Wrapping hulls

[Grimgrak]

People wrap cars to protect the paint why are boat people not making use of this?
Certainly beats sanding.

[Calif.Ted]

There's a 35 ft. powerboat next to me that's wrapped, I couldn't tell if it was paint or vinyl until it lifted in one spot due to a mistake during application. It was fixed quickly without charge but I think they had to replace the whole side of the boat for a rather small area.
In the cases I'm aware of it's a choice between paint or wrap, one older sailboat in our harbor was wrapped as an advertisement.
A lot of race boats are using wraps now also, quick face lift and bold graphics for them.

[Captain Bligh]

I have my 20' fishing boat wrapped , I went with awlgrip for my 37ft boat as its more cost effective.

[thinwater]

You'll get more information on power boat forums, like The Hull Truth. I doubt many sailors know much about it.

[NaClyDog]

Originally Posted by Grimgrak

People wrap cars to protect the paint why are boat people not making use of this?
Certainly beats sanding.

The new owners (partly) wrapped this Outremer 51;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6UteUOdDIw

[er9]

A few boats in the recent GGR race did. The wrapping didnt fair very well and mostly peeled off. Ended up just being more pollution. I beleive they banned hull wrapping in the next GGR race for that reason.

[Tillsbury]

The o'kellys did recently on their 40-odd foot catamaran. There's a video of it.

Quick and cheap but not expected to be as long lasting as paint, and you need to be a little more careful of hitting things, scraping on docks or harbour walls, and haulout too.

[Grimgrak]

So if it doesn't last as long as paint would you say 10 years on average before you need to paint the hull vs 5 for wrap? Hence the cost of hauling out twice would not make it worthwhile?

[Fore and Aft]

I surveyed a foam sandwich cat that had been wrapped in a light grey vinyl and had started to blister. When I put my moisture meter on the blisters there turned out to be moisture trapped in the topsides from leaking deck fittings and the wrap could not let the topsides breathe.
The big saving with wraps is they can be installed very quickly compared to a traditional paint job which might take weeks depending on the level of finish you want.....
Cheers

[CalmSeasQuest]

2019 FP Saba wrapped in 3M 1080 Sterling Silver. I had her wrapped when new and the wrap is holding up well thus far.



The wrap is subject to nicks (like the one seen on the starboard bow) and we keep our fenders covered and clean to avoid abrasions. Inevitable repairs take only a few minutes and are invisible from more than a few feet away.

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by CalmSeasQuest

2019 FP Saba wrapped in 3M 1080 Sterling Silver. I had her wrapped when new and the wrap is holding up well thus far.



The wrap is subject to nicks (like the one seen on the starboard bow) and we keep our fenders covered and clean to avoid abrasions. Inevitable repairs take only a few minutes and are invisible from more than a few feet away.

Thanks for posting this. I was looking at doing this years ago with a similar size cat but the durability, longevity and exact product to use was unclear at the time.

What did this wrap cost?

[slug]

Vinyl works , but it is soft

It scratches and bruises easily

Tenders and fender age it fast

A Caribbean boat boy is trouble

If you use wrap don’t bring it down to the water line

Only to top of boot

In general it works well, I’ve know a boat to get six or seven year out of a wrap

I’ve also seen wrap used inside the boat ....shower stalls , bulkheads ...

There are several grades of wrap

Only the highest grade can withstand UV

[a64pilot]

I’ve had airplanes wrapped, it’s pretty easily damaged and isn’t as durable as paint, but you can do graphics on vinyl because it’s printed that would be pretty nearly impossible with paint.
Plus it’s easily removed.
Initial post said people wrap cars to protect the paint, I’ve never seen it done for that reason.
https://youtu.be/4i350jq7Dxo
Same airplane, different wrap. Repainting would have been very difficult.
https://youtu.be/YULQA-2PySo

[Grimgrak]

I just learnt that there is a difference in wraps vinyl is more for color changes and doesn't hold up well but there is something called paint protection film that to a certain point with light scratches can even repair itself and for cars it has life time guarantee altho it's been out prob less than 5 years.

[Captain Bligh]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

I’ve had airplanes wrapped, it’s pretty easily damaged and isn’t as durable as paint, but you can do graphics on vinyl because it’s printed that would be pretty nearly impossible with paint.
Plus it’s easily removed.
Initial post said people wrap cars to protect the paint, I’ve never seen it done for that reason.
https://youtu.be/4i350jq7Dxo
Same airplane, different wrap. Repainting would have been very difficult.
https://youtu.be/YULQA-2PySo

I beg to differ on the ease of removing a wrap. In my experience wraps 5 years old are hard to remove. Plan on twice the labor hours it took to install.
Wraps 10 years old are near impossible to remove. YMMV.
5 years is the max I would wrap a boat for.