Painted boats: to buy or not to buy?

That is the question. I know some high-end boats like Hatteras come that way from the factory, but I'm curious about boats that started life as gel coat and were later painted for whatever reason. I worry about obligating myself to a future major expense when it would inevitably need re-painting. Also, I'm not sure of how much abuse Awlgrip or the like can take vs gel coat. So my inclination is to look for well-maintained gel coat and try to keep it that way. But I'd like to know what others think. Would paint be a deal- breaker?

Not for me, the two part epoxy paints are as tough or tougher than gel coat, and many high end builder offer this as an option. On older boats, the before painting prep is the key to a first class job. Look very close at the details, as was the teak trim removed before painting or just taped off, dings filled and faired , etc.

Greetings,
Mr. 99. We are currently in the process of a re-paint. Reason? Checkered gelcoat, removal of numerous redundant fasteners/clips/mounts with resultant patches and a general clean-up (make her look purty). I can appreciate the anticipated large expense you suggest but for me paint is not a deal breaker. Over the years, gelcoat will become nicked and scratched and need SOME sort of repair so unless one does the repair perfectly any "new" gelcoat will be visible.
I guess it all depends on your level of acceptance. Do you want a 10' boat or a 75' boat? (looks good from 10' away or 75' away)?
Don't forget, Awlgrip can be waxed as well.

A recently painted later model (since Katrina) boat is a little bit of a red flag to me.
A properly prepared and painted hull is not a problem in itself (unless it`s dark blue )

As my boat is approaching 10 years old, I have decided to paint the black hull to bring it back to its new luster. You can only polish gelcoat so many times. It will be repainted the same color because I like it. Here is the paint that I plan to have applied.

Alexseal Yacht Coatings: Yacht Paint, Primers & Fillers for the Marine Environment | Alexseal Yacht Coatings

It can be waxed and even touched up unlike Imron or Awlgrip.

We are fortunate on this forum to have some great professional resources. Because he is in South Florida, and is affiliated with a large reputable yacht yard (Bradford Yachts). I asked Tucker Fallon (Yachtbrokerguy) about this paint. He was kind enough to ask their paint guy who has been with the yard 30 years. He gives a big thumbs up to this paint. Thanks Tucker.

If you can find the boat you want that has gel-coat, that you know is in good condition and was not just waxed, great, but boats that are 20 years old or so, typically, the gel-coat has oxidized to the point to warrant painting or there are scratches, dings and visible repairs.

Hobo was gel-coat and then painted. When we bought her, the paint was six years old. We repainted her in 2013 after 12 years with Awlcraft 2000. We could have gone longer but we were in the place to get it done. It's not as hard as gel-coat, but easy to repair. We should get another 12 years or so and the way I look at it, the new owners will be repainting it next time.

I prefere paint

I am currently working on a thirty foot sail boat with stunning fresh black gelcoat, I'm in the process replacing the deck wood and some of the interior. A crew of three spent four weeks full time stripping and applying new gelcoat to the hull. This is a fairly small boat. More time was spent finish sanding and buffing than stripping and application of gelcoat.
My boat has a 9 year old Sterling paint job that still looks wet . It has never had a buffer or wax applied. I expect at least another 10 years out of the paint.
That black gelcoat will need buffing at least once a year, and wax at least twice to remain looking nice. On a thirty foot sailboat, a chore, but not the ordeal of buffing and waxing a 50' boat.
If your maintaining your own boat, can you imagine how many hours it would take to buff and wax a 50' trawler.
High quality paint is wash and wear.

That looks really, really nice Larry!

Jim, Sent from my iPad using Trawler

Scary said:

...High quality paint is wash and wear.

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Pretty much what we have experienced.

However, on the last paint, which was Awlgrip, we did apply Awlcare after 9 years. We did notice the benefit at the boot stripe (blue), stern from the engine exhaust and where the AC discharge splashes against the hull. The Awlcare made cleaning these areas much easier.

http://www.awlgrip.com/products/maintenance/awlcare.aspx

JDCAVE said:

That looks really, really nice Larry!

Jim, Sent from my iPad using Trawler

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Thanks!

