New look for Flow: Painting diary

 Well, Flow’s painting is finally approaching the finish line, at last. This has been one of the most exciting tasks so far I’ve never painted a boat hull before, so I have to admit I was a bit nervous at first about how it would turn out. 

I can, however, say that I succeeded, and it looks amazing.

Flow already had a painted base, which made my job a lot easier. Once again, I have to mention the fantastic work kolibri jachtbouw did. I started by sanding the base paint just enough to remove the gloss, using Abranet 320 sandpaper. Before painting, I applied a little epoxy filler to the seams between the deck and hull to make them smooth.

After sanding, I did a thorough cleaning to remove all dust before painting. I first vacuumed the boat and then wiped it with a cloth dampened with plain water, followed by a tack cloth. This is a slightly sticky cloth that removes even the tiniest dust particles. Right before painting, I wiped it down with Epifanes Pre-Paint Cleaner. Less would probably have been enough, but I wanted absolutely all dust gone to ensure the smoothest finish possible.

For the paint, I used Epifanes two-component polyurethane paint, which was an excellent choice. I debated for a long time whether to paint with a roller or spray, and decided the roller would be easier (less masking required). 

I thinned the paint by 20% for every coat.

The first coat leveled surprisingly well, and the paint consumption was very low. I used a foam roller and nothing else; the instructions said a brush could be used to smooth it further, but the foam roller worked so well that it wasn’t necessary.

Second coat: I let the paint dry for about 48 hours, then did an intermediate sanding with soft sandpaper, and cleaned the same way as after the first coat.

Third coat: This time I didn’t use sandpaper, but a “scouring sponge” which is a coarse sponge that dulls the gloss just enough to allow the third coat.

Flow’s paint looks really good now, but I’m still considering adding a fourth coat to ensure maximum protection and an even finish.

And now, my favorite part: pink! I didn’t want my boat to look like a Barbie boat, which is why white is my main hull color. But I did want a pink doghouse and some pink details on the sides.

I used the same paint as on the hull, just colored. I managed to do one coat before realizing that some parts of the boat need to be painted with high-vis paint (yep, should have read the instructions more carefully)—my fault :)

So now I’m ordering pink high-vis paint and will repaint the pink details to comply with the race rules from the start.

I’m happy that the painting process is almost done, and I can start installing deck fittings.

Thanks for following along!

I post a lot of videos on Instagram and Facebook, so if you’re interested in the project, it’s worth checking those out.

@Viivimoisio