Painting Oars for Dummies

[gamestop]

Can someone take me through painting oars from start to finish? I have a fairly good idea of what to get, how to apply, etc. but this is my first time and I have about 32 sets that need painting.

I know the basic instructions C2 gives you, but what else should I know?

[MChase]

How detailed a design?
All the same design of oar?
Do you have rowers to help?
Do you want fast and easy or do you want durability?
Can you do it outside (concern for vapors)?

I usually paint 8-16 sweep oars per season. If the design is simple enough and all the oars the same size, making a template from a thin plastic sheet helps, one strong enough that it stays decently flat, flexible enough fit over a curved surface, but durable enough to be used again and again. If your oars are all the same, then a template works well. You place the template on the oar (separate templates for port/starboard, face/back) and mark where you want the tape edge using a sharp pencil. I have one rower do the marking. Then I have 2 rowers do the taping along those marks. Use the good quality blue painters tape from HomeDepot or even clear packing tape (a bit harder to remove!). You'll get a sharper edge. One tapes the face, the other the back. Then have yet another rower roll something over the edges of the tape to get very good adhesion. Otherwise, you could have some bleeding under the edges. That rower passes it off to another rower who takes an electric sander to the oar to roughen up the primer (assuming C2 oars with the hardest primer on the earth). Got to use an electric sander to get good surface prep otherwise you will get paint flaking off later. I use a pretty medium grade, in the 150 range. That rower hands it off to another rower who wipes it down to get a clean surface. You should use a tack cloth (available in about 5 packs from Home Depot). They are sticky and pulls off the fine dust/sanding particles. Hand it off to the painter. Our oars are white and blue, so I only paint blue and leave the primer bare since the primer is white and hard as hell.

With a line of people and clean oars to start, you can do 32 oars pretty quickly. The key is using templates.

For paint, I use Interlux Perfection 2-part polyurethane paint. Very hard stuff. It rolls on nicely. Get the small rollers (5-6") without a thick nap...just foam. Order them from Wholesale Marine when you order Interlux Perfection, if you do, because their rollers won't disintegrate in the polyurethane after a few minutes as some from your local hardware store might.

I do it outdoors so I don't inhale all the fumes. Don't do this in a closed space. If it's under 60 degrees, wait til it's warm. Polyurethane will take forever to harden if its not warm. Also, if using two part polyurethane, do not expose the paint, while hardening, to sun. It will lose most of its luster. It says don't paint in direct sunlight on the can, but I said, Yea, sure and learned the hard way.

For mixing polyurethane, the easiest way is to buy plastic ketchup style squirt bottles. I get them over the Internet by the case. If it is 2:1 mixture of paint and hardner, then I mark off 2" and 3"....fill to 2" inches with the polyurethane paint, then the additional inch with hardner. Mix and put the squirt top back on. Squirt the paint onto the oar, spread with roller, squirt, spread. It is so fast this way. Throw the squirt bottle and roller cover away afterward. Nice thing with the squirt bottle approach is that you can measure any quantity easily with a simple tape measure. You don't need disposable measuring cups.

With something like Interlux Perfection, the oars will look good for a long time despite daily use. I am done with the spray can approach. It used to work better but now with the really hard primer on the C2 oars, you just can't get the adhesion that you do with polyurethane and definitely not the durability. Two part polyurethane is the type of paint used on your boats and car.

Caveat- I don't think I've read the updated C2 instructions-- they probably have some good info.

[gamestop]

Thanks. Luckily, very easy, no design just straight one color. Have a decent amount of help from staff. Definitely want durability and staying power. I guess my questions are more regarding the product of paint that I use. For example, what if the Interlux Perfection does not have my desired color? Where does one purchase that type of paint? Can I simply use Behr's Premium Plus? Sounds like it matches up with the needs pretty well. Also, as far as purchasing a 2-part polyurethane, does the polyurethane come with the paint? Or do you have to select both, and if so, what do I look for in that choice?

[Scott @ Noble Hardware]

I don't think latex paint (Behr) would do very well on oars. It's usually quite soft and doesn't tend to stick very aggressively.

A two-part paint like Interlux Perfection will come with both parts. Mix according to the directions. Intelux also has their Brightside series that is a one-part system. Easier to use, and less toxic, but perhaps less durable.

Spray paint can be fine. I've had good luck with Rustoleum spray. You can also buy Rustoleum in quart or gallon cans, and then paint with rollers. Depending on your home-center, they might be able to tint this paint to your choice of color.

Prep is important. Be sure to scuff-sand the areas to be painted. A 400 grit sandpaper would be fine. Clean the surface with Acetone, let it evaporate, then paint right away. Keep un-gloved hands off at this point, since the oils in your fingers will prevent adhesion.

[JD]

We changed designs last summer -white with two stripes because we couldn't distinguish our crews from one of our rivals from more than 750M away. We sanded all paint off, primered, reshot 2 coats in white Krylon and took them to a sign company. The stripes are vinyl covered with a clear tape used to cover vinyl logos on floors. Amazing stuff. We've rowed summer and fall with 5 trailer trips and there's hardly a scratch on the stripes.

[crewu]

The folks who have painted oars for years will be able to recommend the best paints, sandpaper grit, number of coats, etc.

My best contribution would be to pick the time of year you paint. High humidity levels are a killer for keeping the paint on in layers regardless of your brand of paint. For me, I only paint in the late fall or late winter (always outside), when I get days above 60F and low humidity. Unfortunately, this might also be when you are going to likely be wanting to use your oars.

[KiwiCanuck]

This is a bit of an old thread so it's probably too late, but... some pointers from my experience...

Outdoors unless you've got a paint room and proper mask/respirator/total coveralls...

Use a compressor/air system, and two-part automotive paint so it cures, rather than just drying.

If you get "orange peel" when the paint's wet, it could be some silicon residue from mould release compounds. The time this happened to me, the paint supplier sold me a small tin of silicon in a solution, and something like 2 mL in a paint pot solved the problem.. something about the molecular structure of the silicon on the oar no longer interfering with wetting, because there was now silicon in the paint. (silicone? I never know)

Be careful to press down the edges of the masking tape. Use good masking tape, too - so you don't get the paint bleeding under it.

Take off the tape while the paint is still wet. If you let it harden, you then have to cut the paint at the edge of the tape to make sure that the paint on the oar won't chip or lift when you pull up the tape - if it's still liquid, and if you haven't put too much material on the blade, you'll have a nice, clean paint edge.

Prepping the blade for the paint - I asked an auto body guy once what to do to get a boat ready for paint - he said "rough it up with #1000 wet" If you're good with the paint, you can see the sanding scratches under the paint with 400 and 600. If that's a concern, use #1000...

Use a tack cloth just before you paint - to get all the dust and other crud off.

Or... if you're in a hurry, and you're not worried about microscopic examination, use a bit of masking tape, and roll the paint onto the blade. Much faster, requires less equipment and gas-masks...

[crewu]

Take off the tape while the paint is still wet. If you let it harden, you then have to cut the paint at the edge of the tape to make sure that the paint on the oar won't chip or lift when you pull up the tape - if it's still liquid, and if you haven't put too much material on the blade, you'll have a nice, clean paint edge.

This advice may save me much angst in the future.

[caustic]

I've only rattlecanned my oars when I painted them, but currently my sculls have had the same coat of paint for 6 years now, with no issues.