Imron painting advice

[lake of the woods]

I am looking for advice about painting my aft deck hardtop (top and underside) with the factory imron paint. While I have done lots of (house) painting in my life it has never been with a specialty paint like Imron. I would like to paint my aft deck factory hardtop and I am not sure if it is a job I should consider tackling or leave it to the pros. My thought was to roll and tip the area but I am concerned that it may be beyond my capability. I am not worrried about it being glass smooth since the hardtop is a textured underside and the roof side of the hard top will not be seen by many people.

Is this a difficult job or something that a non pro could tackle? The job would be done outside in an open area.

Mark
Lake of the Woods
1989 40 DC

 

[lake of the woods]

I should have searched for previous posts on this subject first. I found one from 2007 started by rswirtz. I don't want to take on a project with that must safety risk. Would using Interlux brightsides be a safer alternative? I know it can be roll and tiped as I hve used in in my bilges.

Mark
Lake of the Woods
1989 40 DC

 

[BobWaz]

Mark......I have the same boat as you. I am still trying to settle a claim with Boat U.S. on some serious dock rash done during a recent wind storm. I probably will not get enough money to have the whole side of the boat painted by a boat yard. Will wind up doing myself. I have painted a few entire boats over my life time. They were wood and were brushed. When I did my 36 wood Island Gypsy trawler it came out so perfect that I had to prove to some people that it was not glass. It can be done. As to the original Dupont Imron, it no longer exists. In February of 2013 Dupont sold the performance paint division to Axalta in Exton, PA. It is a completely different formula and has more gloss to it over the original Imron. I will also be checking out Awlgrip.

Best of luck to you,
Bob

 

[jim rosenthal]

Rolling and tipping AwlGrip is not that difficult. I have done it. There is a good video from Jamestown on how to do it. Helps you get started.

 

[rsmith]

Alexseal is another option. I talked to them at tha Lauderdale boat show and they were very customer oriented. I understand Imron is not what it used to be. Awl grip is a harder paint that was designed for jet aircraft as Alumagrip

 

[barkdee]

I tried shooting a boot stripe with it last summer. Never again, unless I want a full orange peel finish. Had an experienced painter prep and shoot some of the job. He couldn't get it to lay flat. Also had phone support from the mfg. Two pro painters who did work in the boatyard said they wouldn't touch the stuff because of the orange peel issue.

 

[Boatsb]

Alexseal is another option. I talked to them at tha Lauderdale boat show and they were very customer oriented. I understand Imron is not what it used to be. Awl grip is a harder paint that was designed for jet aircraft as Alumagrip

Dan (34Hatt) has worked with these and another that he mentioned last time we spoke. I would think he may chime in on that when he gets a chance. He is repainting his topsides so may be a bit busy.

FWIW I have roll and tipped awlgrip and found the system to be great. They do make a very complete line of additives and reducers. I believe alexseal was a bit behind with that but working to catch up.

 

[bobk]

The original Imron was designed for spray application and did not roll and tip well. Algrip on the other hand is a dream to get near spray type results from a roll/tip job. It comes down to using the right amount of thinner, the correct roller and brush and keeping the tools clean because it sets fast. You do want to use a good respirator to avoid fumes, but that is not a problem.

Bobk

 

[rsmith]

I tried shooting a boot stripe with it last summer. Never again, unless I want a full orange peel finish. Had an experienced painter prep and shoot some of the job. He couldn't get it to lay flat. Also had phone support from the mfg. Two pro painters who did work in the boatyard said they wouldn't touch the stuff because of the orange peel issue.

What type paint? And how hot was it?

 

[barkdee]

Imron Elite. Hot, 92 deg. Discussed high temp with Axalta rep and used their recommended activator.

 

[jim rosenthal]

Agree with Scott. The difference is that AwlGrip is made to be rolled and tipped if you use their activator and converter etc. They have instructions for doing this. Any other paint that has been mentioned, you are basically working it out by trial and error. Which is fine if you are up to it. I wasn't.

 

[rwappleton]

Don't want to hijack here but how well does Awl grip spray?

 

[Boatsb]

Don't want to hijack here but how well does Awl grip spray?

Awesome. It's as good as or better than brushed. All depends on the guy doing the work.

 

[rsmith]

Imron Elite. Hot, 92 deg. Discussed high temp with Axalta rep and used their recommended activator.

That's the new stuff but with the old Imron at that temp. Would require a retarder. Imron could be wet sanded and buffed out to. Bring back the gloss. Awl grip cannot.

 

[rsmith]

Awesome. It's as good as or better than brushed. All depends on the guy doing the work.

Most aircraft are sprayed with it.

 

[rsmith]

Awesome. It's as good as or better than brushed. All depends on the guy doing the work.

Most aircraft are sprayed with it.

 

[SKYCHENEY]

Had my boat restriped with Imron Elite last winter and it looks great. No orange peel at all. It flowed out well and the shine is amazing.

 

[q240z]

All depends on the guy doing the work.

+1000 to this.

Mark (OP), getting professional results is possible but unlikely for weekend warriors like us. If you're OK with the boat looking great from 20 feet away but with dry spots, brush marks, and runs showing up the closer you get to it, go for it. If you (or a potential future buyer) are likely to be disturbed by paint imperfections, it might be best to have a pro do it.

Cheers,
Q

 

[34Hatt]

Dan (34Hatt) has worked with these and another that he mentioned last time we spoke. I would think he may chime in on that when he gets a chance. He is repainting his topsides so may be a bit busy.

FWIW I have roll and tipped awlgrip and found the system to be great. They do make a very complete line of additives and reducers. I believe alexseal was a bit behind with that but working to catch up.

It was Endura it can be sprayed and rolled and tipped know boats that have been done in it and has held up good and is a nice paint to work with. After many hrs of going back and forth and talking with a friend that knows painting and has use Endure I am staying with Awlgrip.

So one other thing I learned recently is with Alexaseal many guys use it with the Awlgrip brushing cat and thinner.

 

[jim rosenthal]

I would say if you are going to do that you ought to use AG but just my opinion.

If you look at my boat, you can see where I started and where I finished. There is a learning curve to say the least. The last areas I did with roller and tip brush are as good as sprayed. The first areas are not, to say the least. They look okay, and decidedly better than the boat before I painted it, but all the runs and drips are in that area.

It is true that you can't wet sand and buff AG. The shine is on the surface. But it does keep it for a long time, and since my boat is wrapped up for several months during the winter, it will last longer. The cost to me of a complete topsides paint job with AG was about two thousand dollars, plus my labor, which I give myself for free, and that includes three months' rent of a covered slip at $400/month, to work in. Next time it won't take me as long. I did it in sections, but you can't tell that.

I painted my boat because the yard who were supposed to do it kept dragging their feet and after two seasons of that, I gave up and did it myself. I'm glad I did it. I didn't think I could, and it turned out I was equal to the task, with a bit of help now and again. Anyone here could do this.