Posted by katorpus (jrb@…>)
Like Jay, I have a Freedom 40 Cat-Ketch with centerboard and use
Pettit Trindidad SR Red (most copper content)
The important thing to consider is compatibility of what you apply
with what’s already been applied inside the centerboard trunk.
Pressure washing and scraping will eventually remove the barnacles
and gunk in there, but short of some kind of sandblasting or
equivalent, you’ll never get the old paint off completely…so the
new stuff needs to NOT react with it.
There’s no NEED to remove the paint that’s “stuck” inside the
centerboard trunk, as long as you get off any that is
flaking/peeling. The reason you want the surface “smooth” on the hull
itself is to provide a fairer hydrodynamic surface to lessen the
friction of the water flowing past the hull. This is irrelevant
within the centerboard trunk (but not on the centerboard itself),
so…in this case…“more” is better.
I don’t try to get any rollers inside the trunk. You can do a lot by
using the cheap wooden chip brushes and nailing them onto the end of
an old broom stick or some such. Start “high” inside the box and work
your way down, getting as much paint as possible onto the surfaces
and “brushing out” the drips. Use a paint tray, as you will surely
manage to kick over a gallon paint can otherwise.
Plan on more coats than what you are applying to the hull, and
understand that the drying time in there is going to be a whole lot
longer than an exposed hullside (even on the shady side), so consider
that both before you paint and before you “splash” the boat again
afterwards.
You’re going to get more barnacle growth and slime in there anyway,
because you can’t adequately scrub it when you brush the hull while
the boat’s in the water, and an ablative finish works better when the
boat has motion through the water (that’s why they sell different
kinds for high speed/low speed boats)…inside the trunk, the
turbulence is all there’s gonna be, and that’s not enough to knock
anything loose.
It’s a good idea to replace your centerboard pendant earlier than you
think you need to (mine’s braid-on-braid spliced to a thimble on the
bottom end and shackled to the centerboard, not steel cable). The
deterioration at the point of attachment and within the centerboard
trunk bears no resemblance to what’s going on with the part you can
see above deck level. Be sure and “mouse” the shackle with stainless
wire after reinstalling it. It’s a hell of a lot easier to do all
this when the boat’s out of the water than when the board is stuck in
the mud with no way to raise it. Having it stuck in the rocks with no
way to raise it could be catastrophic.
— In FreedomOwnersGroup@yahoogroups.com, “Jay Glen” <svfantasy@…>
wrote:
I have an Freedom 40 Cat-Ketch with a centerboard and I live aboard
in the
San Francisco Bay Area. I just use the same bottom paint I use on
the hull
for centerboard. I try and paint as much as I can reach into the
trunk. I
use Petite Trinidad S/R Red.
On Fri, Jul 25, 2008 at 2:34 PM, Barry Stellrecht <yak@…>
wrote:
That’s true…but I’m much more concerned if there is anything
special
I should do with my centerboard trunk, and I am hoping that
somebody else
with a centerboard Freedom will have advice.
Knevins@… <Knevins%40cox.net> wrote:
It depends on where you are located. I have a F36/38 in the
lower
Chesapeake Bay, on the York River. Micron Extra works well for
me. I put
Petit Barnacle Blocker on the prop this year and short term it is
working
well. Others at the marina are enthusiastic about the Barnacle
Blocker.
I would suggest you ask people in your area what they like for
bottom
paint. Make sure your choice is compatible with what is on the
bottom now. I
think hard paint and ablative cannot be mixed. Happy sailing.
Kerry Nevins
–
s/v Flutterby, Freedom 33 cat ketch (becoming a junk rig)
–
Jay Glen ki6jtk
s/v Fantasy
Freedom 40 Cat-Ketch
San Francisco Bay Area