Need advice on painting the splash guard (Coaming)

Fred P

Member
What type of paint should I use to paint the coaming on a '79 'fish? The present coaming is a teal color but it has a lot of wear on the top and the paint, or whatever it was originally, is worn off. Thanks for your help.

Fred
 
Fred,
I have used Plasti-kote/Duplicolor with so-so results. It seem that sun block and sun tan lotions have a tendency to soften the paint and then it rubs off. Rustoleum seems to do a much better job. Make shure you clean the splashguard completely, do a light sanding to remove any gloss. and a final wipe down with lacquer thinner or acetone before you paint. If you can unscrew the splashguard (older boats) it will save you from having to mask of the rest of the boat.
 
Hi Fred,

One of my Fish is a "79 that originally had safety orange stripes and splash guard. Not being a great fan of a boat that looked more at home in a Cone Zone than on the water I decided to change colors.

The splash guard color is gelcoat just like the the rest of the boat. Since gelcoat is pigmented polyester resin (fiberglass resin) I decided to use paint made for that surface. What I chose was a one-part polyurethane topside paint made for marine use called EasyPoxy.

I figured it would last a couple of years and I'd have to redo it. That was twelve years ago. Still looks pretty much the same today as it did when I applied it. I was and still am pleased and amazed.

Most marine suppliers carry EasyPoxy. It's made by Pettit Marine Paints:

http://www.pettitpaint.com/products2.asp?Productid=23&Catid=2&SubCatid=4

One last comment.... this is a "self leveling" paint. That is to say, it smooths out as it drys. I followed the manufacturer's guidelines for preparation and application using the small roller and tipping with a brush method. The end result looks like a professional spray job.

I let the new paint set up in my garage for 24 hrs. then let it bake in the sun for a week. It's been tough as nails and resisted all sorts of bug repellant, sunscreen, and hull waxes, polishes, & lubes over these many years.
 
Hi Fred,

I used gel-coat to cover the fix I made to a severely damaged splash guard and got an "ok" result, so I think an epoxy paint like Wayne used would be a better/easyer solution. But here is an FYI for you: If the splash guard has any big hair-line stress crack and you paint/epoxy/gel-coat over them, they WILL reappear when the fracture is stressed again. Unfortunately I know this from experience!

If you are truly psychotic about this kind of thing (as I am), you can grind out the cracks in the old gel-coat with a dremel tool and fill with thickened epoxy and sand smooth, AND them paint/epoxy/gel-coat over.

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.

Ken Park
 
I think I will go with Wayne's suggestion. Easypoxy makes a teal paint and it may match the existing color. I will let you all know how it turns out when I get to it. Thanks everybody for your help.

Fred
 

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