painting grp

[andyg]

hi guys, we have been looking at buying a boat for some months now, and two have come up that we are very keen on. one is royall velvet but to be honest its the huge amount of orange that is putting us off. the boat itself is in fantastic condition, I haven't spoken to the royalls but I think the boat was moulded that colour. I would want to paint all, well most of it out. is this advisable ? to be fair she is at the top end of what we want to spend,so wouldn't the cost of having to re paint every couple of years.the other boat is san evita which I think has been painted green, ( im sure clive will put me right on that  ) anyway just wanted some advise on painting gel coat.. thanks andy

[VetChugger]

With a boat of that standard Andy and Royall's reputation for maintaining I think I could likely stomach all that orange!

 

I suspect most folks view will be only paint grp in desperate circumstances. It might be a bit more forgiving inside the boat but I'd get hypnotherapy to convince me of the merits of orange!

 

I've hired from Royalls so understand the amount of orange you are referring to! If I had the wherewithall (brass!) I'd buy a Royalls boat yesterday!

 

Trevor

[Guest]

I suspect most folks view will be only paint grp in desperate circumstances.

 

Trevor's words are exactly the ones that I would have used !

 

I can sympathize with your dislike of orange ( a ghastly colour for a boat ),  but painting does become an all too regular task on a GRP boat once the gelcoat is painted over.

 

I would probably give the orange one a miss, rather than having to hide the colour with an inferior surface coating.

 

I used to have a 30ft ex-hire boat, and painted it twice, costing hundreds of pounds, even though it was my own DIY labour. The cost of the slipping and then the large quantities of marine quality paint is a big overhead on running costs.

 

I'm back with original gelcoat now, and the annual jetwash and polish (without needing to slip), is a cheap single day's work each Spring.

 

The much maligned Tupperware, the prefect material for boats, for those that want to spend their time and money enjoying them, rather than continually maintaining them...  

[Oddfellow]

Only paint GRP if it's in poor condition.

 

The finish is designed to last for years and with careful cleaning and polishing, will look good for years.

 

Paint will look good for many, many, many fewer years, is not at all durable in comparison and will need far greater attention.

[andyg]

Thanks for the replys and advise, have to say they were my thoughts on the orange. I could live with the decks and the strips on superstructure. But I would have to paint the front and rear wells and seeing they are probably the most used parts of the decks I feared this would end up being an annual job such a shame as she really is it tip top condition and I would want her kept like that. Back to the drawing board, oh and my comments area personal opinions and in no way a criticism of royalls boat yard..

[C.Ricko]

Buy the green one and paint it.

Or just leave it green as it is a fantastic shade of green.

[andyg]

Lol Clive... spoke to Paul this morn I should be up next week.. can I have a build shed tour as part of the poss deal wink wink ??

[C.Ricko]

If I am about and available I would be pleased to show you about, just tell Paul to get me

..

[andyg]

Thanks Clive, it was ment a bit tounge in cheek.. But if you have the time, that would be great. Look forward to it. andy