++ for Sterling. See posts in the archives

angus99 said:

That is the question. I know some high-end boats like Hatteras come that way from the factory, but I'm curious about boats that started life as gel coat and were later painted for whatever reason. I worry about obligating myself to a future major expense when it would inevitably need re-painting. Also, I'm not sure of how much abuse Awlgrip or the like can take vs gel coat. So my inclination is to look for well-maintained gel coat and try to keep it that way. But I'd like to know what others think. Would paint be a deal- breaker?

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Not a deal breaker for me. My neighbor has an old gulfstar he painted with awl grip 10 years ago and she looks better than all of the gel coated boats on the dock. Made me actually paint mine but I went with Alex seal. Paint is much easier to keep looking good.

Via iPad using Trawler

I had an Albin 25 for 6 years and for the first 5 didn't know it was painted. Found out when I asked a detailler to buff my topsides. I told him I wanted to protect my gelcoat. As soon as he told me it was paint I could see it right away. I'd giv'in it 5 years of normal cruising semi-abuse and it looked great but I had the boat out of the water and ....... . I felt foolish of course but I'd sure like to know what that paint was. Probably a 2 part Polly. Anyway it showed me how great paint can be.

the boat we hav enow is Awlgriped. the previous boats were gelcoat. the Awlgrip is sooooooooooooo much easier to clean..........

Thanks for the perspective. All my boats have been gel coat so it's good to know how many of you are happy with paint. I won't rule out a painted boat automatically. (Larry, the Awlgrip looks terrific.)

As stated earlier if applied correctly ( fittings removed not taped) you can't go wrong.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Trawler

I've been giving some thought to painting our Tug lately and have been doing a fair bit of reading etc. now I just need to find the right outfit to do the job. Any suggestions???

jukesy,

No city or even state under your avatar so no idea.

angus99 said:

Thanks for the perspective. All my boats have been gel coat so it's good to know how many of you are happy with paint. I won't rule out a painted boat automatically. (Larry, the Awlgrip looks terrific.)

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Correct conclusion there, for sure. The gelcoat on our Lotus had been repainted once at least, by a PO himself I suspect, and after several years was not looking good. We took the plunge and for $7000, had it done again professionally, taken right back and two-paced with International (Interlux) Perfection, and the finish is absolutely brilliant. It will definitely have added to the resale…in fact, as others have mentioned, it is regarded by the professionals that a good two-pack paint is superior to gelcoat, and some new boats are finished this way on purpose.

Here is a shot 3 yrs down the track from the hull repaint, (just washed - never polished yet), and we went with black new Micron Extra anti foul this time, rather than blue.

I've got to admit to a bit of paint envy seeing these photos of glossy painted hulls. My 45 year old gel is still in great shape thanks to being boathouse kept its whole life but doesn't hold a candle to these painted finishes.

I had better stay away from this thread as all this boat porn is giving me expensive ideas.

You can buff paint, and gelcoat, but paint is thin, keep the gelcoat for as long as it responds to renovating techniques.
The first paint job is usually the worst in terms of effort and cost, because the surface needs filling and sanding all over before painting, needs lots of labour.
Last haulout I had the topsides buff polished, well worth doing. 2 years back I had some painting done, mainly inside the bulwarks all round and the FB supports inside and out, and noticed the comparative dullness of the paint on the cabin sides. I took to it by hand, using 3M gelcoat restoring polish on the more exposed oxidized parts. They either had to come good or be repainted,fortunately they came good, that 2 pack paint is tough stuff.

Paint is the superior finish for the top quality boats , for decades..

Used to re-coat crapped gel coat it is a fine improvement.

Used to cover huge repairs and an acre of Bondo , not so good .

Paint sells the boat , but CAVIAT EMPTOR , as it can cover many sins.

A tuning fork can let you know the areas of different density , to seperiate the patch jobs from the rest.

CPseudonym said:

I've got to admit to a bit of paint envy seeing these photos of glossy painted hulls. My 45 year old gel is still in great shape thanks to being boathouse kept its whole life but doesn't hold a candle to these painted finishes.

I had better stay away from this thread as all this boat porn is giving me expensive ideas.

