i550class.org

Here is another doubt.

I am just about to use the Kiwi Grip I bought. I masked all areas which I do believe should be covered up with non skid.....and that is quite a lot !!! Actually most of the white paint I currently have over my entire deck from bow to transom will be covered up in anti skid.....Or not ?
Cockpit floor, bensons, cockpit sides upper decks, cabin top, fore cabin bow deck. I mean what is left without non skid ???? What have you guys done ?

Jerome I'll get either some pictures or a drawing of where I put the non skid down later tonight . I don't believe you need as much coverage as your thinking.

Here is a picture of most of the non skid areas.The bensons are covered and the two areas between them in the cockpit. You can see where the sections are on the deck forward and aft. I did add non-skid to the cabin top and am happy that I did. (note) tha cabin top was not built with one sheet of 1/4" ply. Might be overkill but will easly support two trying to stand the mast for the first time.

Lots of ways to go with the non-skid. I'm happy with the amount I have down. My thought when laying it out was If I need or want I can alwase add more later, easier to do than removing it.

Goodness! That is a good looking boat.

Hi Jon,

this is a picture of my recently updated blog.



As far as İ can tell, it is not so different from yours . The main exceptions would be :
-the area in between cockpit sides and bensons. You did not use anti skid but İ was planning on doing so
-the aft part of your cockpit sole. That is because you aligned your non skid with the ends of your bensons. İ will do exactly the same but because my bensons are longer, İ will most likely have non skid all the way to transom
-the area towards transom of the cocpkit sides upper decks. I guess once again it is because you align everything with cockpit floor.
-the area on side decks along cabin sides between jib rail and end of cabin. This is the area where you have your stripes painted. İ intended to have non skid as there as well and do some fancy designs around the chain plates and the jib rails but İ could indeed leave that space free of non skid. İ am just wondering if it makes sense and if this area should not have non skid as well. İ mean if someone have to go forward of cabin to get something fixed, work with jib or spinn or anything else, wouldn't it be nice to make sure the sides around the cabin are non skid ?
-the cockpit side panels wich İ intended to leave white at first but then decided to cover with non skid because the paint was not perfect. İ was hesitant to do so at first until İ looked back at pictures of the first Portland fleet boat. İt is covered with non skid, including on the sides and looks pretty sharp ! no matter what İ do with those sides, İ will leave the rounded transition to cockpit upper decks white and smooth as it is.
-The other main difference İ can tell is that the width you have used for all spaces where you did not use non skid (such as next to sheer clamp or at the cockpit sides to upper decks) are much larger than what İ planned. İ could definitely increase those because İ mostly used narrow tape (2cm) to separate all areas.

Then there is the cabin top wich we cant see on the picture but you already told us you used non skid there as well and İ intend to do the same.

Ben, Josh, Kevin, Jeff, Ron all others ? What did you guys do ?

The nonskid on the forward deck does come right over the stripes. I made a break at the chain plates. Because the product I used is translucent it's hard to see. That area is a must for going forward.

Ok so , that pretty much confirmed what İ initially had in mind.

Here is a link to a few pictures of the Portland boat. They did use a lot of light grey non skid !

http://i550class.org/eric/blog/hardware-hardware-hardware

Jerome,
I did not do the side of the cockpit. I've yet to need it and with the bensons that would probably be where my foot goes. The portland boat doesn't have bensons. I also did not do my cabin top. Might be a place I go back and add it in later. While underway, I have little need to go forward of the mast, but when you do, some non-skid helps.
I used kiwi grip which was very easy to put on and turned out really well. On the decks I put it on very thin (with a roller and then textured it with the special roller) and there is some show through of the primer which was not pure white. In the cockpit sole I used just the texture roller and put it on heavy. It's very grippy and me like it. But I wouldn't want to sit on anything that grippy, so I'm happy.

Hope that makes sense. Kevin.

Thanks Kevin !

just learning about kiwi grip...is it a 'rubbery' texture?
...in past applications of non-skid,,I've just used a grip additive when spraying...this stuff does smooth out eventually.
....it's always a great effect to have a 2 tone finish between tread and non-tread areas,and subliminally lets you know where to step

Jon,

What is the brand of the translucent material that you used?

Phil

I've not been as happy with Kiwi Grip as others have. I've read the great reviews here and all over SA, but after using it on the boat I helped prep and race to Hawaii, I found it to be overly harsh and abrasive when dry and actually pretty slick when wet. Sort of the worst of both worlds.

I'm going to use one of the foam peel and stick coverings (Hydro-Turf) instead- sort of like having knee pads built into the boat.

I raced an Open5.7 for a weekend, and that boat has no non-skid on any of the decks- just the cockpit sole. We had no trouble with traction, but that's not a boat that's prone to tipping much. I'll be using as little non-skid as I can get away with- easier to add, than sand off later.

Phil,
The product I used is from system three, non-skid granules. They are a polycarbonate and small in size. I applied the non-skid the old school way. After taping off the areas I applied a thick coat of the same clear I used to finish the boat, sprinkled the non-skid material liberally, waited until dry vacuumed off the excess then coated again with the same clear. It was very aggressive, more then I wanted. A once over with 60 grit on a sanding block produced both the grip I was looking for and the translucent effect I wanted. I'm happy with the results, easy to see when on the boat and it doesn't cover up all the work put I put onto the paint job.

Actually, this is the discussion thread that I meant to bring forward about non-skid paint. After reading a bit, I think that I'm just going to sprinkle a grip material on wet paint instead of using a premixed grip paint. Any experience out there with Awlgrip Griptex? They have fine, course, and extra-course. Any suggestions?

Phil

Sorry, believe it or not the last time I just used fine grade silica sand, using the old method Jon described above. I've even gone real old school and used ground walnut shells. You can buy them at gun shops, they're used to clean empty shell casings.

I used KiwiGrip personally. I have found it to be ok, but not quite "fantastic". I have new deck shoes for this season so I'll see if they and the kiwi grip get along any better. One thing it doesn't do is cover completely. I put it over primed boat, not painted boat, and you can see though it in area where I put it on really thin on purpose. This is mostly where crew usually sits and the forward deck. The cockpit floor I did extra goopy and it's pretty good.

You biggest issue is when things go really wrong (everyone on the leeward side for example). There isn't enough weight in the bulb or water line width to stop the boat form listing dramatically. That's just physics in action.

Kevin.

...you can try the simpletech approach of adding cabosil epoxy thickener to your favorite paint and roll on.
...a bit of experimentation and practice and -presto- you can adjust the mix for varying textures