So If I understand correctly, I can roll on the base color gel coat and then I would want a contrasting color to mix with the webbing solution to spray on? I would probably do something like a green base with white splatter.

Drew

Grey (approx 18%) base with or without white spatter is a great all around choice. Personal preferences aside there is sound color management science for grey. I'll spare you the details, but suffice it to say I've owned a number of Lavro color choices and although green and blue weren't bad choices, the grey (light or dark) was much better IMO.

I do like the looks of grey. If any of you have seen Redd_Daetona's boat it's just awesome! I seem to remember a grey base with black and white splatter. Care to share a pic Scott?

Drew

Both my drift boat and jet boat are grey with white and black webbing, actually so is my bay boat, I don't use it much and tend to forget about it.

I too haven't seen zolotone used on fiberglass.

I re-painted the interior of my 1st sled, a 18' Fishrite. Bought the zolotone (kinda spendy) and used a HVLP gun (probably the wrong applicaion but it was all I had access to). I had never painted anything except my 1st JEEP with rattle cans. It turned out great. I used their clear coat and applied 3 coats. If zolotone is not clear-coated it doesn't last long IMO. STAM and ondarvr are the resident paint experts here on PP from what I can discern, so I'd listen to them.

Stam

Zolatone works well on aluminum and would probably hold up almost as good on the inside of a F/G DB.

The nice thing about gel coat is that it's chemically the same as the rest of the boat and when used in new construction this chemical bond is a great advantage, little or no prep work is needed other than sanding off the unsightly or rough spots. Other types of paint need the surface prepped before applying them. Plus gel coat has a very high viscosity and goes on thick (20 + mils), so it will hide a great deal of sloppy work. This thick film also means it will last a long time and take a great deal of abuse.

The inside of a F/G DB has a good deal of texture from the glass fibers, so prep work can be a little difficult. If the surface can't be sanded easily then I use a stiff wire brush to abrade the surface before applying any type of coating.

It's a very low tech application, roll on the base color and then spray over that with gel coat mixed with webbing solution. Any cheap spray gun will work, quality isn't needed. You just vary the amount of webbing solution to achieve the affect you want, small amounts make it splatter in droplets, more makes long strings.

That's some good info. Thank you. I'll probably go check out that gel coat products place since they're only a few miles from my house. Now the question is what to do with my benches. Right now they're a nice shade of oxidized green with egg goo. I thought about using some bedliner for em but egg goo is probably hard to clean from a highly textured surface like that. Anybody got some ideas?

Drew

paint the seats pink and you will never notice the egg goo again! I am purchasing my first driftboat this weekend and I plan on just dying the inside pink and red from egg goo and blood!
Fish on and good luck with the boat!

Are the seat benches a mold finish, or are they textured in the same way as the hull? from what you said I assume it's textured in the same way, which means you do the exact same thing with the same products.

The benches are smooth plastic.

Drew

If you like the color of green on the seats, you can buff them and the gloss will return, occasionally you need to do little wet sanding with a fine grit to remove the oxidation, but try buffing first.

If you want a different color, or one to match the grey you plan to use in the future, then you need to paint them with a good automotive paint if you want it to look good and hold up for along time. There are other options for paint if you want to spend less, but the look won't be as good.

I went out and checked the benches and they are actually glass. They are smooth on the outside but when I run my hand under them I can feel the texture of the glass. Thanks for your help ondarvr, stam, and everyone else. Hopefully I can pick a weekend to bust out this project fairly soon.

Drew

Haha. Now that is funny right there Scott.