Thursday

Renee finished up her work on the transom with some final prep, including a light sanding (using a nylon pad) to lightly abrade the faux surface, remove any significant roughness (some texture remained), and otherwise prepare the surface for the next steps.  Then she was done for now, though she’d be back to do the lettering soon.

Once she had cleaned up and had departed, I masked off the hull on each side and other preparations so I could spray the clear Alexseal over the top of the fresh faux finish.

During the remainder of the day, I applied seven coats of clear Alexseal to the area, which ought to give plenty of product to allow the required sanding without harming the faux finish beneath.  I extended the clear out onto the blue borders a bit to help seal in the faux.  The clearcoat brought the woodgrain to life.

Total time billed on this job today:  5.5 hours (Renee:  0700-0900)

0600 Weather Observation:  38°, overcast and foggy.  Forecast for the day:  Partly sunny, then rain likely, 48°

Wednesday

Renee got to work early in the morning, hoping to complete the transom in one day.  With three “planks” in the final faux appearance, she first marked and masked off the planks, focusing first on the top and bottom planks.    During the morning session, she completed the artistry on the two planks before leaving for a few hours to look at another job at a relatively nearby yard.  Before departing, she set up a fan to blow air across the new paint and, she hoped, help dry it (along with the much warmer than usual temperature setting in the shop) quickly enough that she could mask over the new paint by midday and complete the center plank.

Meanwhile, during this time I began to prepare the loose woodwork I’d removed from the boat earlier.  In the woodshop, I disassembled and lightly sanded the companionway bifold doors, along with the cockpit coaming trim, access hatch covers, binocular case, and rodholders.  I didn’t have any varnish on hand so for now I had to satisfy myself with getting the sanding out of the way.  Maintenance coats of varnish would come soon, once the new varnish supply arrived.

After lunch, Renee was back, and ready to work on the center plank, which she completed by mid-afternoon.  This completed the bulk of the work on the faux transom, but she’d be back in the morning to finish up with a light sanding that would prepare the transom for clearcoats over the top, which I would apply in the near future.

Detail shots of the woodgrain in a more natural light:

Total time billed on this job today:  1.75 hour (Renee:  0545 – 0915; 1245 – 1515)

0600 Weather Observation:  34°, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Cloudy, chance of a shower, 44°

Tuesday

With work scheduled to begin on the faux teak transom later in the day, I got started early to unmask the hull after the boottop paint.  The work on the transom would mostly waylay me for the rest of the week.

Later, Renee Trust, the faux painter, arrived to set up and begin the multi-day process of painting the transom and, along with the boatowner, we discussed the job details and various chitchat.  Then, she got to work and, after setting up and preparing the area, laid down the base coat and background color for the transom, which worked in concert with the goldish base coat I’d prepared for the task.  With various applicators, and making the process look easy (it isn’t), she created an already-convincing wooden effect that would only be enhanced by later layers and graining effects.

With various applicators, and making the process look easy (it isn’t), she created an already-convincing wooden effect that would only be enhanced by later layers and graining effects.

Tools of the trade:

With the base coat complete, and already looking stunning, the work for the day was complete, since the base had to kick before she could continue work.

Total time billed on this job today:  1 hour (Renee:  1030 – 1430)

0600 Weather Observation:  43°, light shower, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Becoming mostly sunny, 51°

Monday

I spent part of the morning getting the boat and shop ready for the boottop painting.  I started by getting rid of the low staging platforms I’d used for the hull–no longer needed–then masked off the top edge of the boottop, following the scribe line in the hull.  As usual, I started with a thin strip of vinyl masking tape that helps provide a crisp paint line, then covered it with regular masking tape since the shiny vinyl allows paint to run if left exposed.  Then, I masked off the whole hull with plastic and paper to protect it from overspray.

With preparations complete, including solvent wash and tack-off of the boottop area, I applied three coats of Alexseal snow white to the boottop, taking a few elapsed hours to do so.

Total time billed on this job today:   5.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  37°, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Cloudy with chance of showers, 46°

Friday

After final preparations, over the course of several elapsed hours I applied three coats of Alexseal stars and stripes blue to the hull.  The color variations between photos are the result of the variable positions of the strong lighting and camera in each case.

