Sunday, June 14, 2009

Another Kayak Update

The boat is finally coming together. I have about six coats of Rust-Oleum in Sunburst Yellow on it and have learned a few things along the way. After about the fourth coat the paint finally stopped soaking into the canvas and the enamel started to show its true value. The only issue was that the canvas also started to pill and wasn't as smooth as I had hoped. But, since the paint was starting to do it's thing, a quick sanding with some 80 grit sandpaper took care of everything.

The bow and stern have at least eight or nine coats since they've been painted every time the paint was out. They are truly smooth and tough, but they will be taking the most of the abuse.

The mottled spots in the pictures mean the whole thing needs another coat. I hope to have a relatively smooth finish when it's all done. I did have some concerns at first about using Rust-Oleum, but the price, the colour selection, and the ease of application, once you know what your doing, convinced me otherwise.

The next step will be the stencils in Hunter Green and Smoke Grey. I also plan to paint the cockpit coaming green as well as adding some designs to the front and back. The stencils are of a nautical theme, with sea stars, fish, seahorses, sharks, and turtles. Isabelle picked them out and will be helping me put it all together. I also need to do up a paddle for her too, after I fix my own...

Next post: A Day (or Four) at the Beach...including some kayak surfing.