Well, it's been quite a while since my last post. The Christmas festivities took up a lot of time, as usual, and we have had a lot of work done in the house which has meant I have not been able to spend much time boatbuilding.
However, I have not been completely idle.
In the previous post I had finished applying the fourth coat of white and blue gloss on the undersides of the boat. This coat was thinned with 10% Epifanes thinners and had 5% AwlGrip hardener added.
I didn't really expect it to be the final coat, and of course it wasn't. Brush and lap marks took care of that!
So the whole undersides of the boat were wet sanded with a P400 grit until it was beautifully smooth all over, and then masked for white gloss.
Now, since the previous post I have done a lot of research into masking tape and paint conditioners.
I found a mother lode of great advice at the Off Center Harbour website. You will have to join to access their tutorial videos, but it's worth it.
There are three excellent videos on how to varnish a wooden boat, and the second one is all about masking tape and how to use it. As a result I invested in some 3M 218 Fine Line tape, as used and recommended by a professional boat painting shop. This is it.
It comes in various widths. I am using 1/2" for long straight or slightly curved sweeps, and 1/8" for tight curves. The 1/2" tape doesn't like tight bends - it buckles.
This is the transom masked up for white gloss.
I have to back up the 218 tape with ordinary masking tape because it is only 1/2" wide.
This is the transom masked for blue gloss.
And this is the starboard side masked off for blue gloss.
The fifth coats of both white and blue gloss were applied, thinned with 10% Epifanes thinners and with 5% AwlGrip hardener added.
I was hopeful that this might be the final coat, but not really expecting it to be so. I left it for two weeks to fully cure.
See the next post for the outcome!
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