Help - tips for painting topsides

[Hi Flyer 0]

Hey guys- I'm repainting my topsides at the moment. I've applied two coats of interprotect, two coats of prekote, and two coats of toplac (sanding between each coat).

 

I'm applying paint with a foam roller- but I'm really disappointed with the finish.. really uneven with darker and lighter patches..

 

I've done some searching and it seems a vertical roll, with brush tipping, is the best way to get an even finish (aside from spraying).

 

Before I go and sand back my uneven botch job, does anyone here have any general guidelines/tips they could pass on for roller painting boat topsides?

[S+S24 0]

Have used Toplac myself and my 2 main mistakes were not putting on enough product (ie over rolling) and putting on in direct sunlight (job had to be done!).

 

Splotching may be due to substrate being too hot, I'm seeing guys getting good results in the yard up here by thinning Toplac with #6 instead of #1.

 

Give international a call 0800 808 807 they are helpfull.

[B00B00 310]

Are you stirring it enough?

[sow1ld 2]

This will sound crazy and lots of people have looked at me side ways when I tell them but it's true. One direction of the roller leaves a smoother finish than the other direction. It's the same with antifoul. When you roll the paint on (say starting from top to bottom) note the finish then turn the roller (handle and all) around 180 deg and do the same (from top to bottom) on way leaves a smoother finish.

 

Good luck!

[Hi Flyer 0]

Hey thanks for the tips. Here's my plan of attack:

 

1) Sand paint back to an even colour (red) with 260 grit.

2) Use less paint on the roller (I think I over did it at first, which is why some patches are darker?)

3) Apply with uniform pressure (rather than going from light to high pressure) on the roller.

4) Tip the paint with a brush (still need to teach myself how to do this.

 

Any more thoughts or advice?

[SMU's Crew 4]

To add to that list I would suggest making sure you paint as quickly and efficiently as possible. When I used this paint, it rewarded me for basically rolling a simple zoom up then down with not too much paint on a small area, then tip off as quickly as possible, then move to the next area and repeat. Emphasis on quick - this paint did not like me for thinking I could go back to that spot and touch it up. Don't be tempted! Like most painting jobs, two coats even out any unevenness anywhere in my opinion. Have fun with it, it will reward you with a beautiful finish!

[Hi Flyer 0]

I haven't been able to find a definite answer. Do you tip with a brush on every coat of top coat? or just the final coat? (if that makes sense..)

[S+S24 0]

Tip each coat is what I've always done

[Guest]

Hi,

 

think I saw you are painting in red?

 

I used red toplac a while ago and got a good finish by rolling and tipping, HOWEVER I have always found that red seems to not cover as well in any paint, and have needed to do an additional coat to what I would normally do. not sure why but the red pigment seems to be thinner than others. not an expert, but just what I have noticed

 

Dan

[RushMan 31]

From deep in the memory bank I think a grey undercoat is better when using red top coat.

 

I think it was one of the renovation shows that said it, might be worth checking out.

[wheels 543]

Don't sand back. You don't need to. Some colours need several coats. Red and Blue especially. You should be applying three coats.

Don't cover too big an area at a time. You need to maintain a "wet edge". If you allow the paint to dry too much(especially in this heat) then roll on and overlap the new area over the area you just finished, you will get a darker area due to now having two coats over that edge area. Did that make sense??

Roll on a reasonable amount of paint. Not too thin. You do need to cover, but not too thick that it runs. I always find people tend to be too scared to put on a decent covering coat. The roller is so you cover the area quickly and evenly, the Brush is for the finish.

When you tip off with the Brush, use a good quality Brush and use a verticle stroke. On big flat surfaces, Never brush horizontally.

A small amount of thinner may help if you are finding the paint is skinning off too quickly. Penetrol works wonders in Turps based paints.

[Guest]

Hi If you are painting toplac any dark colour will need to be tipped off with a dry (Ish) brush Ie don't dip the brush in paint. use 100mm foam rollers load the roller, squeeze out the excess off the end (press the end down on the tray) roll vertically, 3 strips. 1 new, 1 back over the old and 1 more new. ( Iwork left to right) load more than you would when paint ting the house and don't try to work it out like you did on the kitchen walls. tip off horizontally.

[CPWahwah 0]

So hard to find solid advice on roll on paint jobbies..

I painted with 'international perfection' a couple of years ago and had similar issues with people giving varied advice..

Finally got some paint on and then it rained overnight! Luckily i had enough paint to get a second chance at it. Of course with all that practice the second job worked out better so looking back it was perhaps a good thing..

 

 

all i know is..

 

-the foam rollers sometimes have loose bits on them that come off on the first stroke so give them a quick brush off.

-try not to paint in direct sun

-the next time you do this it will be better than this time

-back yourself and go for it.

-I still have a really nice tipping brush that i never used..

-you'll never be looking at the topsides when you're out sailing anyway!

-I was using 'Perfection' tho so it may well be very different.