Windows and Priming

Spent most of the week deliberating on whether to remove the existing windows or not.  If I removed them, I would have also looked into powder coating them black to match the new windows.  I was able to remove all of the bolts that hold the window in place, but the frame seems to be adhered to the boat pretty well.  I had visions of bending the frame and creating another problem.   Even thought others had removed theirs successfully, I decided to leave them in and work around them.

Here is a shot of the existing windows. I removed all of the caulk, or whatever that red bedding is.  The front runner for resealing/rebedding the glass is Dow 795 silicon sealant in a black color.

I am going to spray a self etching primer to prep the aluminum and then paint the frames a satin black.  This is the same color I used to paint the cabin top hatches.  I think they will match pretty well with my new windows on the raised cabin roof.   This will get done once the fiberglass, around it, is painted.

Speaking of which, I place a 2-part primer on this part of the boat today.  I have 2 quarts of the snow white left over, so I am going to use that for the first coat and then follow up with the oyster white.

After I applied the primer kote, I filled in all of the pin holes with the Interlux putty.   Mothers Day is tomorrow, so not sure if I will get much done.  Need to take some more time off of work!











BTW,  Interlux Perfection does not like moisture, so cover up your work if a dew is expected.  This happened to me after the paint had cured for about 6 hours.  The dew flattened the gloss to a dull finish.

The stainless steel arch is supposed to be done next week, so stay tuned!

Passes the 5 Foot Test

Since I was having issues with brush marks, I opted to use the roll/roll method.  I have put down 3 coats on the raised cabin and part of the extended stern in preparation for the boat arch.  Its a toss up.  When I used the roll / tip method, I think I got a smoother finish, but with slight brush marks.  With the roll / roll method I got a slight texture, but no brush marks.  I think for the raised cabin, I am going to live with it.  As the title says, it passes the 5 foot test (looks good from 5 feet away).  I want to put one more coat of paint on the raised cabin and then I will install the windows and hatches.  I will experiment one more time with the brush on the next level down.  I really want the topsides to look better than the results I am getting now.

I took these photos a little late in the day.

This shot is to show the tarp I added to shield the sun to allow the paint to cure a little slower and have a better chance to level out.

Five Foot Test?

The original cabin roof will get a coat of non-skid.










Decided to tackle another project, while the paint dries.  I started building the chase for the electrical and motor control cables.

I tabbed two pieces of wood to the fiberglass since there is no other way to fasten it.  Then added a piece of 1/2" plywood.

Here is the strip of wood tabbed to the fiberglass.   You can see the patch job of the holes I filled in the gunwale.

This will all get covered with a thin piece of material from the top to bottom and ultimately covered with foam backed vinyl.

Another view looking straight on.

This shot shows after I added a second piece of plywood "floor".   This will all get boxed in.  I just want to be able to easily remove to get access as necessary.

Right now, it houses the two steering cables, 4 outboard throttle/gear cables, and 2 outboard cables for the electric starter.
I will also need to accommodate 2 battery cables and some small gauge wires for stern light, etc.  The existing small chase is still usable for the smaller wires.


Oh almost forgot.  I ordered 4 more quarts of Interlux Perfection.  I was shocked when the paint arrived as the color was Oyster White, not Snow White.  Evidently I checked the wrong box, when I placed the order on-line.  What is ironic, is that I had been contemplating changing the color, because the Snow White, was just too glaring.  Possibly a sub-conscience thing.  I used it for the last 3 coats, and I like it!  You really have to put the two colors side by side to tell the difference.  Three day weekend coming up.  Hope to keep making progress.

Interlux Perfection is Kicking my....

I am not getting good results with Interlux Perfection.  I am using a pretty decent brush (Corona, but not badger hair) with mixed results, none of which are stellar.  I have read were some have had good success with just rolling and no tipping.  This is done with a very thin coat and a high density foam roller, which is what I have been using.  One thing I have not been doing is wiping down the surface with a solvent and I have also been applying in direct sunlight.  My next go round, I am going to do that differently and see what happens.  I really need to perfect this before I move on to the topsides!

Here is a picture of my 2 port holes that I removed to clean up and in preparation for painting.

I wish I had taken a "before" picture.  This is the side that was protected from the elements, but they definitely needed a good cleaning.

This is what I used to clean them up.  I think the port holes are actually chrome plated and not stainless, but this did the job.

Unfortunately, these are the outside part of the frames that were exposed to the elements and could not be revived.

I will look into the cost to chrome plate them.

While I was at it, I decided to clean up the stanchions. This picture is with the cleaner on.

Here is the steering wheel I just bought on ebay.  I decided to take it apart and clean as well.  The teak accents will get varnish when I get around to that part of the job.

First Coat of Interlux Perfection

Yesterday, I applied my first coat of Interlux Perfection (Snow White).  This was my first time using the 2-Part paint.  The paint delivers a high gloss finish, but I decided that I did not want to draw attention to any imperfections, so I mixed it with the flattening agent at 1:1.   This ratio is supposed to result in a semi-gloss finish.

I think this ratio thinned the paint out as the coverage was fairly transparent.  Looks like it will take 3 coats.  I used the roll and tip method using a high density roller.  Not sure if I am pleased with the brush marks, I "think" I see, but again it is hard to tell given the transparency of the paint.

Not much to see in the pictures, but wanted to show my progress.  This is after sanding in preparation for the second coat.  I think I am going to cut the flattening agent in half on the next coat to get better coverage.  I will apply the non-skid on the third coat.  It was overcast this weekend, so I can't really gauge the gloss factor.  I can adjust on the 3rd coat.

