Painting the Topsides

Before turning the hull, I wanted to paint the topsides. This won’t be the final paint job, but it will provide a good base coat. It also serves as valuable practice since I have never painted such a large surface before. The hull was sanded to a 180-grit finish below the waterline and a 240-grit finish above the waterline. I made sure to keep the chines and edges of the transom as sharp as possible while still allowing for proper painting.

Next, I marked the actual waterline of the boat, which is the construction waterline plus 80mm. Then, I started cleaning the workshop. First, I used compressed air to blow dust off shelves, pipes, and lamps. The following day, I went over everything again with a vacuum cleaner to remove any remaining dust. After that, I washed the boat with water and cleaned it using Epifanes paint thinner. In the evenings, I also began wetting the floor to maintain humidity levels between 45% and 50%. Finally, just before painting, I wiped the hull down with acetone and a tack cloth.

In total, I applied four layers of paint. The first layer didn’t go well—I ended up with a large section on the bow where the paint separated in spots, and I also ran out of paint halfway through the second side. I let it dry and then started over. I believe the separation at the bow was caused by a spill when draining condensed water from my compressor.

While the first coat was drying, I finished sanding the rudder and applied three additional coats of epoxy on either side. For Painting the hull and Daggerboards I used Epifanes 2-Component Polyurethane Paint in RAL 9010. Once I figured out the technique, it was fairly easy to apply. I used the roll-and-tip method—applying the paint with a roller and then smoothing it out with a brush. Consistency is key, so I kept a steady pace to achieve a nice finish. For each coat, I used 1.5 canisters of paint (75cl each), totaling 1.5 liters. The entire process, including mixing and the 15-minute induction period, took about three hours per coat. To thin the paint, I used Epifanes 2K Brush Thinner, keeping it at the maximum allowed 5% dilution.