Total time billed on this job today:  4.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  54°, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Mostly cloudy, 60°

Wednesday

I took a day away from the project while I waited for the transom base coats to cure sufficiently; I couldn’t sand or mask over the fresh paint for at least 24 hours.  Now, having well eclipsed the required curing time, I got to work sanding flat and smooth the transom base, using 320 grit wet-dry paper.  I removed all traces of gloss and spray texture from the surface.

Next, I masked off the boottop on the rest of the hull (I’d previously done so on the transom), using the molded scribe line as a guide.

At the transom, we wanted a narrow border of hull color at the outboard edges, to provide a natural stopping point for the faux wood finish and to simulate the typical thickness of hull planking as would normally be seen were this a wooden boat.  I eventually determined that around 3/4″ was the right-size border for this boat, and marked and masked accordingly.  Studying photos of the boat with the swim platform still installed, I determined where to mask the lower edge of the faux portion (just below the top level of the platform), and masked across the transom at that level.  Then, I filled in the field with masking paper to protect it from overspray.

I rounded out the day with the normal final preparations, including another floor washdown, solvent-washing the hull with the proprietary solvent, and preparing paint and equipment for the hull painting next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  4.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  48°, mainly clear.  Forecast for the day:  Mostly sunny, 65°

Tuesday

Over the course of several elapsed hours early in the day, I applied six coats of a special base color required for the faux finishing on the transom.  I applied the extra coats to ensure there was plenty of paint for me to sand smooth and flat in advance of the faux.  I covered the entire transom with the base coat even though some areas, such as below the swim platform and at the edges, would later receive the regular hull color.

Total time billed on this job today:   4.25 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  45°, mostly cloudy.  Forecast for the day:  Mostly cloudy, 58°

Monday

I spent the morning sanding the fresh primer with 320 grit, by machine and hand as needed.  This smoothed the surface and prepared the primer for the next steps.

Afterwards, I cleaned up the boat and shop as necessary, blowing down the shop surfaces, sweeping, and washing the floors before vacuuming and solvent washing the hull to remove sanding dust.

I’d spent the weekend considering the various painting steps ahead, as well as my schedule and that of the painter who’d be coming in to render the faux woodgrain on the transom, and eventually came to the decision, for various reasons, to paint the transom with the special base color required for the faux woodgrain first, then move on to the rest of the hull.  This made sense to me in this case because painting the transom base first would allow the faux painter to come in virtually anytime thereafter, which could be important since her schedule is highly variable based around other jobs she’s working on; also, it would be easier for me to mask off the painted transom in order to spray the rest of the hull, versus the other way ’round.

To this end, I made final preparations for the transom base, masking off the edges of the transom and the boottop, and adding some paper to protect the aft ends of the hull from overspray potential.  With that complete, I set up and prepared the painting equipment for next time.

Total time billed on this job today:  7 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  30°, mostly clear.  Forecast for the day:  Mainly sunny, 62°

Friday

It was cozy in the shop first thing, as I’d turned up the heat the evening before, and after final preparations and tacking off the boat was ready for primer.

Over several elapsed hours, I spray-applied four coats of gray epoxy primer on the hull.

Total time billed on this job today:  5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  60°, overcast.  Forecast for the day:  Cloudy, with showers, 62°

Thursday

To begin, I lightly sanded the second round of fine filler as needed, completing the hull repair and fairing work.  Afterwards, I vacuumed and solvent-washed the hull.

I cleaned up and washed the floor, and then masked over the engine room vent openings from outside to prepare for painting.  At the bow, I set up some low staging to help me reach the highest points of the bow when painting.

In, around, and between this, I prepared painting equipment, paint and primer, shop lighting, and the myriad other steps needed to prepare the boat and shop for the work ahead.  Later, I solvent-washed the hull one more time, this time with the proprietary solvent designed for this use by the coatings manufacturer.

Total time billed on this job today:  3.5 hours

0600 Weather Observation:  43°, mostly clear.  Forecast for the day:  Sunny, 66°