Alexseal ,awlgrip, two part polyurathanes,one part polyurathanes,kiwigrip ohhhh my!

[Eastward ho 24]

Well the paint debate goes on and on and on it seems...my boats never been painted but it's time to paint the decks. What ever I decide to use I'm limited to roll and tip. ( I'm in a marina). I was gonna awlgrip. But the repairability isseus have me reconsidering. Has any one used Alexseal? I understand the prep is key and all that jazz. I'd like to be able to repair scratches down the road. I'm considering brightsides to I won't mind repainting every few years if need be. Can I have some opinions on what's most durable and what's repairable?

[Outlaw7]

Following

[Privilege]

There are a lot of 'depends' to consider here...are you painting straight over non-skid or straight onto bare glass? What kind of wear is it going to get? What type of finish are you looking for?

I had a 23' center console years ago and painted the deck with a one-part Brightside poly. (With sand sprinkled on top, let dry and then another coat). One-part is not as hard as two-part but in my experience even two-part will not offer much protection to the deck if it's scraped with a tool or an errant shackle. The best thing about one-part is that if it gets a scratch, you just give the can a shake, pop open the lid and touch it up. The job is done before you've even properly measured the mixing ratio of the two-part. If you're painting a horizontal surface, you won't even need to tip it as long as you apply it with a suitable roller, it will be self leveling.

Don't get me wrong, two-part is superior and will provide better results but for the cost and ease of use, one-part can be a better option.

[model 10]

I would forget about the single part paint unless you are willing to put some catalyst in it. But it is a cheaper way to go and you get a good hard shine. It's something pro painters would do back in the day.
As far as the 2 part poly paints go, the safe bet is to go with the one that has the "most" solids and uses the "least"catalyst. 4:1 is better that 3:1. The solids float to the surface and are the shine/smoothness. More the better and you need less paint too.
I can't describe how perfect some aircraft finishes are, done with a good 2x paint. Not an orange peel on the whole plane and they are so hard to paint. So many different surfaces and angles. I have yet to see a new car without the whole thing covered with orange peel.

[Cheechako]

Do not use single part hard paint. you'll be sorry. I didn't know you cant repair Awlgrip...? Use Imron or Sterling ...readily repairable and hard.
If only doing the non skid, the other way is Aqua grip, (is that the right name?) just roll it on and it's a bit rubbery. Reminds me of outdoor Latex a bit. I would plan on redoing it every few years though as it collects dirt a bit.

[Jammer]

The two-part linear polyurethanes are going to be the most durable. You can apply them with roll and tip. The surface prep requirements can be more problematic. In particular, they cannot be applied over the residue of single-part paint because the solvent system in the two-part paints will dissolve it and make a gooey mess.


Once you have a two-part finish, you can touch it up as needed, either with additional two-part, or with a one-part paint of the same color.


One part paint is less toxic, less work, less costly, and less sensitive to application conditions. But it will not last as long.


I've used Interlux Brightsides and Interlux Perfection, one part and two part respectively, on various boat projects.

[Eastward ho 24]

hmm hate big decisions.. I'll be painting over some of the non skid some of the gel coat and some epoxy where I did record patches. The idea of being able to just repaint and repair the brightsides has me really considering it. On the other hand the shine and durability of the awlgrip has me torn. I guess you can always put one part over two part but not vice versa. Maybe I'll awlgrip and see how it goes.. I'll have to look into I'm on and Sterling I know nothing of the 2..and any one use Alex seal?

[Eastward ho 24]

Just found some imron literature not much on or. Says it's a single stage 2 part linear acrylic polyester.. that's 2 part..where so it's a single stage 2 part paint . But it's says spray application

[SVTatia]

Originally Posted by Eastward ho 24

Well the paint debate goes on and on and on it seems...my boats never been painted but it's time to paint the decks. What ever I decide to use I'm limited to roll and tip. ( I'm in a marina). I was gonna awlgrip. But the repairability isseus have me reconsidering. Has any one used Alexseal? I understand the prep is key and all that jazz. I'd like to be able to repair scratches down the road. I'm considering brightsides to I won't mind repainting every few years if need be. Can I have some opinions on what's most durable and what's repairable?

I went thru all of this last year. To summarize: Could not find out how to buy Imron, Alexseal has had mixed reviews (mostly negative) and is costly, and Awlcraft is not recommended for roll and tip.
So I chose Awlgrip, which I had used in the past and knew it well. On the deck there will be very little repair to do if you only paint outside of the non-skid.
What I did was 2 coats of 545 epoxy primer then plan and mark with a pencil where the non-skid would go and just painted the perimeter. Once cured, masked and "Kiwigripped" - worked great.

[Eastward ho 24]

Funny you mentioned that I've been thinking I might do the same thing. I hear the kiwigrip stains very easy? I was gonna do white on white..I'm liking the Alexseal lots of good pics and from what I've seen good reviews. Looks pretty complicated, not much testimonials to go on. It looks as if you need 2 coats also which I don't like

[Outlaw7]

I just ordered enough Alexseal components to paint my Transom a space 5ft by 12 ft. Will report on how it go's.

[Souzag818]

Painted the topsides of my first couple sailboats with Awl Grip. Used Alexseal on my last boat 7 years ago and it has held up longer than the Awl Grip did, so I'm a big Alexseal fan. Also have used Kiwi grip a lot, and I really like it. Cleans up well and if you happen to spill varnish or the like touch up is easy with minimal effort. Also did my decks with KG 7 years ago, and people still come up and ask what I used. Wish I'd invented it...

[Souzag818]

Originally Posted by Eastward ho 24

Funny you mentioned that I've been thinking I might do the same thing. I hear the kiwigrip stains very easy? I was gonna do white on white..I'm liking the Alexseal lots of good pics and from what I've seen good reviews. Looks pretty complicated, not much testimonials to go on. It looks as if you need 2 coats also which I don't like

Was told by the KG dealer to buy white, then take it to a reputable paint dealer and ask them to tint it to whatever color you like.( It is a latex paint after all). I had bought grey, but next to other grey on my boat it was very violet colored, so after talking with him, I took it to a local paint store(not Home Depot) and they added tints to it and it was light grey not violet. As far as cleanup, I've only ever had one stain that I couldn't remove with scrubbing, so I just took a chip brush, did some quick dabbing of KG, and after a couple months the sheen was exactly like the rest of my deck. I did my decks 7 years ago, and still get compliments...

[Eastward ho 24]

Sounds great I've read alot of Good reviews about the Alexseal. Most of the begative comments I've seen were from people who heard or didn't even use it. Did you roll and tip? And did you apply 2 bottom and 2 top coats?

[Souzag818]

Eastward-No, I sprayed. A couple light coats, let it tack, then 4 or 5 more. First rolled their 2 part primer, sanded then sprayed. Good luck. You won't be disappointed...