hogg@utcsri.UUCP (John Hogg) (03/15/85)
Hear, hear! A discussion about REAL boats!
My particular poison of choice is Sikkens Ruwa Chlororubber, racing black, to
be precise. Sikkens claims that their product is good for two years; two
years later, I agree, with reservations. The first year (which was EXTREMELY
warm) there was virtually no growth at the end of the season. By the end
of the second year with one scrubbing in mid-season, there was enough to
worry a racer.
Sikkens goes on fairly easily. (But don't paint in a breeze - the paint will
dry before it smooths out, and you'll have a LOT of sanding.) Wetsand
afterwards if you're serious about racing, down to about 400 grit. If you
don't like sanding, VC17 will give you a beautifully smooth bottom, but
you'll have to continuously washhaul.
It costs a bit more than most (but not all) paints; ~$43 a litre (Canadian)
when I called up this year. Spread this over two years instead of one and
it looks much better.
How did I choose this brand? Ashbridge's Bay Yacht Club does its own
hauling (see some volume in that eminently avoidable classic, the Time/Life
series on boating). After the riding the car up under the hundredth
dripping bottom, I noticed an incredible specificity and selectivity: the
clean boats were exactly those that had used Sikkens.
Caveats and disclaimers: I sail in fresh water (Lake Ontario) which a
Texan might consider cool. And while I ought to get a free tin of paint
out of this, I won't; I have no connection with any interested party.
The opinions herein expressed represent official policy of the Governing
Council of the University of Toronto, the Government of Canada, and a
passing Labrador Retriever.
--
John Hogg
Computer Systems Research Institute, UofT
{allegra,cornell,decvax,ihnp4,linus,utzoo}!utcsri!hoggjfh@browngr.UUCP (John F. Hughes) (03/18/85)
A brief report on bottom paint: my father did an experiment last year on his Mercer 44, which he had in the water about 8 months of the year, mostly in Marion, Mass., but also in Maine and Long Island Sound. He painted the starboard bow underbody and port quarter underbody with (I think) Petit bottom paint. The remaining two portions were painted with another bottom paint. One paint cost about $70/gal, the other about $30/gal. The results: no visible difference in protection. The reason for the quarter-by-quarter method is that boats which lie on a mooring tend to have one side towards the sun most of the day (in Marion, the wind is (almost always) from the SW, while the sun is in the south. This means that the starboard side of the bottom is in shadow while the port side is in sunlight...) On the subject of 'flashy' bottom paints: if you can get an old can of grafspeed (is that how it's spelled), i.e. more than 10 years old, the stuff is great. Recent stuff isn't half as good. The reason: they aren't allowed to use the same toxic junk in it. This means that if you *do* use it, you should feel guilty about pollution. One last remark: 'Sears Best' bottom paint is a real bargain if you don't care about having the very best. I used it one summer in fresh water and was very happy with it. -jfh