Have any of you repainted your 26D or similar?

[trswem]

Hello all,

I'm wrapping up my first season with my 89 26D. It's been a fantastic experience, and the boat is in sound condition mechanically. Cosmetically it needs some help. There have been a number of small patches and repairs in the fiberglass that appear to be 100% sound, however they're ugly, and there was no attempt to match the paint. I'd really like to sand and smooth and then repaint. I'd probably use paint over gelcoat as I really don't have the equipment for a good gelcoat job. Does anyone have experience painting their boat that they could share? Is this outside the scope of what a handy DIY'er should attempt? I can't make it look worse, that's for sure. We have a long winter in the pacific northwest, and I will have a heated shop to do the work in. I appreciate your thoughts!

[Jimmyt]

You should be able to pull off a decent paint job. Start with a good topside paint and then hit google, YouTube, etc, for some video references. Use appropriate protective gear per the instructions. Total Boat, Epifanes, Awl Grip, and others make good topside paint that should look good and last a long time. Not super cheap, but get good stuff.

Currently working on a couple of nav light extension mounting pods for a center console. Mahogany with penetrating epoxy. Smeared the stuff on with a sponge "brush". Long wet time allows it to self level, leaving minimal need to finish sand.
Top coat will be gloss black epoxy to match the stripe the lights are mounted on.



In low humidity, you'll want to talk to the supplier and get the correct reducers and retarder to keep the paint flowing in the conditions you're working in. Also, be aware of static electricity and volatile liquid handling. We'd like to see pics of a beautiful boat - not a shop fire.

[trswem]

Thanks! It's definitely low humidity up here in the winter, I'll check that out. Thanks!

[Herschel]

I have a 98 26X that has done 20 years largely at marina slips in Central Florida. I have some areas on my topside that seems ready for paint, too. But I wonder what the common DIY approach is to paint around deck fittings. I can't imagine taking all of them off to paint the area underneath and then mounting them all back with good seals. Hopefully, a good tape job would suffice. What seems to be the consensus about that?

[Jimmyt]

I'm pretty persnickety about the way my boat looks. But, I think I would mask the deck fittings if I painted. It's a boat that I like to use, not a show car.

Now, if they're all leaking and need to be re-bedded, I would remove them to paint.