Mast and deck colors

[Tatheelrod22]

I'm back for my weekly advice. Still working on the mast and have one, maybe two coats left on it with Interlux Brightside Bristol Beige. I thought I'd finished the deck months ago. I used Grand Banks Beige on it after think I like the more tan look to it as opposed to the initial coat of Bristol beige on which I thought was just to "creamy". Well after one coat of Grand Banks Beige on the boom I decided to try the Bristol Beige on the spars which I clearly like better. I feel rather wimpy here slaving over colors but I liked the Grand Banks better on the decks and the Bristol on the stick. My concern is its just too many colors. So you know, the hull is Black, the deck trim is White, and there is quite a bit of teak. I removed all of it except the bow sprit and toe rail, and all teak is being varnished with Ephipanes Gloss.
Do you folks think I should settle on one color for both the decks and spars? I want as traditional a look as I can get on this 46 year old Herreschoff a Eagle. I'm also replacing all running rigging with 3Ply hemp imitation running rigging.

Thanks for your thoughts.

[Terra Nova]

Decks and spars needn't be the same color. The darker the deck color gets from white, the greater the solar heat gain.

[model 10]

Paint the spars to look like wood? Really what would Herreshoff do?

[Orion Jim]

Originally Posted by Guy

Paint the spars to look like wood? Really what would Herreshoff do?

Roll over in his grave
Actually, Bristol Beige is a great spar color.

[nitpik]

I have a black and grey hull, and the masts and gaffs (alum.) look great in a light beige colour. Same colour as the cabin trunks, bowsprit, gallows, davits and railing. Deck is off white. People are always asking if my spars are wood!
But, my spars are aluminium - if yours are wood, I tend to agree with the previous post wondering what Herreschoff would have to say about painting a wooden mast to "look like" wood!
One other point, speaking from experience, I would never use a one part polyurethane for that purpose. Brightside is good paint, but not good enough for that application. Suggest a good two part paint.

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by Tatheelrod22

I'm back for my weekly advice. ....

You get a pass this time... but there were a couple advice posts on the same day a while back...

Originally Posted by Orion Jim

Roll over in his grave
Actually, Bristol Beige is a great spar color.

+1

Originally Posted by nitpik

I have a black and grey hull, and the masts and gaffs (alum.) look great in a light beige colour. Same colour as the cabin trunks, bowsprit, gallows, davits and railing. Deck is off white. People are always asking if my spars are wood!
But, my spars are aluminium - if yours are wood, I tend to agree with the previous post wondering what Herreschoff would have to say about painting a wooden mast to "look like" wood!
One other point, speaking from experience, I would never use a one part polyurethane for that purpose. Brightside is good paint, but not good enough for that application. Suggest a good two part paint.

+1

I think with your boat you can get away with a lot of adjacent colors... Might even make it "more" traditional looking...

[redhead]

How about some pictures? Words are just words - I'm sure you'd get more informed opinions if we could see it.

[Tayana42]

Originally Posted by Guy

Paint the spars to look like wood? Really what would Herreshoff do?

No really, the question I always have to ask myself (a messy painter) is what would Jackson Pollack do?


S/V B'Shert

[ZULU40]

Originally Posted by Tatheelrod22

I'm back for my weekly advice. Still working on the mast and have one, maybe two coats left on it with Interlux Brightside Bristol Beige. I thought I'd finished the deck months ago. I used Grand Banks Beige on it after think I like the more tan look to it as opposed to the initial coat of Bristol beige on which I thought was just to "creamy". Well after one coat of Grand Banks Beige on the boom I decided to try the Bristol Beige on the spars which I clearly like better. I feel rather wimpy here slaving over colors but I liked the Grand Banks better on the decks and the Bristol on the stick. My concern is its just too many colors. So you know, the hull is Black, the deck trim is White, and there is quite a bit of teak. I removed all of it except the bow sprit and toe rail, and all teak is being varnished with Ephipanes Gloss.
Do you folks think I should settle on one color for both the decks and spars? I want as traditional a look as I can get on this 46 year old Herreschoff a Eagle. I'm also replacing all running rigging with 3Ply hemp imitation running rigging.

Thanks for your thoughts.

A multiple of colours should be fine, and emulates work boats of the past which it seems to me with some latitude is the boats heritage.

Typically in colder climates hulls would be dark, where in warmer conditions they would be white but nearly always with another colour from the waterline down. In either case with white verticals on cabin and cockpit sides with beige decks and cabin roof, not to look like wood but to keep glare down on grey days, and typically the mast and pinrails would be the same colour. If its a gaff rig often masts are painted white on the very top.

Having wood trim varnished seems appropriate where you have it and just makes a boat more homely, but yes the upkeep is more.

If you happen to fall over a few Meadowlarks to look at they face similar paint scheme problems.

[CatboatWilly]

I think that with a dark colored hull, a lighter colored deck looks very pleasing. On our Marshall Catboat we have all the spars done in Brightsides Sundown Buff. The hull is Forest Green, and the horizontal portion of the deck is Sundown Buff with the vertical sides of the coach house in white. I like the way it looks.

[CatboatWilly]

Some additional pictures

[Terra Nova]

Beautiful catboat.

[Orion Jim]

Originally Posted by CatboatWilly

I think that with a dark colored hull, a lighter colored deck looks very pleasing. On our Marshall Catboat we have all the spars done in Brightsides Sundown Buff. The hull is Forest Green, and the horizontal portion of the deck is Sundown Buff with the vertical sides of the coach house in white. I like the way it looks.

Catboats are beautiful. Yours is very well done.

[Uncle Bob]

Originally Posted by Tayana42

No really, the question I always have to ask myself (a messy painter) is what would Jackson Pollack do?


S/V B'Shert

Paint the pole blue ??

[CatboatWilly]

Uncle Bob, That would very different on a green boat