Gel Coat or Paint

[kceballes]

I have a '84 Bahner and the motor, carpet and leather is a new and finished. All that is left is the finishing touch of the hull. I have heard different opinions about painting over the gel coat or having a professional bring out the gel coat, can someone help with reason? what are the pro's and con's.

[Cas]

Gel will last a lot longer, is more durable and won't chip, peel or crack off. It's the best way to go, only downside is it's initially more expensive but in the long run, it's less expensive.

[ULTRA28]

Depends on how bad the gel coat is. if you only want to bring back the color and shine, you can get it sanded and buffed. If it is really trashed you will need to re-shoot the whole thing, gel coat can be about two to three times as expensive as paint due to the prep and finish work needed. Quality boat repair (Isreal) in Riverside or Orange County gel coat(Salvador) would be the only two guys I would suggest for the job.

[Havasu Hangin']

There was a couple threads awhile back that covered some of your questions- "Redo Gelcoat or apply Paint? (http://free.***boat.net/ubb/Forum4/HTML/000464.html)" and "Paint Work and Rogers Custom Boats (http://free.***boat.net/ubb/Forum4/HTML/000723.html)"
http://www.goldenplasma.f2s.com/forum/smilies/happy25.gif

[custom-cruiser]

Did you say leather? Remind me not to let any of my beer slobbern' friends get in your ride.... http://free.***boat.net/ubb/biggrin.gif

[Squirtcha?]

I got what I thought was a pretty good estimate from Kachina in Phoenix to re-gelcoat my boat. They do 100% of the prep work. All cracks and other problem areas are ground inside and out prior to the repairs being done. He really emphasized this when I spoke to him. Apparently it's a key item. They'll shoot up to 7 colors with fades and all, and will sit down with a CAD program and design the scheme with you. My hull is an 18.5 foot Kachina Custom, but of course, they'll shoot anything for anybody. $3400.00. I know it sounds steep but a professional paint job with 7 color graphics would probably be pretty darned close to $2000.00 maybe even higher. Kachina is renowned for their gelcoat (if for nothing else). I saw an old Howard in their booth when I was there and it looked really nice. He showed me a couple areas where stress cracks had been repaired and I couldn't tell (not an expert disclaimer).

[Wet Dream]

Ok, its been 4 days since KC posted this topic...I want to know if he really was crazy (stupid) enough to put LEATHER in the ride for seats. Is it a high perfomance float or a luxury yacht?

[fryzll]

I think Squirtca is right, go with the gelcoat if your going to keep the boat. I have priced around and to fix the stress cracks and paint my boat a solid white will cost about $1500. It sounds like alot but there is alot of prep and I want a good polyeurothane paint. The graphics would cost me another $1500, and then you need to clear the whole boat. Now you have 3 grand into a paint job that will never be as tough as a good gel coat. I think painting gives you a alot more options but a good gel coat guy can get pretty nutty with graphics and colors these days. I think the bottom line is if you plan on keeping the boat go with the gel coat but if you know your just going to use it for a season or two then go with paint and a cheaper stripe job. I know somebody that has a 85 mph 21' Daytona jet w/ a badass paint and graphics job that is for sale, but everyone who calls on it kinda shys away when they find out its been painted instead of a gel coat. Just something to think about, hope it helps.
Chris

[Kwicherbichen]

You can also check out this topic and posts:
"Question for FoMoCo (http://free.***boat.net/ubb/Forum4/HTML/001358.html)"
[This message has been edited by Kwicherbichen (edited November 04, 2001).]

[kceballes]

thank you very much for the input, I found a guy at pro fibergalss that will buff the paint out and restore, he says its not that bad and will guarantee he will bring it back.
his price best suited my budget $500.00
Oh ya, its not LEATHER, my bad, marine grade vinyl, sorry WET DREAM.!!!

[Wet Dream]

I didn't mean to come off like an ass. Sorry. I just think how I would react to a spill or wet conditions on an exposed interior.