Stripping bottom paint

[jasoncooperpcola]

Macojoe, its not too bad of a job, until a big glob of stripper falls onto your eyelid. I ran into the house as fast as i could to wash it off. I literally ran into the house. Missed the entire f-in door! Goggles are a must, this crap burnt!

Curapa, I bought the Kleen-Strip Aircraft Fiberglass Paint Remover. $29 for a gallon at West Marine. I think one gallon will do the V20. I have over half gallon left now. www.wmbarr.com/product.aspx?catid=82&prodid=113

Kracker, i will sand everything smooth then repaint. It will be either blue or black.

[Kracker Jack]

Kleen-strip is good stuff. Im using that stuff to strip my t-top. Anfd used it to strip my motocycle frame it works great. But burns sensitive areas!!! as you already know.

[cfelton]

Nice job KJ! Ive got to do the same thing to mine, been putting it off. My V has at least four layers of antifoulant paint to remove. Not looking forward to doing it. What paint are you planning to go back with? Do you keep yours on the trailer or in the water?

[jasoncooperpcola]

Mine stays on the trailer. I have been researching paint for the bottom and so far i am leaning towards an epoxy paint. Like Sherwin Williams Tile Clad HS. I used it before and its very durable. I have also been researching possibly gel coating the entire outside of the hull. But i have a design i want to use but not sure how to do it.

[Kracker Jack]

Originally Posted by jasoncooperpcola

Mine stays on the trailer. I have been researching paint for the bottom and so far i am leaning towards an epoxy paint. Like Sherwin Williams Tile Clad HS. I used it before and its very durable. I have also been researching possibly gel coating the entire outside of the hull. But i have a design i want to use but not sure how to do it.

I'm going with INTERLUX VC performance epoxy. A lot of people stand by it and it has great reviews. It's perfect for our boats being on a trailer.

[jasoncooperpcola]

Just looked at the VC epoxy. It only comes in white. But reading the description its perfect for trailered boats. They need to offer it in a few more colors.

I keep reading sprayed gelcoat is very hard to achieve a smooth surface, and that the only real way to get a smooth surface is to spray it in a mold. Price wise its about the same as paint, maybe less. I guess its all in how much work you want to put in. If i can borrow a gel coat gun, i may spray the transom to see how much work is really involved. Anyone here ever done it?

[Disturbed]

I must say. I completely sanded and repainted the bottom of my V20 a couple months back. It came out super nice in the black color I painted it. I tried using the AC stripper and a pressure washer and just didn't have much luck. I ended up using muscle and a Dewalt and sanded the entire thing by hand.

I'm about to turn 37 years old. One thing I've learned over the years is that I'm better off just paying someone else to do certain things. Ive always been a very hands on guy and love doing most things myself, but one thing I can say with absolute certainty is that I will DEFINITELY pay someone else to do my bottom paint the next time. Oh, I've also given up on cutting my own lawn and trimming the trees. I rather enjoy watching a truck pull up, 10 people get out, and in a matter of 15 minutes they've cut, trimmed, edged, and blown away the grass. All while I drink a beer a watch them through my patio doors in the AC. LMAO..

I'm sure in the end, you will appreciate the job much more by doing it yourself. It's a sense of personal satisfaction. But screw that!! I'm perfectly satisfied helping the economy and paying one of my fellow working class buddies to do it for me!!

[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by jsgeorge4x4

i spent an entire winter under mine when i was 16 with a 1" spackle knife. 17 layers of paint came off. i recoated with interprotect 2000e (6coats) and 3 coats micron csc. i just painted the bottom for the 3rd time in 8 years with the csc and had almost no paint buildup left before painting. 3 coats = 3 years of not painting. why not just sand the gelcoat smooth if you keep it on the trailer?

I gotta agree. Trailer queens really don't need to be painted. In fact, the only reason to paint a trailered boat is for looks. Personally I like the clean look of an unpainted boat.....but that's just me.