Monday

The original nonskid pattern on the rest of the decks was a knobby, randomly-patterned roughish texture as seen below.  The sidedecks were beige (as had been the original cockpit sole), while the coachroof, poop deck, and cockpit seating areas were white.  The owner requested that we replicate the original color scheme with the fresh nonskid.

To match the original texture as closely as possible, I chose Kiwigrip for this project, which would give a similar appearance to the repainted areas.  To prepare for the nonskid, I masked off the new glossy white paint in the cockpit and poopdeck, following the lines I’d laid out earlier.  Since the application of Kiwigrip is unavoidably messy, from past experience I knew to mask off wide areas all around the field, which would help catch the inevitable splatters and allow free use of the special roller that gives the product its finished texture.  I’d found it much more efficient to spend the extra time masking than to fret over the constant splatters on nearby surfaces.  In the new cockpit, only the sole would be beige; I had some of the Kiwigrip tinted to the owner’s choice of color, called Moon Dust.  The seating areas and poop deck would be white.

With the masking complete, I had some time available before I wanted to apply the first (base) coat, so I worked on some of the hardware reinstallations, starting with the compass and sailing instruments in the cockpit.  I spliced the compass light wires that I’d had to cut to remove the compass previously, then reinstalled the compass in its opening.

On the opposite side, I reinstalled the vintage knotmeter and depthsounder in their original holes, with butyl sealant around the faces and the original trim rings behind, which held the instruments in place.  After reconnecting the wires and cabling, the installation was complete.

Next, I reinstalled the solar panel on the lazarette hatch, using the holes I’d predrilled earlier.  As before, I installed the panel with bolts and large washers that held the panel in place through its four corner eyelets, with sealant in the openings.

For now, that was about all I could do until the nonskid was done, and in any event it was time to apply the first base coat of the product, a process I developed on my own from past experience, which showed that it was worthwhile to apply a smooth base coat before attempting the textured final coat as this greatly helped the coverage and hiding ability of the textured coat, while only masking once.

With a smooth roller, I applied the beige paint to the cockpit sole, leaving just a slight texture behind but covering the area in a consistent color coat.  Then, I repeated the process on the seats, locker lids, and poop deck with the white paint.  I’d let this cure overnight, then continue with the final, textured coat next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  5.75 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  10°, mainly clear.  Forecast for the day:   Increasing clouds, 35°

Saturday-Sunday

With spraying complete, over the weekend I removed all the masking tape, paper, and plastic to expose the boat in her new duds.  To complete the new appearance, I waited a day for the boottop to cure further, then masked off and painted the top section of the bottom, extending down about a foot for now just for appearance’s sake; later in the season I’d paint the entire bottom to prepare her for the owners’ pickup in the spring.

Next:  Nonskid and final touches.

Total time billed on this job today:  4.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  19°, partly clear.  Forecast for the day:   Mostly sunny, 33°

Friday

Now that the hull paint had had sufficient cure time, I could get to work masking off around the boottop so I could spray it and finish the hull painting.

To begin, I masked top and bottom with special vinyl tape that helps prevent the LPU from bleeding and creates a crisp paint line.

While this tape is critical in the process, its smooth surface tends to let the thin paint shed and run, possibly ruining the job, so long ago I learned to cover it nearly completely with normal masking tape, keeping the green tape as close to the edge of the blue fine-line tape as I could without making my eyes cross too much.

With the detail masking complete, I covered the entire hull in masking paper to protect against overspray.

Now it was quick and straightforward to spray apply three coats of Alexseal flag blue to the boottop, waiting about an hour between coats.  This was the final major step in the painting process, and I looked forward to unveiling the whole boat again afterwards.

Total time billed on this job today:  4 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  18°, clear.  Forecast for the day:   Sunny, 33°

Thursday

The next step in the painting process would be the boottop, but it was too soon to think about overmasking the fresh hull paint, so the day, as always at this point, was mainly about waiting and watching the paint dry, so to speak.

I spent part of the morning doing what I could:  Unmasking the boottop and cockpit locker lids, and generally preparing for the next day’s work.

Meanwhile, I took opportunity of the available time to check over the (minimal) hardware going back in the cockpit and on the poopdeck, cleaning any old sealant away and checking my fastener inventory to ensure I had on hand what was needed to reinstall the cleats, padeyes, new winch pockets, and other.

Total time billed on this job today: 2.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  31°, cloudy, breezy.  Forecast for the day:   Gradual clearing, 37°

Wednesday

To protect the fresh cockpit paint from overspray while painting the hull, I got started by installing some plastic sheeting over the deck areas as needed, taping it securely all around.

Afterwards, I applied three coats of Alexseal snow white to the hull.

Brief video of the second coat:

Real-time video of the third coat on the port side:

Total time billed on this job today:  3.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  26°, partly cloudy.  Forecast for the day:   Mostly cloudy, 36°

Tuesday

After final preparations, I applied three coats of Alexseal snow white to the prepared cockpit and locker lids (and outboard bracket), taking several elapsed hours with breaks between coats.

