[Scott]

FellowShip sums it all up with the statement there is not a method that is better than the other.....I'm also between paint and Gel Coat after Jason’s success.....but there are lots of variables to doing it .... I want a colored hull, and of course not a stock color, I would think that gets a little tricky with Gel coat unless your going with a stock color ....to custom mix the gel coat to the same color for each batch/phase of the job seems like it would be challenging..I don’t want the hull to have five different shades of the same color ….. SO I should be simple and go white !!!! Paint ...you give the paint manufacturer a color swath of what you want and that’s what you get....

I've talked with someone about applying Gel coat and they said its best to be sprayed to get good results...or else your sanding the hull for awhile getting out the orange peel (spraying lays the gel coat on more evenly and not as bad an orange peel result) and bottom line when I asked about Rolling and Tipping gel coat I didn’t get the greatest of receptions…anyone tried to roll and tip Gel coat??? (i.e. you need a compressor and spray gun, you need to keep the spray gun clear and clean (I think I heard that from Jason) and I may be wrong but I seem to recall my buddy Brian saying , the gun isn’t your normal gun you pick up at the local tool warehouse variety, But then again the day I talked to him about this he had his head in a mold all morning [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] ) ….The nice thing is you sand, compound and buff till you get the desired finish….How much sanding …… depends on how well the Gel coat went on

EBEACH ...You’ve stirred my interest… is that $4 sprayer appropriate to spray an entire boat? .....
I've finally tried roll and tip paint(on a panel I'm not going to use anymore) and it works, but talk to me after I start doing some real big surfaces…..Ummm ….Fellow-Ship ….feel like coming up north for a few days [img]images/icons/wink.gif[/img] (I hope I get the same result on the hull!!!)

Gel coat will require maintenance.... Waxing and at some point compounding to keep up the lusted that is seen after its first applied ... the paints are said to be self maintaining (although I have seen a polishing product for use on Awlgrip finishes)

Repairing scratches and the sort....matching gel coat color is an art...guys around here get big bucks to fix chips in glass .... but the end result is flawless.....Paints (well some of them at least) are more easy to repair, sand and buff up to match the surrounding surfaces (so I've been told by several painters in my search for a finish) I have heard that some Awlgrip colors (and I would think this applies to all paints) can be difficult to match due to color lot changes....some colors match easier than others

The thing that really has my attention is that very few yards offer Gel coat and everyone offers paint...small repairs with gel coat are fine ...whole boats, at least where I've been, doesn’t seem to be an option....LOTS OF LABOR …..EQUAL BIG BIG BUCKS

The hull I might consider Gel coating ….... with the big flat surfaces and lots of power tools…. but getting the color I want has me concerned .... Truthfully I wouldn’t want to sand the inside of my boat to the degree of getting the mirror finish with all the corners and edges and planked deck etc etc……. talk about labor ….yikes !!!!!

Ok so now we need the GURU of GEL coating to speak…..OH TRAYDER !!!!!! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[ February 05, 2003, 01:17 PM: Message edited by: Scott ]