Has anyone painted a gel-coat helmet ?

[PLFKING 4]

I want to do a "spatter-and-drip" job on my Hawkeye....

1) Do I need to scuff-sand beforehand to get a good bond?

2) What kind of paint should I use ?

3) Will I need to fog-in a clearcoat afterwards to keep it in place ?

I thought someone here might have experience with painting cars or boats with gel-coat.....I've practiced on plastic and liked the effect, but don't want to ruin my new lid if I'm wrong.

Any advice would be appreciated greatly.


Don

"When in doubt I whip it out,
I got me a rock-and-roll band.
It's a free-for-all."

[mnischalke 0]

Did you call ADI?

I am pretty sure he'd be able to tell you exactly what you need to know.

Personally, when I decide I can no longer stand the scratches on my Hawkeye, I will probably fill, wet-sand and do a basecoat/clearcoat urethane finish on it with a decent amount of flex additive.

BTW, what is a "fogged-in" clearcoat? Is that like using overspray and charged particles or something?

mike

Girls only want boyfriends who have great skills--You know, like nunchuk skills, bow-hunting skills, computer-hacking skills.

[PLFKING 4]

Quote

BTW, what is a "fogged-in" clearcoat? Is that like using overspray and charged particles or something?

I don't know the terminology.
It's just what I call the lightest pattern on the spray guns in our plant's finishing room......shoots out more of a mist than a spray. It laid down very smoothly on plastic, but I could still feel some of the paint spots under it. I thought maybe someone here might have done it or even had pics of the finished effort.


Don

"When in doubt I whip it out,
I got me a rock-and-roll band.
It's a free-for-all."

[Jib 0]

I've been involved in painting gel-coated boats using Imron and Awlgrip. They're pricey and fuckin' nasty!! If you can get even a hold of them, you'll want to do it outdoors and wear a respirator with a new filter. You should read up on any other precautions before you try it too. Or find a buddy with an auto paint shop and get him to shoot it for you and use the left overs from his jobs to splatter your helmet with. As for how, we always sanded, wiped down with an appropriate solvent to remove any oils etc., tacked, primed and shot it. I think we sanded the primer too, but it's been awhile.

--------------------------------------------------
the depth of his depravity sickens me.
-- Jerry Falwell, People v. Larry Flynt

[Amazon 7]

I have never painted a gel coat helmet but I have painted quite a few boats... with Jell coat.

Preparation is important.. sanding... getting the outer glaze off is important.. and then tack cloth to get off the dust. Then a cleaning solution that is compatible with the epoxy paints... and then the marine paints applied.. the prep takes far longer than the actual painting..

Depending on how many coats you want.. a lite sanding and cleaning inbetween coats may be needed.. and then a clear coat.. all epoxy based.

Check out the marine paints for jel coats.. West Marine site would be good

Gel coat repairs
http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/WestAdvisorDisplayView?storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=10001&advisor=gelcoatrepairs.htm

Epoxy stuff

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/WestAdvisorDisplayView?storeId=10001&langId=-1&catalogId=10001&advisor=epoxyproducts.htm