Rolling & Tipping

[Terra Nova]

Good gloss! Brush marks aren't flowing out.

[kbudd]

A question? I have never painted a boat but I have painted a bunch of motorcycles and parts. Why all of the effort to roll and tip? Why not just spray the topsides?

[Ryan H]

Originally Posted by Terra Nova

Good gloss! Brush marks aren't flowing out.

The pictures were taken the instant I tiped. A few seconds later they all flattened. At that point I was tipping the next bit and didn't chance another stop. Tricky business painting in direct sunlight. :-P

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[Ryan H]

Originally Posted by kbudd

A question? I have never painted a boat but I have painted a bunch of motorcycles and parts. Why all of the effort to roll and tip? Why not just spray the topsides?

Well, for me it's a combination of cost, the legal and personal ramifications if I try to spray paint a boat in a yard surrounded by other boats ( just imagine the possible overspray ) and that rolling and tiping was almost a lost maritime art for a while found only in a small group of DIY auto painters (well, mostly just truck and Jeep owners). Another possible issue is that the two part polys people seem to like these days is highly toxic in spray form.

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[HopCar]

"A question? I have never painted a boat but I have painted a bunch of motorcycles and parts. Why all of the effort to roll and tip? Why not just spray the topsides?"

Many boats are sprayed. The preferred method to apply AwlGrip is to spray it.
Most amateurs avoid it as they don't have the equipment or the skills to do it right.
Then there is the overspray problem mentioned by Ryan H.

[pesarsten]

Quite a few years ago I did topsides and hull on my sailboat. I used interlux interthane plus a two part poly. I was really pleased with the results,

Buy only the best 3 or 4 inch natural bristle brush, work in small segments to maintain a wet edge and when tipping your touch needs to be very light. You should only be using the last 1/16th inch of the brush.

For me tipping vertically gave me best results.

Pay attention to the instructions about temp and also beware of high humidity.

Good luck

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by GregSteimel

...... Those of you who succeeded, what percent worked for you? And what was the temp that day, give or take?

Can't help with thinner percentage but I found my best results were on cloudy windless days below 70 -75 F.

It seems wind and sun are your greatest enemies and then high temperatures.

[Old Snipe]

Originally Posted by misfits

I'm getting frustrated with my paint project

The areas on the deck look great, the hull is starting to piss me off.
I'm rolling vertically, tipping horizontally. The paint doesn't fully level out. I've added thinner to the paint.....

When doing a hull, should you roll horizontally & tip vertically to allow gravity to do it's thing? Does it make sense to leave the brush in thinner instead of paint for tipping to help things flow?

Thanks
Bob

I have used the EZPoxy II system on a quite few stink pots. You are right about the product being super easy to mix and put on. Apply the first coat a little on the thin side. Let the first coat set up overnight or even longer in cooler weather. When applying the second coat (make sure you have the roller loaded up). Chase the roller with a fine brush. The idea is to not remove any of the paint. If you applied the paint thick enough.......the bristle lines will start disappearing before your eyes.

This paint will krinkle up if you do not scuff the first coat with 180-200 sandpaper. I know this because I was too lazy to read the manufacturers instructions while doing my first boat.

[Old Snipe]

Originally Posted by HopCar

"A question? I have never painted a boat but I have painted a bunch of motorcycles and parts. Why all of the effort to roll and tip? Why not just spray the topsides?"

Many boats are sprayed. The preferred method to apply AwlGrip is to spray it.
Most amateurs avoid it as they don't have the equipment or the skills to do it right.
Then there is the overspray problem mentioned by Ryan H.

In my opinion, EZPoxy 2 doesn't like spray rigs or cup spraying. To spray from a cup gun, you need to thin it about 5:1 and the overspray can be pretty bad. To spray using a airless....you better have a strong pump with a big tip. I did top side a job on a Boston Whaler and the owner insisted that I spray. I think I went all the way up to a .023 tip and before I was satisfied how the paint was laying down. I was way outside of what the manufacturer recommended for thinning and spray tips. (typical)

I never liked thinning paint to excessively just to make it apply easier because it effects the long term durability of the product in my opinion.

[jcapo]

Many yards do not allow spraying at all.

I just brush vertically. That's the way the awlgrip Pros in south Florida do it. Anybody remember "Brushing Bruce"?

[Pirate999]

Good thread. I'm about to tackle this myself. I painted a 41' boat 15 years ago with interlux 2 part and had very good results rolling and tipping. On another boat, for just trim, I'm considering a one part and will most likely just roll it on.

[Blue Stocking]

Imron on Bluestocking. 2 person roll and tip. Roll horizontally 2 ft x 2 ft square, tip vertically with 4 " foam brush, flipped 180 every stroke. new one , paint - dipped, about every 100 sq ft. When tipped horizontally, light reflection (and dirt) is much more pronounced on finish strokes.

[chris95040]

Originally Posted by Wotname

Can't help with thinner percentage but I found my best results were on cloudy windless days below 70 -75 F.

It seems wind and sun are your greatest enemies and then high temperatures.

This is great advice. Using interlux perfection 2-part, I couldn't seem to get it right, tried thinning from 2.5% to 20%. Then the weather turned cloudy and cool and suddenly it was coming out great.

I think the paint really wants a certain (smallish) amount of thinner to flow right and if you try to make up for heat by adding thinner, it just doesn't level out in quite the same way, and the gloss will be compromised. Plus the solvent cooks out of the pot as time goes on.... plus all the differences in temperature from parts of the boat that had different exposure to the sun, different angles, etc, will make it impossible to get into a steady rhythm as yiu move along...

Give it a whirl when 65 degrees and cloudy.... If thats possible where you are.

[HappyMdRSailor]

I'm with everybody else here... Almost lost art in the age of mirror perfect consumer product finishes... As mentioned, HUGE enemies are:
1. Temp, above 75 forget it unless you're a PRO
2. Sunlight = NO
3. Humidity, bad

Your friends are:
1. The best rollers and brushes you can buy... badger off the net, not Lowes
2. Test panels with several thinned combinations... Wipe and retest until you have the right combo = 5x minimum
3. SMALL SECTIONS
4. Karma and luck...

[HappyMdRSailor]

Originally Posted by chris95040

This is great advice. Using interlux perfection 2-part, I couldn't seem to get it right, tried thinning from 2.5% to 20%. Then the weather turned cloudy and cool and suddenly it was coming out great.

I think the paint really wants a certain (smallish) amount of thinner to flow right and if you try to make up for heat by adding thinner, it just doesn't level out in quite the same way, and the gloss will be compromised. Plus the solvent cooks out of the pot as time goes on.... plus all the differences in temperature from parts of the boat that had different exposure to the sun, different angles, etc, will make it impossible to get into a steady rhythm as yiu move along...

Give it a whirl when 65 degrees and cloudy.... If thats possible where you are.

BRAVO!
Well said!