Painting a 12' aluminum boat

[iliketrout]

I want to paint my old 12' aluminum boat. The guy who had it before me painted it a shade of blue similar to THIS. Ughh, horrible color but the price was right!

And yeah, I know it's just a 12' aluminum for messing around in, but I still would like to give it a bit of TLC.

So...has anyone painted their aluminum boat in their garage? I'm looking to not spend much on it but have something half decent to come out of it.

I'm going to flip it, sand it, and dig-out and re-fill the crap that was used to seal a very small, slow leak.

So my questions to those of you who may have done this before:

1) What kind of rubber/epoxy works best for filling a small leak?
2) What kind of primer?
3) What kind of spray paint?

Thanks!

[deer crazy]

jb weld works great for fixing a small leak and it looks good to

[great white whaler]

1.100%clear silicone,works good on leaks 2.etch primer' followed with epoxy primer. 3. marine paint at canadian tire,,,,.paint it before you silicone the leak.

[Mhunter51]

If you do a search in the forums here there was one done last summer/fall with lots of pics and a really good description of what he did. I think ( not 100% sure ) that it was Walleyes on this forum. He did a really nice job of redoing a family fishing boat with lots of pics as he went along. Great for someone to follow.

[FishingFrenzy]

http://www.tinboats.net

Check it out! Love the site. Its all about modding and fixing up "tin" boats. There is a forum section where you can find all kinds of info anything you want to do to the boat.

Hope that helps!
Tight lines!

[iliketrout]

Thnaks for the quick replies, guys.

I just found the thread mhunter mentioned, here: http://www.outdoorsmenforum.ca/showthread.php?t=54340&highlight=paint

Unfortunately the links to the pics don't work anymore.

I will have to decide if I want to use many cans of spray, or buy a cheap sprayer like this: http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/browse/3/HouseHome/PaintStains/PaintingToolsAccessories/PRD~0490367P/Wagner%252BMulti-Sprayer.jsp?locale=en.

fishingfrenzy, thanks for the link to the website, I'll check it out.

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

Use trimclad for outside color then 3 or 4 layers of marine Gel coat . Thats what I did with our old boat paint job more sturdy then the boat , sadly that boat is now some fine structure at the bottom of a lake .

I was just thinking today Since im in the spirit of camo paint jobs , im gonna repaint my alluminum this spring and sell it .

x 2 on the JB weld on the leak then a bead of clear silicone over top it will never leak again

[827rotax]

I used fiberglass mat and resin for my boat where the keel was totally worn through and leaking very bad, 5th season and still going strong.

[Erik]

Check out Industrial Paint and Plastics for paint. IMO they are the best for selection of marine paints in this neck of the woods.

http://www.ippnet.com/locations.html

[npauls]

You could always use a roll on truck bed liner for the interior. It will help seal up the boat and make for a less slippery footing if you do get water inside while you are out fishing. For the outside you could try the epoxy guys use to coat the bottoms of their drift boats. Super tough and will also help seal it all up. I think it is black in color.

[Ken07AOVette]

I did a duck boat last fall, just used tremclad or similar from home depot. Mine was nothing like Walleyes but it turned out great.

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/KbxSrx/100_5492.jpg

It was easy, paint held well. All I did was sand the entire thing with a palm sander, then wipe it all done with acetone.

I left the ugly blue on the very bottom, because it is under water anyway.

[great white whaler]

I did a duck boat last fall, just used tremclad or similar from home depot. Mine was nothing like Walleyes but it turned out great.

http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb267/KbxSrx/100_5492.jpg

It was easy, paint held well. All I did was sand the entire thing with a palm sander, then wipe it all done with acetone.

I left the ugly blue on the very bottom, because it is under water anyway.

Where is this boat''' i don't see it,,,all i see is trees and grass.

[Freedom55]

Use aluminium oxide primer. A small boat that I painted 10 years ago sat in the sun in buddie's yard for that time and all the paint faded away leaving the yellow primer showing. A quick scuff with 220 grit and a new splash of red and voila. Guppyshark, with teeth.
As for the suggestion to use a box liner for the inside, I would consider the hot sun on a black floor as being a little tough on the cooling system.

[iliketrout]

Had a buddy who works as an auto-body guy and he sprayed the entire interior of the boat in black box liner. It's great for grip, but extremely hot in the summer. It did a nice job of waterproofing too. Not sure if they make other colors but grey would be a nice way to go. I don't think I'll be doing the inside though, it's still in good shape.

Although doing it at the leak locally would be an option.

BTW, nice job Ken! I was considering doing camo...I think for now I'll lay a dark green or olive base and see how it turns out. Did you use the stencils or did you free-hand the reeds?

Stay tuned guys, the wife's car gets kicked out of the garage in a couple of weeks and then it's time to get to work.

[Ken07AOVette]

I used stencils, the free hand did not work

[npauls]

I am pretty sure you can get the box liner stuff in any color. Black is just the most common but I have seen it in colors to match the truck its on.

[Hevishot]

You can buy Pro Form box liner spray which is probably a great cheap option. Check NAPA (cmax) or any other body shop supplier.You can tint it whatever color you wish. We have done a couple land cruisers with it tinted red and they came out great.