Aluminum Boat Restoration

[pbwalker]

So...in the spirit of my recent Dave Ramsey FPU class, I did not go out and buy an expensive bass boat. I purchased a used 14' Aluminum off of Craiglist for $225 (no motor).

The boat is sound physically, but it needs some cleaning / painting. It's a 1969 Procraft. Herein lies the reason for my post. Now, I know I can go to a boaters forum, but I figured I would check with y'all too.

I'm looking to paint the exterior and interior. I'll also be adding a casting deck and floorboards to flatten the bottom. My question in around the painting. Does anyone know of any good products that paint AND seal? I'm looking to do an Olive Green (and possibly camo to use as a duck boat in the future) on the exterior and a white on the interior (along with marine carpet).

Now, it's a riveted boat so naturally I've got to watch for leaks.

So...can anyone recommend any solutions? I'm doing this solo, so the easier the better. Remember, I paid $225 for it, so if it's Krylon and Minwax Sealer, that's perfect!

[NuBer92]

Id say invest in some j b weld. It is a life saver. Esp in your case. good luck.

[WarHawk-AVG]

JB Weld or long set 2 part epoxy inside the seams and VOILA

I used a chicken feeder w/ the seams epoxied to parkerize an Ishapore Enfield...at boiling temp the seams didn't leak!

I also (in my youth) used my dads 14" John Boat as a backstop for my bow/arrows...he used JB Weld globs to seal the holes I left

So how far have you gotten on your Dave Ramsey FPU stuff?!?

[casingpoint]

LOL, you don't have to watch for leaks in a riveted aluminum boat. They will tell you where they are.

[pbwalker]

So how far have you gotten on your Dave Ramsey FPU stuff?!?

I'm still working on paying off debt...and I am sure Dave would not agree with this purchase, but hey...ya gotta pay yourself every once in a while.

[KRM45]

You don't want to paint it... You want to blue it, or maybe parkerize it...

[gmckinl]

Good luck.

I bought an old riveted aluminum boat back in 85, it was ~20 years old. Took it to the lake and had 6" of water in it after 30 minutes. Leaked like a sieve. I used SS bolts and nuts to replace the leaking rivets. They DO have to be replaced somehow, either w/ a new rivet or like I did plus some sealant. I subsequently replaced: wheels/tires, all wiring in boat, all wiring and lights on trailer, floorboard, seats, transom, mounting bracket on the outboard motor, battery, fuel tank, trailer rollers. I never could fix it's failure to idle (would idle fine in a test tank at home, in the lake it would die when you pulled the throttle back to idle). I bought it for $500, put an additional $1200 into it, sold it for $800

Before you take it out try this. Pull up the floor board if you can. Start filling the boat with a garden hose. Use a grease pencil to mark the leaking rivets on the outside of the boat. Start replacing them. You'll get good at drilling out rivets after a while. Don't put more than just a few inches of water or the weight will damage the hull.

Painting aluminum is a bear (getting it to stick). A zinc-chromate primer is used when painting airplanes (aluminum skin). You may want to consider using it.

I highly recommend you get a subscription to Trailer Boats magazine and find where your closest West Marine is.

I wish you happy times ahead.

[casingpoint]

Don't bother to paint the boat. You'll look like the best fisherman on the water.

[saj111]

you need an etching primer. the zinc chromate is good but go to an automotive paint store and get an epoxy etching primer. it will do the job of the zc and primer at the same time. the z c is only for a bond to the metal and you need to prime over it before painting.
one thing to remember is do not sand blast aluminum. it will warp like crazy.

[gregthehand]

I have tried my hand at painting aluminum before. I used some 3 part epoxy paints that in the end made me wish i had just left it bare. You might be able to get someone to Line-X our otherwise spary in bedline the outside. Doing so would stick very well, would be very easy to keep clean, and would be very tough. You wouldn't have those long silver scratches along the bottom of the boat you get with painting. Additionally you probably would not have to worry about leaks anymore either. Higher upfront cost but probably a much lower total cost of ownership.

[pbwalker]

After several days of research and reading this, I think I am not going to paint it. I'll just leave it as is. :)

[Piney]

After several days of research and reading this, I think I am not going to paint it. I'll just leave it as is. :)

Seal it up, make it comfy inside and hit the lake !

If you add a platform inside, be sure to add some trap doors you can open to let it dry out under there.