painting the sides of my drift boat

Hi Guys

Im starting back on my build of a Don Hill 16' drift boat I'm thinking of painting the sides black since Im not liking the color after i had applied West systems Epoxy on them I think it would be an perfect contrast with the natural look of the wooden ribs and battens since it has a golden honey look to them after sealing them with West Systems epoxy. So my question is what type of paint I'm thinking of a two part polyurethane like Epifanes but can i use a topside paint since i won't have it in the water but maybe a couple of times a year or can below the water have just as good of color and shine as above paint will 

any help here is appreciated

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Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on March 29, 2017 at 10:09am

The paint on the sides will be as good as any varnish on the sides. The bottom wont need anything if you did the black graphite. Alot of guys will paint the sides and leave the chine cap natural, has a nice trim look, or paint it too

Permalink Reply by James Prepura on March 29, 2017 at 2:46pm
Thanks Mike
Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on March 29, 2017 at 3:48pm

The nice thing about painting the sides is you can prime them, use fairing compound and make them look pretty nice. Dont really have that luxury with varnish. I was gonna paint mine, but it looked kinda pretty clear so I just used varnish. Someday though, it might get painted, but I would have to leave the top rail and the chine cap natural  ;)

Permalink Reply by Eric Loudenslager on March 29, 2017 at 7:30pm
The single-part alkyd marine enamels are sufficient for a drift boat, no need for a two-part LPU. Even latex exterior paint would work fine, but would need to be redone sooner than a single part topside paint.

Easypoxy and Brightsides are a couple of the choices. Check Jamestown Distributors.

The two part paints are harder, and glossier, but repair is a challenge.

The darker the paint, and the glossier, the more imperfections will show.

Depending on how much time you want to put in - the sequence on hull that has been epoxied would be fairing, then priming, then paint. Some paint does not work well over epoxy. Each brand is a bit different. From what I understand, there are chemical compounds in the epoxy that keep the paint from properly drying. Most of the paint companies make epoxy fairing compounds, those would be used to create a smooth surface. Then use the primer recommended by the paint manufacturer.

On my boat I used system 3 epoxy, then system 3 fairing compound and yacht primer, then Pettit Easypoxy. No compatibility problems.

Good luck.
Permalink Reply by James Prepura on March 29, 2017 at 9:27pm

thank for the info I'll start working on finding the faring compound and primer. I guess my best bet is to contact West systems and the paint supplier directly and fine the best compatible solution 

Thanks again for the input.

Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on April 3, 2017 at 4:22pm
James,
I am not a big fan of the color black on a wooden boat. It'll get or draw heat from that big Orange ball that comes up each morning. Continued exposure isn't what you want. There are some nice off white colors that will look good against the natural wood. Just my $.02 worth.
Looking forward to following your build, my first DB is the Double Ender too.
Dorf
Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on April 5, 2017 at 1:19pm

Ya, I get it about black, but just on the outside, the biggest draw back is making black look nice and fair ( but really no worse than just varnish). I will say Ive seen a few back boats and they always look great. Ya know, and I know now that when you get old your kinda set in your ways, and Dorf is older than me so.....just saying,lol :)

Permalink Reply by James Prepura on April 5, 2017 at 1:44pm

HI mike

is yours painted on the outside  I see its a much darker color than the inside also is that the boat launch at Green Cottage on the P.M.

but anyway thats what I'm looking for is that contrast of the boat in the picture 

Permalink Reply by Mike Thomas on April 5, 2017 at 6:00pm

Thats not my boat but its pretty. Mine is just varnish. Maybe one day I`ll paint the outisde though, or build a different boat. That was at Burnt Cabin access on the Manistee Grayling I think.(near the CCC bridge) That boat/guy is a member on here but I`m not sure who it is, heres another pic.

Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on April 6, 2017 at 6:17pm

Mike,

The boat in the photo above is Mike Rosso's.  He'e been a contributor here in past years.  He's from Royal Oak. It's a beautiful boat.  I stole some of his ideas in building mine.  I am not too sure he posted it's build here but has a posting on his trailer build.  His boat is painted a pretty Navy Blue.

Dorf

Permalink Reply by Michael Rosso on April 7, 2017 at 12:50pm

Hey Phil!

It's been too long.  The boat looks amazing!  Nice idea making that transom wider on the bottom.  I'll bet it made installing those stringers easier..

I got your message yesterday and I'm going to try my hardest to meet up with you guys this May.  My wife and I are actually moving up to Traverse City at some point this summer so with a little luck it should be a little easier to hook up with my fellow 'drifters'.

I'll for sure let you know about May.

Mike

Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on April 7, 2017 at 1:35pm

Mike,

Mike Thomas is the guy who was following you around that day last summer.  He also lives in TC.  He and I have met on this site and made a couple of floats together this past year.  Looking forward to more this spring/summer.

Take care,

Phil w

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