J/30 Class Association Forums J/30 Forum The Boat, Sails and Equipment Bottom Paint

Ok, so the new boat is on the hard. Totally the wrong season, but some things have to be done now.

I have the yard doing Trinidad SR/PRO on the bottom. It had VC-17, but it was chipping off due to bad undercoat. Am I making a mistake to use a more conventional bottom paint?

In looking at hatches, I have some mixed messages about flanged or not flanged hatches. Any strong feelings about flush deck flanges or inset where it might require some cutting into the fiberglass?

Thanks folks!
Marc Peterson
Portland, OR

Marc,

I do not have much experience or knowledge of Trinidad SR/PRO. I will say that I do like VC-17. It provides a good racing finish when prepared properly, it is very easy to re-apply (in my opinion), it retards growth relatively well, and growth cleans off of it relatively easily. The majority of boats in our area use VC-17. However, we are in fresh water 100% of the time and our water temperatures don't get much above 60/65 degrees. Not sure how that compares to your local conditions.

My two cents for what it's worth.

Tom Heinrich
Milwaukee, WI

Thanks Tom. The water on the Columbia does get warm late in the season, but I am not sure that changes much if the VC-17 is easy to clean. The boat was painted with VC-17 and it is flaking off. I understand this is more to do with the preparation of the hull than the paint itself. Pretty frustrating though.

Does VC-17 make the boat significantly faster?

Marc,
No disrespect to what others are telling you is intended here. I use VC-17 in fresh water too. Most all the local racers at our club (lake Erie - warm water, 70 degrees) use VC-17. But... VC-17 for fresh water is a totally different chemical make up than VC-17 for salt water.
What we tell you about VC-17 may not apply to your condidtions. Do some research, talk to the local racers. Here's one article on bottom paint. http://www.sailingworld.com/article/The-Bottom-Line-on-Bottom-Paint

Thanks Russ great link!