DIY Projects

Just about every sailboat owner has at some point mixed up a batch of epoxy to fill a hole, glue parts back together, or tackle an extensive project. Practical Sailor testers evaluated four marine epoxy resins based on their mechanical properties (strength, adhesion, hardness, and flexibility) and key handling attributes such as wet-out, sag, curing, and overall handling. We tested West 105 Epoxy Resin, MAS Flag Resin, Raka UV-inhibited epoxy, and Interlux’s Epiglass HT-9000.

Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo equates spare time with boat projects. His basement shop/test facility has spawned a wide range of boats, boards, and parts for bigger boats. The two latest are test platforms for long-term evaluation of the resins and materials looked at in this round of epoxy evaluation.

Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo equates spare time with boat projects. His basement shop/test facility has spawned a wide range of boats, boards, and parts for bigger boats. The two latest are test platforms for long-term evaluation of the resins and materials looked at in this round of epoxy evaluation.

When Achim and Erica Ginsberg-Klemmt upgraded to an aluminum sloop, they had to confront one of aluminum’s major pitfalls: copper-based bottom paints don’t like aluminum. After years of good performance from a foreign-made, expensive-to-import inorganic zinc-silicate coating called Inversalu, the couple sought an affordable option distributed in the U.S. Their research led them to a PPG Amercoat product, a hard two-part zinc-silicate paint called Dimetcote 21-5. Practical Sailor’s report covers their prep and painting experience, a look at how zonc-silicate paints works, and Dimetcote’s performance after eight months in Florida waters.

Formerly the manager of a full-service boat yard, Practical Sailor Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo offers a survey of the tools he can’t live without. His toolbag is chocked full, and a peek inside finds saws, trimmers, planers, grinders, belt sanders, multi-tasking power tools, and drivers. His tool inventory—comprising top-of-the-line power tools and tried-and-proven devices, is one that enables him to handle most any boat project. If you’re looking to fill in you’re the gaps in your tool lineup or to stock your workshop, be sure to check out this special report.

Formerly the manager of a full-service boat yard, Practical Sailor Technical Editor Ralph Naranjo offers a survey of the tools he can’t live without. His toolbag is chocked full, and a peek inside finds saws, trimmers, planers, grinders, belt sanders, multi-tasking power tools, and drivers. His tool inventory—comprising top-of-the-line power tools and tried-and-proven devices, is one that enables him to handle most any boat project. If you’re looking to fill in you’re the gaps in your tool lineup or to stock your workshop, be sure to check out this special report.

Although we’ve tackled our share of varnish with a heat gun and scraper, we’ve never used them to strip bottom paint. The obvious concerns would be marring the gelcoat and the noxious fumes created by heating paint solvents and active ingredients. Our first choice for removing antifouling would be sodablasting (PS, October 2011), but as that’s not an option for you, we’d consider chemical stripping (PS, April 2008 and March 2009), wet-sanding, or vacuum sanding.

Improperly mounted stanchion and pulpit bases are a major cause of gelcoat cracks in the deck radiating from the attached hardware. The cracks are usually the result of unequally stressed mounting fastenings or inadequate underdeck distribution of hardware loads. Frequently, a boat is received from the builder with local cracks already developed. Once the deck gets dirty enough, these minute cracks start to show up as tiny spider webs slightly darker than the surrounding deck gelcoat While repairing these cracks is a fairly difficult cosmetic fix, the underlying problem - poor mounting - is fairly easy to correct in most cases.

In July 2009, 61 samples of antifouling paints, including several new formulas, went into the water in Sarasota, Fla., for testing. This report and the tables above offer a 24-month update on our findings on the top paints in that field, which we last reported on in April of 2011. For sailors who value longevity over all other factors, that article, along with this report on paints that rated a Fair or better after 24 months, will serve as your best guide to choosing a long-lasting bottom paint.

Practical Sailor continues its search for the best antifouling as we test a large field of bottom paints, including products from Pettit, Blue Water, Epaint, Interlux, and Sea Hawk. In this report, we rate the paints' eight-month and two-year performances. Some budget-friendly and eco-firnedly paints were still doing quite well after a season in the drink. When we last checked in on bottom paints in the March 2011 report, the ban on copper in antifouling paints was on the docket in Washington state and California. As the movement to ban copper moves eastward, the bottom paint industry is in flux, with manufacturers reducing the amount of copper in bottom paint and trying new copper-free paints. Bottom paint will probably not decrease in price, or increase in effectiveness, in the next few years.