The 3 lids for the stern extension.  I think I will be happy with these, once I put the non-skid coat.

By the way, I keep forgetting to mention that if you click on the pictures, you will be able to see them better.

I am happy with the "join" to the stern. It is pretty seamless.  I had some extra paint, so I extended into the cockpit.

You can see the fairing mix still visible after the first coat.

Extended the paint to the original roof. My goal is to finish this area and install the windows and then move down from there.

Close up of helm station.

Not much to say.  I think it is going to turn out pretty good.  I keep reminding myself that the guy on the video said not to be too expect great results with the first coat.  It gets better after the 2nd and 3rd.

Top of cabin roof.  The forward 2/3 will receive non-skid, while the aft 1/3 portion will not.  I want to discourage any walking on the aft portion.

Here is a shot of the stern extension area after I applied a primer coat and sanded down with 220 grit.  There are quite a few pin holes.  I just ordered some surfacing putty.  I am going to try some of that to fill in the pin holes, instead of mixing a batch or resin.

Here are the 2 holes from the bathroom filled in, primed and sanded.

I decided to prime and paint the frames of the 2 ports that will go on the new roof.  They were used and showing signs of paint fading.  I used an etching primer and several light coats of semi-gloss enamel.   Not sure if I will do the same for the original window frames.  I will be removing them and "rebuilding" them, so I may end up having them powder coated black, once I check on the price.  I am thinking that would last longer than etch prime and paint.

Here is the corner of my office.  This is all of the stuff that is just waiting to get installed. Electronics, ports, helm chair.  The big roll is the headliner.  I will actually be using it for the sides walls.  My plan is to use a PVC bead board material to line the roofs.

Didn't Know I had Lightning Protection

I was never quite sure what that strange copper ribbon or foil was that ran from aft to forward.  My original thought was that it was some sort of ground.  After discussion on Iroquois FB page, it became clear that it was a lightning protection system that transfers the lightning strike from the mast, down the shrouds to a ground plate located on the bottom of the hulls.  You will see in this video that I didn't even know the ground plate was there until today.  Mystery solved!

A fellow Iroquois Facebooker proved this great link that explains the different grounding systems.  Thought I would pass it on.

http://www.sailmail.com/grounds.htm

Enjoy!

Still Fairing!

Not much to post... I have been spending the last 2 weekends fairing.  On my last post, I showed a couple of pictures of my spot applied fairing mix.  Unfortunately, I did not add enough catalyzer and the mix did not fully harden.  When I tried to sand it off, the mix gummed up the sandpaper.  I had read that if you spray with soapy water, the resin would not adheare to the sandpaper.  It worked, but what a mess.  Since the actual defect areas were small and this is not a structural issue, the fairing that remained was mostly okay.  I have now placed another coat of primer and will take one more stab at any remaining defects.   I will concentrate on the areas that will not be covered with non-skid.  The non-skid should cover any of the minor defects remaining.  Trust me, at this point they are barely noticable now.

Look ahead.

My plan is to apply a 2-part Interlux paint to the raised cabin top and stern extension first part of April.  I will then dry fit the new windows and start working my way down.  I will permenately bed them in, once I am ready to apply the vinyl wall covering I purchased to go on the inside. 

I have also decided to remove the existing windows, paint the aluminum trim black to match the new windows, rebed the glass and reinstall after the surrounding area is painted. 

My new trampoline net came in last week.  That will likely be one of the last things to get installed.  My boat arch is being fabricated now, but I would like to get the stern extension painted prior to installation.  Hopefully my next update will include some pictures of my painted raised cabin top!  Stay tuned.

Fairing and Priming and Fairing and....

The hard part about doing something for the first time is not knowing if you are doing it right or not?  When I created molds for my various fiberglass parts, I thought I would have cruised right through to the priming and painting.  Not so much.  Even those parts have put me through my paces in trying to get them smooth as silk.  Ok, I will settle for just smooth!

Last week I decided to put a prime coat on the various newly created fiberglass parts.  I knew I was not ready for paint, but I figured the prime coat would help me see the remaining "defects".   The literature for the Interlux PrimeKote, which is a 2-part epoxy primer espoused about its ability to fill in minor imperfections.  Cool!

For my first go at this, I added 25% 2333N reducing agent as suggested.  Well it actually read "up to" 25%.  The result seemed to be a little to thin.  Oh well just put it on and go from there.

I used a foam roller.

Here are the lids for the aft extension.

Here is a close up.  You can see lots of pin holes and a wavy surface.  Not so good!

After it dried, I sanded it down.  Hmm not sure if this is good or bad.  At least the valleys are filled??

My next application, I decided I would try a thicker coat of primer and only added about half of the 2333N reducing agent.  I also used a nappier roller cover in an attempt to lay down a thicker coat.

Here is the result after the next sanding.

Still not good.  I can see dimpling and other defects even though I filled more valleys.

Here is a close up after the third coat.  Imperfections are still visible.  Ugh.

This is a close up of another lid that looked better, but still can see imperfections.   So much for my hope of a miracle primer!

Only one thing to do.  More fairing.  The mix I used flowed quite nice.  I did not add cabosil this time, which may have helped.

Here is the rest of the boat, which incidentally went through at least 2 prime coats as well.  With daylight savings time, I may have time to start sanding after work and hopefully I can add one more coat of primer.  One can hope!

Here is the rest of the boat before I started fairing.  Not bad from this distance!