fiberglass if you want it to be a permanent repair.

FOURQ
09-11-2007, 05:22 PM
The best thing to use is gel paste. If you cant find gel paste, make it with gel-coat and baby powder. Use it to fill the holes. I worked for a fiberglass repair shop for six years in havasu and that is what they used for everything. it takes paint or gelcoat really well.
must have been that retardations place opps Refomations..they couldn't fix Gel to last more than a year if they tried..

pw_Tony
09-11-2007, 06:37 PM
must have been that retardations place opps Refomations..they couldn't fix Gel to last more than a year if they tried..
They are bad news? Please do tell... (no experience with them at all)

GAWnCA
09-11-2007, 07:40 PM
Yeah that will work if you want it to crack down the road.
THE ONLY WAY TO FIX IT RIGHT IS WITH GLASS!!!!!
Put a tiny shot of body filler in each hole, grind each spot out about the size of a nickel, and put a small piece of mat on each one. Then sand that down, and if you go too far, but a skim coat of filler back over it, but you have to use fiberglass if you want it to be a permanent repair.
Ducky, I did find a product by Bondo that is glass fibers in resin and it works really well for filling dings and holes. It's not a finish product by any means of the term, but just for the rough filling it works and will tell you next year how well it held. Tapp Plastics use to have a similar product called Kitty Hair. I did some glass repair on a Cessna 172 cowl and the last I saw that plane it was doing just fine with no stress cracks... BUT it was a resin and glass combination. Not diaper-dust and jelly. :D

Jbb
09-12-2007, 05:05 AM
Boys ...do yourself a favor and listen to Ducky on this one..I have seen hundreds of cases where holes were filled with Kitty hair....fiber reinforced this and that....or bondo.....eventually they all will crack ..usually in the exact shape of the hole they filled..:D ...Saw it on Corvettes for years...resin and mat...skim with filler and finish it....Get in the habit of doing it right the first time

GAWnCA
09-12-2007, 05:48 AM
Boys ...do yourself a favor and listen to Ducky on this one..I have seen hundreds of cases where holes were filled with Kitty hair....fiber reinforced this and that....or bondo.....eventually they all will crack ..usually in the exact shape of the hole they filled..:D ...Saw it on Corvettes for years...resin and mat...skim with filler and finish it....Get in the habit of doing it right the first time
Jbb - The Kitty Hair is just pre-mixed resin with chopped fiberglass fibers. It's just easier to press in for a very nice plug to a hole. Bondo is just another maker of such a product. I said it was by no means a finish off product. I used glass fabric over the top and bottom for the over lap and finishing the job. It continues to stand up to the vibration of a Cessna on the thin cowling. I feel this was right the first time.

Jbb
09-12-2007, 08:01 AM
Jbb - The Kitty Hair is just pre-mixed resin with chopped fiberglass fibers. It's just easier to press in for a very nice plug to a hole. Bondo is just another maker of such a product. I said it was by no means a finish off product. I used glass fabric over the top and bottom for the over lap and finishing the job. It continues to stand up to the vibration of a Cessna on the thin cowling. I feel this was right the first time.
Im aware of all the products...Kitty Hair , Mar Glas...ect....When I worked for Eastern Airlines ...Mar Glas was approved for repairing leading edge slat dents...on aluminum..The strongest of those by far I have found is 3m's HSRF...look into it...like concrete....I was just agreeing with Ducky's take on the correct procedure...I tell people all the time..It's yours ...do as you wish...;)

GAWnCA
09-12-2007, 08:34 AM
Im aware of all the products...Kitty Hair , Mar Glas...ect....When I worked for Eastern Airlines ...Mar Glas was approved for repairing leading edge slat dents...on aluminum..The strongest of those by far I have found is 3m's HSRF...look into it...like concrete....I was just agreeing with Ducky's take on the correct procedure...I tell people all the time..It's yours ...do as you wish...;)
I understand what you are saying. I just didn't think adding diaper-dust to resin sounded like a good idea, so I was pointing out that there are real products out there that should work. I agree with Ducky as well. I had 8 holes (cleats) drilled way up in the front of my deck that I couldn't get to the back side to do anything with so I filled them with kitty hair. When I get ready to refinish the boat and paint it, I'll make sure that I have some mat and fabric on the topside to be sure. I wouldn't think of using the hair on major damage. Someone on one of the threads did a nice write up and photo shoot of their repair work. :cool:

DUCKY
09-12-2007, 10:14 AM
Don't get me wrong guys, we all have taken a short cut at one time or another. I have used kitty hair, mar-glass, and the like on some of my own stuff, but I would never suggest it to anyone, nor would I use such a process on a customer's ride. The body filler/glass is the only method that I know for a fact will not fail. Have fun!!!