Is it Worth painting ur own boat or take it in?

Question

How would I paint the boat while on the trailer, is there a way?

How muck would I be looking at to have it done? It's a 16' alum.

Answer 1

It really depends on the level of quality you require. What type of boat is it? if its an oldish timber hull then believe it or not a pro paint job would look awful, the shine would bring out all the blemishes and deformities in the hull. I recall a major restoration project on an old trawler where a pro awl-grip paint job looked absolutely horrific!

On the other, more likely hand, if its a fiberglass hull and you want that perfect paint job, you won't achieve this in an amateur setting, not without a crane at least. Expenses wise, if you want to spray, you will incur the same expenses as sending the boat off, but will acquire some assets which you may never use again..!

and on the third proverbial hand (!), if you want a very good paint job, in can be achieved by an amateur who has a lot of patience, attention to detail and does all the prepwork..

It would be exhaustive to detail exactly how to go about it (especially since your unsure if you will) but you should use 'awlgrip', primers and all.. and make sure to find yourself a long board and lots and lots of sandpaper! also save time with a  very good random orbit pre-long board.

Good luck, and you can email me on any particular aspects your unsure of!

Answer 2

One part of me says do it yourself. If you have any knowledge of painting then you can do it at home. Just do your prep work right and paint. I have painted a few hulls while they were on trailers, so it can be done. You have to use blocking and points to put the blocks. The blocks should be as small as allowable. You place the blocks at points on the trailer so as it raises the hull completely up off the trailer enough to paint. When your first coat dries, at least 24hrs, raise up the boat again and relocate the blocks so they are  now resting on the painted part of the hull. You may have to do this a couple of times and 24hrs between coats can be time consuming, but it works and you save a bundle. Now, the other part of me says bring me your boat and I can make a bundle. Heh Heh.    Happy Boating.