I've noticed some high performance boats these days are painting their daggerboards and rudders bright colors


Is there any reason on a beach cat to paint the blades other than it just looks cool?

my last boat had black gelcoat daggers and rudders, and my current boat has yellow gelcoat foils, and they do look cool.

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Philip
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I think in the picture you provided, the baby poo green color against the black provides nice contrast, so you can better see that the black hull is flying from a distance. Otherwise all the black would be washed out against the other blackness.

No matter how hard you try, that particular green will never make anything cooler, but that boat has coolness to spare.

i would NEVER sail a x-40 with pastel rudders! haha.. yea right.. i would give a toe or pinky to get on one of them cats!...

such nice boats. I'm repainting my boat this year with black hulls and orange/green rudders/dagger boats. Figured I didn't want shiny white hulls cos Im' bored of those...but I needed something moderately visible if I flip...hence the green and orange. Plus it just looks cool.

Black hulls may be harder to see in the water than white.. so if saftey is a concern.....

I would think that black hulls, although really nice, would start to look ratty after a while. The underlying color would show through with every scratch or ding.

D.

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Dave Bonin
1981 Nacra 5.2 "Lucile"
1986 Nacra 5.7 "Belle"
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
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They do look pretty cool though. I personally like this boat:

http://www.cathouse1.com/preowned/usedcat5.html

My main concern is how much black hulls would heat up at 12 noon under a tropical sun. We could probably make fried eggs. At least let the deck white.

Dan

OT; anyone having an idea why THE X40 turtled immediately? Did they not seal their mast properly?
watch

Dan

Catdan....I didn't say it was a good idea...just looks nice.
Generally things done in the name of fashion are ill-conceived.

I am currently "working over" the H21SE I bought this fall. I was thinking of painting the centerboards red to match the spin pole....so it would be black tramp and wings with white sails and hulls. I figure all of these boats are starting to look the same, might as well stand out a bit.

Wolfman

I would think that black hulls, although really nice, would start to look ratty after a while. The underlying color would show through with every scratch or ding.

D.

How are you going about painting your hulls? I'd like to paint mine black or dark gray, but the concerns the rest of the folks have brought up are valid. What's the best way to get a good looking paint job that is still tough enough for a beach cat?

I can see where the hi-vis yellow foils would help the black boat with being seen against the dark water. What about the VOR boats?

Catdan:
I'm a beginner, but it looks like physics worked to turtle them. With the exception of the one guy who did the superman leap into the sail, the other four remained on the hull. As soon as the mast went even a smidgeon into the water, the upper hull was over center & the weight of the 4 crew on the upper hull pulled it down. As it went further over this weight became more and more effective at assisting the capsize. Four men equals quite a bit of mass, if the sail/mast were free to rotate it would very quickly align to the point of least resistance, then the crew provides the leverage.
As stated, I'm new, this is only my theory.
Can all 4 of them right it again?

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Hobie 18 Magnum
Dart 15
Mystere 6.0XL Sold Was a handful solo
Nacra 5.7
Nacra 5.0
Bombardier Invitation (Now officially DEAD)
Various other Dock cluttering WaterCrap
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Can all 4 of them right it again?

Without knowing more, from a turtle I believe it's an impossibility, but even from a capsize with the mast floating I doubt they could.

It was not my intention to hijack the post, so back on topic; those boats are carefully lowered into the water using cranes, and new paint jobs applied frequently, as opposed to most of us dragging the cats over pebbles and sand, banging the hulls onto trailers, and doing paint jobs only after years of use, so you can't really compare them.

I'd love to hear from folks who did choose another color than white for their hulls. Do you frequently do some retouching, or being overly careful? Or is there a paint system that is highly scratch-resistant?


Dan

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What's the best way to get a good looking paint job that is still tough enough for a beach cat?

I had a white h16 that was painted blue (over the orig white hulls). every scratch was highlighted with a white outline! sucked!

then i had a light blue h18 (factory i think).. a little better but it was very faded.

There are 2 main methods (that i know of) to color your boat.

1 is a 2 part paint (Imron or similar) and require full oxygen respirators and paint booths as they are extremely toxic. There are new paints too that are extremely good and stay bright white for years with little more than a cleaning. The second method is to use colored gelcoat. Gelcoat and most of us know about gelcoat to a degree.. it will fade and become chalky with exposure.. but can last for many years with cleaning and careful not to scratch it.

Either can be used on cats.. and either can be colored.. There are people who go to great lengths to keep their cats scratch free.. they make Styrofoam hull cradles so the hulls NEVER touch sand, they use beach wheels and are very diligent ... however. i have NEVER seen black hulls that weren't scratched and faded.

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OT; anyone having an idea why THE X40 turtled immediately? Did they not seal their mast properly?

