Paint — It’s one of those things you want to get right. But it’s also apparently one of those things that can cost $100,000 if your boat happens to be in the 40 ton range.

International Paint LLC $93,168
Hempel $16,839
Sherwin-Williams $15,780

So here is our criteria.
1) Good, not pretty. I could care less about gloss. Durable, is much better than gloss. Epoxy chalks in the sun and chalking is fine.
2) Basic color selection. Black, Grey, Yellow, Red and we are good. And the yellow and red are not mandatory.

Hull Interior 4200 sq ft
Topsides 4200 sq ft
Below the Waterline 1500 sq ft

Everything Outside:

Product:

  1. Zinc Primer Amercoat 68 HS, 50F and up, air sprayer 0.07 tip, 1 coat, 3 to 4 mils above peeks of profile,  275 sq/ft per gallon for 4 mills,  4790 sq ft / 275 sq/ft per gallon for 4 mills * 1.2 = 21 gallons.  Mix A and B then add C and strain through #30 (600 micron) screen to remove globs. Thin with xylene <10% for air sprayer with .07″ (1.8mm) (5/64″ drill) tip,  spread with brush and lever with brush. 12hr pot life at 70F.  Second coat if needed in minimum of 1 hour at 70F.   The maximum humidity is 85% but lower is much better for dry time
  2. Amerlock 2  Pearl Gray Tie Coat, 2 part epoxy, 50/50 mix, 85% solids, 4790 sq ft / 170 sq/ft per gallon for 8 mills * 1.2 = 33 gallons,  No induction time over 73F.  Nozzle orifice .019 Nozzle pressure 2176 to 2611 ps i
  3. Amercoat 450  Top Coat, High gloss polyurethane has been discontinued and replaced with  Pitthane Ultra 95-812  which uses the same color codes.
  4. Amercoat 78 HB,  Coal tar epoxy, 2 part epoxy,  78% solids,  70 sq ft /gal at 21 mils wet / 16 mils dry,  Nozzle orifice .019 – .023,  5 min induction over 70F,  120F max surface temperature,   90F max product temp.
  5. Amercoat 138 is an aggressive non-skid, 25 sq ft / gal,  rolled on with  napless rollers.
  6. PPG; ABC 3 Antifouling ABC3-72 Red Antifouling,  56% solids, 4 -6 mils dry, 225 sq ft for 4 mils, 150 sq ft for 6 mils.  1500 / 150 * 1.2 = 12 gallons.  Airless nozzle: .019 to .023.   Thinner: 91-82; Amercoat T-10

Steps:

  1. Sandblast  1 to 3 mils
  2. Pressure Wash / Degrease / Pressure Wash / Holdtight 102
  3. Zinc Primer Amercoat 68 HS,  Zoro #: G4868571  $37/100 2 quart mixing cups, Zoro #: G2268631  600 micron Paint Strainer Bag,12 in. $10/25    Amercoat 68 HS     In reality I did not thin at all, and used an air spray gun from Harbor Freight, but drilled out the tip to 5/64 drill.
  4. Stripe coat corners and welds being careful to fill any pin holes.
  5. Pressure Wash to remove Zinc salts prior to applying Amerlock 2
  6. Cut in and applied additional strip coat with Amerlock 2 using the same air gun and brush to use up all of the paint.
  7. Apply Amerlock 2 with borrowed airless sprayer.  Graco Xtreme X70 pneumatic sprayer.  2 part epoxy, 50/50 mix, 85% solids, 4790 sq ft / 170 sq/ft per gallon for 8 mills * 1.2 = 33 gallons,  No induction time over 73F.   Humidity should be 90% or less, surface temperature 120F or less, at 86F the pot life is 30 minutes, at 86F the overcoate time is 4 days.  Nozzle orifice .019 Nozzle pressure 2176 to 2611 psi.  The maximum air requirements is calculated as the Pump Ratio x GPM (Gallons per Minute) @ 100 psi = Approximate CFM  For this unit the ratio of compression is 70:1, the gallons per minute is determined by the tip size and the tip size.   Tips are the digits, the first is the degree of the fan which equates to half the fan size at 12 inches from the surface.  The last two digits is the diameter of the hole in the tip in thousands.   So a 519 tip is has a 10 inch fan and a hole that is .019″ diameter. At 2000 psi the 519 tip will flow .38 gallons per minute.   The epoxy has substantially more viscosity so the flow rate may be closer to .25 gallons per minute.   The CFM requirment for the compressor is then 70 * .25 = 17.5  cfm.    A typical 4 hp air compressor only provides about 9 cfm.  The Amerlock 2 is UV resistant and needs no top coat for for much of the decks the work is complete.
  8. Apply one 21 mil wet coat of Amercoat 78 coal tar epoxy to the hull sides below the bulwark pipe.  Switch the gun to the .023 tip.
  9. Apply Carmine Red RAL 3002, Amercoat 450 or now Pitthane Ultra 95-812 to the bulwark plate on the outsides only, about 600 sq ft, 2 gallons.  The insides of the bulwarks will remain Amerlock 2 gray.
  10. Apply Signal Yellow RAL 1003, Amercoat 450, or now Pitthane Ultra 95-812 to all of the bulwark pipe.   One gallon.
  11. Tape off the traffic paths on the decks and roll on Amercoat 138 non skid.  The pilothouse floor will be done at a later time, once the fixtures are in place.
  12. Mark off waterline, scuff coal tar, apply fresh Amercoat 78 coat tar,  1500 sq st at 14 mils is 100 sq/ft per gallon = 15 * 1.2 = 18 gallons, and once tack free but will still soft, apply ABC3-72.

Coal Tar epoxy can be rolled on, but do not expect a smooth finish.  I can be thinned so it lays down smoother but you will also have a much thinner coat, requiring you to roll on three or four coats to obtain the desired DFT, dry film thickness.  Spraying provides a much smoother surface and will actually produce a surface that is slightly smoother than the substrate.

The Final Result.   With thanks to Perry Wiggins for the vinyl graphics.   The port font is Berlin Sans FB Demi, and the Seeker font is Seven Monkey Fury.