VC17

[jerome]

Any of you guys have some experience with this anti fouling ? I intend to use it on my boat. Can be applied straight to bare fiber but i might use VCtar (recommended) or Primekote (I have a little left over) as a primer

[slowpoke]

Hi Jerome,
I highly recommend you prime before applying your anti-fouling paint. The primer will help fill any small voids, and if you use a diferrent color than your anti-fouling paint, it lets you know when your paint is wearing through.

[Chad]

VC Performance Epoxy is my favorite, unless you're leaving the boat in the water for longer than a couple weeks at a time.

If you are leaving it in, definitely prime with something hard like Primekote, and make sure sure sure your keel trunk is perfectly sealed, and all your metal is out of the water (transom gudgeons). Dunno about VC17 for dry sailed boats- some bottom paints expire when left in the air for more than a few days.

[jerome]

Thanks for the answers, I am back in the garage for more sanding and then second coat of Primekote.

Talking of which, they n o longer sell Primekote in Turkey. Go figure. Actually it is a real mess between Interlu and International and every single countries offer products different than the other. THe UK International for instance sell stuff I have never heard of and is not listed in the USA International site which I usually refer to. For example, what is available now and recommended for priming Perfection is called Perfection Undercoat... I thought Epoxi Primekote was the best.....

[Ron Bowman]

I think Primekote is recommended for above the waterline only. If you intend to dry sail, I'd second Chad's suggestion about VC Performance Epoxy as a final finish. And for a primer, I'd suggest Interlux 2000e epoxy barrier coat. I'd suggest you stay away from VC Tar all together. VC-17 is popular in this area for fresh water as an anti fouling bottom paint. I think for salt water, VC Offshore might be a better choice than VC-17. Do you intend to keep your boat in the water, Jerome? If you intend to dry sail it, you probably don't need an anti fouling bottom paint.

Ron

[slowpoke]

And remember don't use an ablative paint, the kind that slowly disolves over time. They tend to be soft, and you can't sand them, so they will be slower than the hard bottom paints.

[jerome]

Ok guys,

need more help. Bare with me as it can be very confusing.... !

-İ finally understood that İnterlux is the brand name under which İnternational is know and distributed in the USA. Else where in the world it is İnternational and the very confusing thing is that every country has its own products, so the İnternational products you might find in France might be different from the ones in Greece from the ones in Turkey.... !
-my boat will most likely stay in the water year long. Sea water that is. Not fresh.
-İ did intend to use VC 17, and even bought a can, but figured out that it will be a headache with salty water unless İ clean the hull regularly or sail a heck of a lot....
-There is no VC offshore in Turkey, so İ have to switch to a more traditional antifouling paint.
-There is no İnterlux 2000 in Turkey. They sell İnternational İnterprotect which could be (or not ?) the same. İt is a good epoxi based primer for all antifoulings.
-Epoxi PrimeKote is no longer sold in Turkey. The trick is that İ already applied a coat ALL OVER THE BOAT of Epoxi Primekote. But İ only had enough for one coat. So İ have to look for another primer for the second coat.
-İf İ want to stick with an epoxi base primer, İ should go with İnterprotect. The good thing is that İ could probably prime the whole hull , underwater and above water , with İnterprotect but İ know it does not sand off as smooth as Epoxi PrimeKote so it might not give me the best results with Perfection.
-What they recommend down here for priming Perfection is called Perfection Undercoat, but it is not epoxi based. İnternational Turkey assures me İ will have no problem applying a layer of this non-epoxi primer on top of my fırst coat of Epoxi PrimeKote.
-Worst Marine recommended me to use Micron Extra as my boat is not a fast power boat. İ found out it is a soft ablative, not hard ablative paint.
-Read zillions of stuff on the web and the summary of it all is :
1/soft ablative will be slower than hard ablative anti fouling paints.
2/hard ablative will build up and will eventually need to be sanded off. İf not, layers will build up and make for a very bumpy hull surface
3/hard ablative such as İnternational Ultra cannot be taken out of the water without loosing their antifouling properties. Not good if İ want to trail my boat from time to time which could happen.
4/Micron can be reapplied every season without the need to sand previous and can be taken out of water without loosing properties.

İn summary:
1-VC is out. İ will go with a traditional antifouling
2-İ am still not sure if shooting for a hard ablative really makes a difference. Hey, although İ like to think of myself as being the owner of a sportboat, İ still dont even know if the thing wil float ! Plus the rigging will be heavier and shorter than the carbon stuff you guys have, the sails will most probably be normal Dacron instead of fancy composites, and ................İ still have a long way to learn how to sail the damn thing ! İn other words, so many other variables may hinder my performance that in the big picture İ think the soft ablative will make NO difference whatsoever. So İ might stick to Micron Extra. Please correct me if İ am wrong.
3- As far as primer İ could go simple and use İnterprotect all over. Will work fine with the antifouling and give me average results for all other Perfection painted areas. Butİ could go fancy and shoot for 2 different primers for each paint. İnterprotect for underwater. Wİll work fine for Micron. And that Perfection Undercoat for all other Perfection painted areas. The risk being in that case that İ will apply this undercoat on an epoxi based primer (PrimeKote) and although the İnternational dealer tells me it will work perfectly, İ still have my doubts.

Will hit WM tomorrow to switch cans and close the deal, whatever that might be so you guys help and inout on this issue is really important as İ have really wasted a lot of time trying to sort it out.
Plus İ need to paint the damn thing and flip it over before the summer ends.

Thanks !

[jerome]

good input, thanks. That is one vote for epoxi bottom (İnterprotect ) and I guess Micron Extra. (soft ablative)

[jerome]

Guys, sorry to be such a pain in the .... (yes İ know my English is improving) but İnternational just informed me that they have VC Offshore here in Turkey.

From what İ am reading, it looks just like what the doctor has ordered: "Smooth, hard, performance antifouling " and can be used for Fresh or salty waters.

İs that the sweet spot İ was looking for ?

[Ron Bowman]

If you have to keep your boat in the water but want a hard racing antifouling paint, then Interprotect and VC Offshore would be good choices. But if you can dry sail your boat, then Interprotect and VC Performance Epoxy would be good choices. Is there any chance you can dry sail rather than keep your boat in the water, Jerome? If so, I think that would be your best option.

Ron

[jerome]

Yeah Ron you are right and I would rather dry sail the boat but things in Turkey are much harder than elsewhere. To be honest, I still dont even know where I will be able to sail the boat. I might have to join a club and rent a place at the local marina. Expensive stuff....No way around Istanbul to just find that nice public boat ramp and launch .....No way Jose ! That is why I would rather be on the safe side and make sure my boat can stay in the water if there is no other way around it.