Total time billed on this job today:  3.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  27°, cloudy, snow shower.  Forecast for the day:   Cloudy with chance of snow showers, 32°

Monday

To prepare for the final topcoats in the cockpit, I laid out and masked off the eventual nonskid field areas, leaving a 1-1/2″ border around the edges in most areas.  At the locker lid openings, I reduced this to 3/4″ at the adjacent edges so that a corresponding 3/4″ border on the lids themselves would complete and make up the visual 1-1/2″ border.  I covered the field areas with masking paper to protect against overspray.

I put the lids temporarily in place while I marked and masked the borders against the cockpit well, so that the border would be straight and consistent between the lids and adjacent cockpit faces, but I finished up the masking down on the bench.  I didn’t mask off a nonskid area on the lazarette hatch since most of this hatch would be covered by the permanently-attached solar panel, and I saw no reason for the textured surface there, but nonskid could easily be added to this hatch in the future if desired.

With the decks prepared, I moved on to the hull.  Though I wouldn’t be able to spray the cockpit and hull on the same day this time around because I couldn’t risk overspray from the hull besmirching the cockpit paint (this hadn’t mattered during primer steps), I still wanted all the hull prep complete so it would be ready to go the day after the cockpit.

The final hull prep centered around the new boottop.  Here, the owners requested that I leave a narrow strip of hull color between the boot and the bottom, which is a nice look, so this required striking two new lines to demark the bottom and top edges of the new stripe.   With a level across the cockpit seats, I confirmed that the boat was still level from side to side and that the painting and sanding work hadn’t shifted things at all.

To begin, I used a small level, straightedge, and two marking blocks (3/4″ and 2″ thick, respectively) to transfer the existing, and newly-struck, waterline (top of the bottom paint) marks at stem and stern 3/4″ higher for the lower edge (leaving a 3/4″ visual border), and 2″ above that for the visual thickness of the new boottop.

With the new marks for reference at the stem and stern, I set up my horizontal crossbeams at the first, lower mark and, after leveling both, set up my string and, as before, marked the lower edge of the boottop along both sides of the hull.  This mark would leave a visually 3/4″ wide border of hull color beneath the boottop.

Moving the beams temporarily while resetting them to the height of the upper edge of the boottop gave me time and opportunity to mask off the lower edge along the pencil marks I’d made during the layout.  With that complete, I reset the beams 2″ above the lower mark, creating a stripe that would be 2″ wide amidships.

With the layout complete, I masked off the top edge of the new stripe, following the tick marks on the hull.   At the bow, I increased the height at the stem by about 3/4″, and flared the top edge of the stripe along the forward third or so of the boat, to a point roughly 6′ aft on each side, chosen more or less randomly but by eye.  This subtle flare improved appearance by offsetting the eye’s tendency to see the stripe as narrower at the bow because of the shape of the hull and sheerline there.

With the top and bottom edges masked and defined, I filled in between with more masking tape.

With all masking complete, I finished up with day with a final solvent wash of deck and hull, along with paint, lighting, and equipment preparations for the cockpit topcoats next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  8 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  27°, cloudy.  Forecast for the day:   Cloudy with chance of snow showers, 34°

Thursday

I got started in the cockpit and poopdeck, sanding the fresh finish primer with 320 grit paper by machine and hand as needed.  Afterwards, I continued with the loose hatches and outboard bracket on the bench.  The primer had turned out well, and this was as quick a process as it could be given the myriad surfaces in the cockpit.

Next, I sanded the hull with 320 by machine and hand.

With the sanding complete, I spent the remainder of the day cleaning the shop and boat.  This included blowing off the boat, trailer, and walls; sweeping the floor; vacuuming and solvent-washing the hull and deck; and rinsing off the floor and fixtures to settle dust.  Now the boat was ready for the next steps, which I’d start after the long weekend.

Total time billed on this job today:  4.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  32°, cloudy.   Forecast for the day:  Clouds with breaks, slowly clearing, 40°

Wednesday

After final preparations, including tacking off, I applied three coats of white finish primer to the cockpit and poop deck.

With the cockpit and deck spraying complete, I moved on to the hull, where I also applied three sprayed coats of the finish primer.

Here is a short video showing me spraying the second coat of primer.  It’s the first time I’ve ever tried a video like this.

Total time billed on this job today:  4.75 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  18°, clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, increasing clouds, chance of snow showers overnight, 33°

Tuesday

I spent the first part of the day sanding the fine filler that I’d applied around the boat, with most of the time spent in the cockpit, where, along with the tight spaces and corner work, there were some larger patches that could have stood a bit more cure time.  Sanding the fairing compound also gave me a chance to go over all areas again to catch any places that could use a bit more sanding after the initial round right after the primer application.

The hull and loose hatches were quicker and easier to sand.

Next, I cleaned up the boat and shop:  Blow down; sweep; vacuum; solvent-wash deck and hull.  This removed the bulk of the sanding dust from the two sanding rounds over the past few days.

Next, I washed down the shop floor and trailer skirting, settling any remaining dust.

To round out the day’s work, I finished off with a final solvent wash of the hull and deck, this time with the proprietary wipe-down solvent, and prepared paint and spray equipment as needed for finish primer next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  6 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  34°, mostly clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, temperature falling throughout the day.