I was wondering what works well for painting h16 hulls? I have access to a high powered spray gun, but i'm not sure if you have to use some sort of marine paint or if i can buy auto paint? I would like something that is glossy. Somewhere i read there is a paint you can apply with a brush that will come out quite glossy. This would be nice for touch ups. Anyone heard anything about this?

I painted the Hulls on my 16 last winter and I used a marine paint made by interlux called toplac. This paint is marketed as a paint/lacguer combination all in one. It requires no mixing. it is a little pricey but it comes out nice and glossy and has been pretty scratch resistant overall. I was only able to find it in quarts and I used about a quart and a half per hull using an air sprayer.. It does go on smooth with a brush as well although I only reccomend brushing for touchups because if you apply the paint with a brush to the whole hull you will use twice as much and end up putting a lot of weight on the boat.(which was a concern of mine.) I put it through an air sprayer with no thinning at all and it covered really well. the only thing that could have been better would have been to use a gelcoat, in my opinion.. I have sailed this boat hard all summer and the only real obvious paint damage was to the bottoms of the hulls where I would drag it across the sand. Other than that it looks shiny and new as the day I painted it.. Another helpful tip is to wax the hulls real well using a good car wax after the paint has dried.. this will help it resist scratching even more. The painting of the hulls was the easy part the bitch of the whole thing was sanding both hulls. Good Luck on you project I hope it turns out well for you.

I just painted my H17 hulls about a month ago, I used interlux interthane plus. It is pricey, about $60 a quart. It is a two part paint.



I rolled it using a fine foam roller and it came out great! Very shinney. Not perfectly smooth but very close...like spray with heavy orange peel. I did not need a primer, I rolled it right onto the sanded gelcoat. It is very abrasion resistant but I did use white since the origional gelcoat is white, thatway if it chips it hopefully won't be so noticable. The only thing is I used white, I probably should have used off white.



The key is the prep work...I spent about 3 weeks of evenings preparing what I was painting. every blemish will show so take the time before you paint.



Also, get a good vapor mask.... the stuff really stinks!! ( I think that is what makes it good.. the worse it is the better it holds up)



I hope this helps!





P.S. I used 1 1/2 quarts on my 17, did not paint the boards.

i realize you asked about painting, i apologize and suggest that painting is...less desirable than a clean, polished hull that can be shiny, probably with less effort, especially over the long term. in my experience paint increases maintenance and decreases value relative to a clean polished hull, most racers would pass over a painted boat. multihulls are all about performance, smooth, clean, and light.

It's a '71 and the hulls are light blue on top and white on bottom. The blue on top looks horrid...white chalky substance on it and major fading. What would you recomend for cleaning it up without paint? I can deal with the color, i just can't stand the dullness of it.

catsail.com archives search "polish"

Wrinkle,

Hey now you have a classic, my boat is #11 from 1966. I have attached file after painting, forget the gelcoat (price out doing entire hulls).
The response from people to polish simply has not seen a hull of +30 years weathered, the other consideration is that racing or stess is out of the question.
A letter of Hobie president said do not do this for bow (hull failure may occur with tragic results). My boat is going for the cruising lifestyle of beach clubs and enjoyment, after all she has been named "the mother of all hobies" and why would you abuse or strain a mother.

Please go to TheBeachcats.com to files and look for historial hobies under surfergirl album, you will be shocked at her condition at purchase and now plus painting guide.

The posters did not take in consideration age, and appartant wear which once again a cost factor.

Mike

WOW! Great looking boat!! I think i will give that a try. Besides, if i put to much money into it, i probably won't want to sail it in fear of scratching it!

Reid
Lake Superior

Wrinkle,

The great thing about painting is that once the season is over, simply do a touchup. My restoration project included conversing with the old guys of California, in
which gelcoating was not use at all. It was bondo and paint, during the heyday, and it's those fixup's which i am employing. If I could assist in any way please email at Reidqa@hotmail.com

The forums seem to have forgot the old days in which the Hobie was meant for fun, relaxation and enjoyment, not as a upscale constant competition vessel. Our boats while number is dwindling is memories of days gone by.

I have attached pic of surfergirl upon purchase.

Mike

amazing. i guess with enough time and work almost any boat can be restored.

Dave,

You are right about time and painting, it's like a car if you paint it must cure.

The Holder Hobies I have found in design are more beautiful concerning hull design. I am surprised Hobie never launched
a limited production model based on old design (orginal). The old people have stated that after the era ended the designs took on a
marketing one, in which beauty tooke second place, why look at cars for an example.

The love of restoration is to the detail, and lloking forward to launching her after 25 years land locked.

Many Thanks

Mike

Hello,
I bought a 1984 Prindle 18 last year that had some very dated logos painted on the side. The hulls also had a fair amount of scratchs, etc. After wetsanding the logos off, the hulls almost looked worse, since the colors stained the gelcoat and the fact that the gelcoat hadn't faded under the paint. I decided to paint the hulls to cover over everything. I was worried about paint on the hull tops being slippery, so since they were in excellent condition, I only refinished the sides of the hulls. After using Epoxy and filler to repair the damaged areas, I sprayed on a two part epoxy primer. After wetsanding that, I sprayed Dupont Emron on. The finish is beautiful and has been very durable. Here are some photos of the transformation.

Original logo HANG your butt OVER.


Hulls mounted on boards for spraying.


On Turtle Island, western Lake Erie

Jack Hoying
Fort Loramie, Ohio

Jack,

Simply beautiful, hey maybe it's time for us restorers to have a forum. The added advantage is that we may save a few Hobies from the dismantling that
is ever ongoing (parting out).

How long did you let your paint sit to harden.

Mike