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A good paint job actually protects an aged gelcoat hull that's not been diligently cared for over time. The hull is the easiest part to wax and care for. But the super structure is where it becomes a pain in the butt to deal with. As far as durability, well the key is the prepwork for a LONGER lasting paint job. The paint will only be as good as the surface that its applied to.

When you bite the bullet and go paint, check the previous jobs that the painter has done. And by all means accept that a quality job is not cheap. Heck some jobs sadly cost more than the value of some boats. That's just the nature of the foolish pleasure.

Not mine, but a good example of a first class job. Not only is the paint a lot of work, but this particular hull required thousands of man hours to shape the continuous curves and shape long before the topcoat when on to allow the paint to show properly.


So the moral to the story is that the paint is only as good as your hull. Some of the orient hulls lacks the surface ready for paint either, and will require many dollars of prep work which is sometimes hard to swallow.

Well I would LOVE to repaint my boat. She's 25 this year and showing some wear. I just can't justify the cost. I can buy a ton of Diesel, a warehouse full of parts and stay in a bunch of marinas if I want for the cost of a repaint. I plan on having this boat a long time and I'm really don't care about impressing the Joneses with a nice shiny boat. I'll save my cash for cruising.

I like the 2 part paint but it's not perfect. Two parts on vertical services are great but on horizontal surfaces, if water collects and stands for any length of time, the paint will blister and bubble. If you have a cooler on the deck or carpets, seat cushions that traps water, you'll have the same issues. There's a reason why 2 parts are not used below the water line. Gel-coat or 2 part paints, both have their place, IMHO.

Larry M said:

I like the 2 part paint but it's not perfect. Two parts on vertical services are great but on horizontal surfaces, if water collects and stands for any length of time, the paint will blister and bubble. If you have a cooler on the deck or carpets, seat cushions that traps water, you'll have the same issues. There's a reason why 2 parts are not used below the water line. Gel-coat or 2 part paints, both have their place, IMHO.

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Larry, I was trying to PM you, but your mailbox is full. If you have another way of receiving messages and a few minutes on your hands, pls PM me. Thanks!

angus99 said:

Larry, I was trying to PM you, but your mailbox is full. If you have another way of receiving messages and a few minutes on your hands, pls PM me. Thanks!

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Sorry. It's fixed.

Greetings,
Mr. k. I fully appreciate your reasoning for not painting your vessel. More $$ for cruising. In our case, there were so many gelcoat checks, redundant/corroding/degraded fittings, aftermarket add-ons and nicks and gouges that to leave things as they were would have compromised the underlying structure due to leakage. We're going with Alexseal by the way.

The biggest part of taking care of a boat is , well, taking care of it. I have seen many FRP vessels that are lovingly waxed and or boat house kept that look terrific after 3 or 4 decades. Our vessel, stored outside, is now 11 years old and shines as if new, but requires topside waxing twice per year and hull every spring.

If one purchases an older vessel that has not been well cared for regarding exterior, Sterling, Imron, Awlgrip, Alexseal etc can indeed be applied. But the price can be staggering so get your wallet out. Thirty years ago I had a Trojan 36 woodie that was Awlgripped. Prep and paint labor hours were about 200 so plan accordingly. When looking at top notch painting costs, the price advantage of frequent waxing becomes obvious.

Or as Dashew does with his FPBs, leave them Unpainted Al. His well heeled customers wear the rugged Al look as a badge of pride. Just like Birkenstocks or pre washed new pricey jeans!

RTF, I agree there are times that it needs to be done as in your case, like I said I would love to have mine done also. I have a couple of spots that the gel coat doesn't quite match. PO used to pingpong off pilings until he hired someone to run his boat.

sunchaser said:

Thirty years ago I had a Trojan 36 woodie that was Awlgripped. Prep and paint labor hours were about 200 so plan accordingly. When looking at top notch painting costs, the price advantage of frequent waxing becomes obvious.

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200 what?!? [as he braces for the answer]

Edit: Never mind, I was thinking dollars, or some multiple thereof, and you clearly stated hours. Heading back to the coffee pot.