Paint carbon fiber?

[mestrezat]

I'll be picking up our new carbon fiber spinnaker pole next week. I know some people paint theirs but mine is au naturel. Is there any real reason--other than to set it apart from others, is there any real reason to paint it?

[knottybuoyz]

Estetics aside I think you're going to need to paint it for UV protection. Not knowing what resins were used to produce the pole there may or may not be any UV resistance which could lead to premature failure.

[44'cruisingcat]

If it's carbon epoxy it needs some kind of UV protection.

[Evan]

The commercially made ones are given a clear coat of UV additive impregnated 2 part LP paint. For a colder climate with not much sun like your area, leaving as delivered would be o.k.