Michigan Squirt Build

[JimmY]

Hi Jeff,

The peel-ply cuts down on the number of coats needed to fill the weave of fiberglass cloth, and cuts down on sanding. Here is a short how-to article I found that explains it better: http://www.clcboats.com/shoptips/epoxy_and_fiberglass/peel-ply-release-fabric.html

[JimmY]

I started "final" sanding on the deck last night, and I nicked into the wood in one spot and the peel-ply didn't get all the low spots filled. I'm out of System 3 Silvertip, so I've got more on order. I got half of the boat sanded last night, and will finish the rest tomorrow, in prep for hopefully the last coat of epoxy. I'll try the peel-ply trick again, but with less thinning of the epoxy.

Any other tips on rolling on epoxy? I keep cutting through around the edges, and it screws up the dye/stain. What am I doing wrong?

[BayouBengal]

Very lightly sand the edges and then tape them so that you don't hit them too aggressively with the sandpaper while sanding the broad flat pieces.

[JimmY]

Still working on epoxying the deck. The peel-ply took care of 99% of the encapsulation, it is the other 1% that is taking 50% of the time! I've still got a few low spots between the dark and light deck boards that I can't sand out. I'm hoping that one or two more coats will level everything out. I am getting better at sanding and staying away from the edges and not cutting through to the stain.

I did take time to clean up my shop and it looks much better. I found a few lost tools and other items, and I'm not tripping over cords, piles of wood, and debris.

Once the deck is fair, I plan to bring her up and evict the cars from the garage and set it up as a paint booth. I've heard about pretty good results with a Harbor Freight HVLP spray gun ($15), and will try to lay down the WR-LPU with that in the hopes that it will reduce the sanding and polishing. Any advise on spraying WR-LPU is greatly appreciated. Instructions say to thin 30% to start, and this is what I was doing for rolling and tipping.

If anyone in the area needs scraps of Sapele, African Mahogany, Genuine Mahogany, or 1/4 Okoume plywood, let me know.

[JimmY]

Hi All,

I've been epoxying and sanding all week getting the deck fair and smooth, and finally today was the day for the Squirt to see daylight. I had 4 friends and neighbors over to help with the heavy lifting. The basement door was removed and towels tape up to protect the door jam and the boat. All in all, it was pretty straight forward and no one got hurt. I do have one wall to touch up from the bow eye, and I got a small scrap along one edge of the deck that will sand out. I've still got a little sanding around the edge to do, and it should be ready to clear coat it.

I'm using the trailer from my Laser, and will need to make a few adjustments before it hits the road.

I'm off to Harbor freight to pick up a spray gun and some Visqueen to make a spray booth in the garage.

Getting closer to launch day...

Bubble wrapped key areas

Sitting pretty in the Michigan sun

I'll have to park outside for now

[JimmY]

Now I can start putting my shop back together...

[DSR]

Man Jim, that little Squirt of yours looks simply outstanding sitting out in the sun! It's gotta make you feel like all the time and effort was worth it and you should be very proud of yourself.

.............soooo, how many neighbors saw you sitting out in front yard driving the Squirt and making motor noises?........

Dave

[BayouBengal]

Looking great in the sunshine Jimmy. You're getting really close1

[PeterG]

Great looking Squirt! Oh look! You opened up a spot for your next boat...

[JimmY]

Thanks for the compliments! I can't wait to get it in the water, but I'm trying to make sure I still do things right.

You opened up a spot for your next boat...

Only if I want to build another Squirt! This one got stuck momentarily on the way up and is the biggest thing I can probably build in my basement.

.............soooo, how many neighbors saw you sitting out in front yard driving the Squirt and making motor noises?........

Dave, the neighbors already think I'm crazy, so it was nothing new for them.

[JimmY]

I was able to lay down 4 coats of WR-LPU Clear gloss last night with my $15 spray gun. I'm sure my neighbors were glad when I turned off the compressor at 10:00pm. It went of okay, but I will still need to wet sand/rub it out to get the finish that I want.

My advice to other is to try to learn how to spray on you boat! The first coat was a little too thin and laid on too thick and I got a lot of "fish eyes." I used a foam brush to help level these out, and luckily they disappeared with subsequent coats. The second and third coats went on nicely, backed off on the paint and air feeds, but had a lot of orange peel and rough spots. The last coat, I thinned the paint down like I had for rolling and really tried to get a wet coat and this worked pretty well. I got a few runs along the covering boards in the rear, but most other places are pretty smooth with some orange peel.

It was difficult to get good coverage around the hatch opening and splash well without getting too much on the deck causing runs. If you lay it on too thick, you get some big fish eyes. Thinning at 25%+ worked well for the most part. I was painting outside, 80 degrees, and Michigan high humidity (rained early in the day). Also, I wetted down the garage floor to keep down the dust and add to the humidity. I started at 6:30, and was able to put on a coat every 1/2 hour and was cleaned up by 10:00. Basically, I would finish a coat, run water through the gun, take it inside to disassembly and clean it, put it back together to blow it dry, and the paint has set up and was ready for the next coat.

In general, this spray gun was a good buy at Harbor Freight with a 20% off coupon. It is pretty easy to use and clean, and puts out a consistent pattern. The adjustments are simple and work well. After the first coat, I dialed back the paint flow and the air pressure a bit which made it more forgiving and kept me from putting down too much at a time. You do lose these settings when you disassembly it for cleaning, so you need to count turns in the screws when setting up for the next coat. I do have a regulator and a moisture trap in the air line. Better than roll and tip? I'll see how this sands and polishes before I pass judgment.

I'm out of paint, otherwise I would sand down the drips, scuff the whole deck and lay on a few more coats. As it is, I thick there is enough paint where I can flatten it and polish it up.

Pretty smooth

Not too bad

My make shift spray booth

Oh boy, more sanding!

[BayouBengal]

Looks great! Hopefully you can sand it out without sanding through.

Do you have a launch date circled on your calendar?

[Ibrew2be]

Jim, you have really done an excellent job with your build. Thanks for all the effort you've put into documenting your progress.

Quick question: what did you use for a compressor for your spraying?

Barry

[JimmY]

Hi Jeff,

I'm hoping to launch on or before Labor day, which is when my friend on the lake starts pulling his boats out.

@Barry, I've got a 13 gallon, 5hp, 6.5cpm@40psi Husky compressor. I picked it up off Craigslist a few years back for $50, and it only does light duty work blowing out my sprinkler system in the fall. It had no problem keeping up with the spray gun.

I was able to flatten most of the paint wet sanding with 400grit last night. I stayed away from the edges and trim that will get mostly covered with rub rail. The cockpit will take some time with all the nooks and crannies. Working in a hot sticky garage is not as nice as a cool basement! Now I know what Carl is going through down in Tx.

[BayouBengal]

Labor Day is right around the corner! Can't wait to hear the launch day report. Are you coming to the Gathering in Tennessee?

Looking at the finish, I was hoping that you could have started off sanding around 800 grit. FYI, I've never sanded through above 1000 grit; so, if you get to there, you can almost be sure that you won't have to buy anymore paint.