I think the mast MUST have leaked.. there is so much volume in that mast.... HOWEVER.. since i dont know much about x-40s.. it is possible they DONT even seal them as there is no way they can right that boat without a engine HP.

They did say there was strong gusts and having 4 or 5 guys on the top hull doesnt help.

My H21 hulls were painted by friends at the airport that build composite aircraft for those who don't want to build the planes themself. I did most of the prep work myself. It was painted with white imron, with the intentions of putting on some graphics from one of those car/boat wrap places. I haven't gotten around to doing the graphics yet. But the imron paint is easy to touch up if it gets scratched and still looks new 4 years later. As for colored centerboards and rudders.....Let us know how yours turn out. Maybe paint the cross beams and mast as well. I've seen posts on one of these sites where they use Ceram-kote, which is practically scratch resistant...maybe look into it if you are going to paint the hulls,rudders, and centerboards.

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Flightlead Bimare F18 HT SpaceCoast
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What type of prep was needed?
were the hulls stock gelcoat?
How much time did it take (prep)

PS if you still want graphics... i HIGHLY recommend http://www.wildergfx.com . The guy does gfx for many races and is a coastie.. i like supporting the guys who risk their lives to save us sailors :)

It looked like the hulls were painted before. I don't know if it was factory paint, but had the original stripes(purple and blue). I used a heat gun and scraper to take the vinyl laser striping off(be careful doing this) then used a DeWalt DA sander to take it down to the gelcoat, which was kind of a cream/beige color. The airport guys did the final prep, prime, and paint. Maybe those graphics guys can give some ideas on what I can do for the boat.

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Flightlead Bimare F18 HT SpaceCoast
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I bought my graphics from Wildergfx (at Andrew's good review). It was a great experience...and one day they will get on the boat!

flightlead

Maybe paint the cross beams and mast as well. I've seen posts on one of these sites where they use Ceram-kote, which is practically scratch resistant...maybe look into it if you are going to paint the hulls,rudders, and centerboards.

Haven't thought of this...I was wanting to freshen up my ride, but not necessarily get into the expense or time of redoing the hulls yet(they still clean up nice and bright). Anyone with experience or suggestions? Wonder what to do to the blades...hot pink? lol

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Haven't thought of this...I was wanting to freshen up my ride, but not necessarily get into the expense or time of redoing the hulls yet(they still clean up nice and bright). Anyone with experience or suggestions? Wonder what to do to the blades...hot pink? lol

well they claim vertaglass is da bomb to restore the hulls to original luster (sounds like a commercial).. and it looks easy to use.. if you want to really clean em up without new gelcoat.

I would re-do the rudders with white or black gel-coat (or heck pink if you want) but that should be an easy enough job.

please post pics when done! :)

I am not a professional detailer, only a hobbiest (sp?) that likes to tinker. This is just my own experience and what I have found to work for me based on advice from others that provided direction to me (it's called taking pity).

If your gelcoat is already oxidized (chalky looking, flat) and in poor condition, but you still have plenty of thickness left, then there is still life left in it.

Wet sand with 1000 grit first....then move up to 1500 grit. You will be surprised at how "new" it ends up looking just after wet sanding alone.

Don't stop there. You can get it to really look good if you put some more effort into it.

3M Finess-It II (compound and polish):
Use a compound after your 1500 grit, with a power polisher. I used an old Porter Cable polisher which I bought from craigslist for $25. The motor didn't run and I just changed the brushes in it for $6 and lubricated the bearings with all-purpose grease...good as new. Don't get carried away, you don't want to remove too much material! I used a foam polishing pad for this. Don't work an area too much and work it in a winding pattern (down, move to the right a little, up, move to the right a little, down). Then alternate with left to right (again, left, move down a little, then right, move down a little, then left).

Then use a polishing paste to really bring out the shine. Same pattern as before, using a wool pad this time.

Wipe off your compounds and polish with microfiber cloth. You can buy them cheap enough in packs from your auto-supply store and then work REALLY well at removing the residue with little effort. You can throw them in the wash (behind your wife's back) when your done and reuse.

Lastly, wax the hull and do it every year so you keep that wonderful shine going.

On a small boat, like a beach cat, you can do all this in one weekend. It IS still a complete PITA, but some people enjoy the rewards. I have to say, I love the fact I don't have to worry about how my cat looks...I bought an old boat and I sail it as is. :)

After cutting into your gelcoat your going to have to wax it every year or it will quickly deteriorate. You remove some of the durability when you start cutting into it, but what option do you have since it's already oxidized.


Dan

On Edit: This is in response to using "vertaglass" in the post above :)



edited by: DaC, Dec 29, 2009 - 04:42 PM