Preview: Building the Oonagh Rowing/Sailing Dinghy, Part 11 – The Upper & Lower Guards

14 Responses So Far to “Building the Oonagh Rowing/Sailing Dinghy, Part 11 – The Upper & Lower Guards”

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  john dennis says:

  For what its worthI used Brightside Hatterst off white for the hull and Bristol beige for the interior .It seems similar to the boat Kit built.

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  Bob Donaldson says:

  I am ready to start fairing the bottom and priming, which leads me to my question about paint. What paint did they use and what color is the yellow in the pictures? It is very attractive and I would like to match the same look.

  Bob Donaldson

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    Lou Kimball says:

    Yes, same question here. I assume it was one part epoxy like Interlux Brightside? I just watched the new 4 part paint series and have about decided that’s what we should use, since it it will be on new, mostly bare wood. I will not be matching the color, but I do need advice on the bottom paint, since my boat will stay in the water all season. I assume that since I did the dynel, I won’t need a barrier coat first?

    Thanks

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    Michael Seibert says:

    This is from the comments re: video # 1 in this series.

    Barry Frank says:
    November 21, 2020 at 8:20 am
    I agree the color scheme is perfect. What paint and colors were utilized?

    Reply
    Steve Stone says:
    January 26, 2021 at 12:51 pm
    Those are special mixes used by Hylan & Brown.

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    Steve Stone says:

    Hey Bob and others.  We’ve added a discussion on paint choices in the new boatbuilders’ forum we’re launching tomorrow so that the discussion of paint is in a place where everyone can find easily find it, and not buried down in the discussion on a video about “Guards”, but here’s Doug’s the question about their paint choices on the original ARRIBA in the videos…

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      Steve Stone says:

      From ARRIBA’s designer, Doug Hylan: The paint regimen that I use is rather complicated and boring.  Also, I find that most people who come to me for paint recommendations seldom take them, as I often don’t use off-the-shelf paints and they really want to pick their own colors.  That said, here are my general tenets:

      I use single part alkyd based paints only.  I mix these together, without regard to brand, to get the color and finish I want.     I believe that most boats look better with low gloss paints.  This is a problem, because most paint manufacturers spend their sleepless nights trying to find more gloss!  These same manufactures have discontinued most of the stock colors that I like.  To complicate further, our painters here at the shop are of a persnickety bent — they don’t like to mix colors, prefer certain paints, and secretly love the kind of gloss that I find alarming.

       As a result, I have spent a lot of time (really a lot) experimenting with suppliers that: 1) offer good colors, but whose paint is despised by my crew, 2) make lovely paint, but don’t offer anything in the finish or colors that I want, 3) make lovely paint with a nice low gloss finish and will custom mix colors, but can’t mix the same color twice, 4) make paint in the colors and finish I like, but this paint “doesn’t last”, meaning that it tends to flatten markedly over a couple seasons.

      So, I am always on the lookout for paints that have the colors and finish that I like.  Because most paint manufactures change their offerings (and even the formulas for existing products) from time to time, the search is ongoing, the list changes, and multiple sources are involved.

      Here is the paint scheme for OONAGH, the boat that is the subject of the OCH video series:

      Topsides — Our house white, which is four parts of Interlux Flat White, one part Pettit Off White.
      Sheer strakes — Kirby custom mix, named Grayling Gray, semi-gloss
      Interior — Epifanes custom mix called Tender Interior Cream, mixed with their satin base.

      Doug Hylan

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        Steve Stone says:

        When painting HOWDY, Off Center Harbor’s Caledonia Yawl, it was much of the same.  We used a wide variety of paints as a test, including a moderately high quality exterior house paint, and with the exception of the need for a good anti-fouling bottom paint (since we leave our dinghies in the water all season) and the need for a good marine paint for the topsides just above the waterline where growth can collect and conditions can torture exposed wood, we didn’t find a huge difference between all the paints in their ability to protect the wood (the purpose of paint).  

        Our favorite on the HOWDY over the years is Interlux Brightside and we typically now keep a big can of Interlux 242 flat white, or the semi-gloss depending up your desire for gloss vs. flat, and we mix in a bit of whatever color we’d like the shade of white to take on.  While the new-tech poly-eurothane paints like Brightside will keep their luster longer than the others like Kirby, we actually like the look of flatter paint, not glossy, and Kirby has amazing colors and can match any color you want so they make the color thing easy.  

        If the boat will be trailered and kept indoors in the off season, I might bypass all the science and chemistry and call up Kirby for the colors you want.  If the boat is going to be outside all season, and treated roughly, then a new tech paint might stand up to those conditions better over the long haul.

        Note in Geoff Kerr’s excellent video on his epoxy/primer/paint progression process, he says that his original Interlux Brightside paint job lasted 17 years with minor touch ups to cover bare spots from wear.

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          Steve Stone says:

          In short, what we’ve all learned over time is what Doug put so eloquently — there’s no silver paint bullet and it’s yet another area where we all kinda have to let go of the idea that we missed the memo on the perfect solution and just get a couple coats of paint on and go sailing. We get reminded by Havilah Hawkins that paint’s purpose is to protect the wood, and if you keep a coat or two on the bare spots as they appear the boat won’t know if she’s painted to perfection and will row and sail exactly the same.  And the stress level of an imperfect boat is exponentially less.

          That said, the guys like Doug and Maynard and Tommy Townsend (be sure to watch Tommy’s video on his paint philosophy on OCH) have given us all a gift in showing us what’s possible in aesthetics by freeing us up from having to stick with the sometimes hideous color limitations of what’s on the shelf so we can accent our boats for just the right look and feel they deserve.  

          And therein lies the hypocrisy of OCH’s boat paint philosophy — no fuss, but make it look just right.

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  John Keck says:

  I love watching Kit build, and explain, Oonagh. It’s not only wonderful to watch someone so thoroughly competent, but she’s able to talk about what she’s doing so well. No hemming and hawing, “like” or “um” every 3 words, etc. While I’ll likely never build my own, Building Ooonagh has been a great adventure to participate in, vicariously, so far. Sure makes me want to have one of these beautiful little boats!

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  jeffrey chabot says:

  I also ordered and now have the sail from Gambell and Hunter.
  Can’t wait to launch, would love to see John PEI’s finished boat, Jeff

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    john dennis says:

    Jeffrey ,Send me your email address to johndennis@pei.sympatico.ca and I can send you some pix.

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  jeffrey chabot says:

  just wondering why kit didn’t wet out the plywood when she installed the upper and lower guards, great job catching up you guy’s do an awesome job at everything you do. it’s great working with Kit building this boat I have learned a lot of tricks and its very rewarding seeing this come together, it gives me so much more respect to my late Dad that built boats and I have the honor to finish his 40′ sailboat he started years ago and I will use a lot of these things I am learning, thanks again, Jeff

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    stevetest stonetest says:

    Good question Jeffrey. We most often see builders “wet out” (painting on a coat of unthickened epoxy on before applying thickened epoxy for bonding) a wood/plywood surface when end grain is exposed, as that end grain will suck in the more viscous/thin parts of the thickened epoxy mixture and foul up the exothermic chemistry mixture/ratio/reaction that allows the thickened epoxy to cure fully. The “wetting out” isn’t as necessary for the smooth surface of plywood which will “suck” less.

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  john dennis says:

  On my scratch built Oonagh I found it easier to install the upper and lower guards after the hull is taken off the molds and turned over even though Kit did it before.
  After turning the hull over I levelled it which made it easier to set the bulkheads in place with a level. Boat is now finished and sail ordered from Gambell and Hunter.

  Looking forward to summer. John PEI Canada