OB 15

[Cracker Larry]

That is a very nice motor restoration Beautiful

[CraigLam]

I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place! I can't finish my restoration project until I get the lower unit painted. I'm using Proline 2 part epoxy, above and below the waterline. The reducer is 4o bucks a quart! Does anybody know where and what generic brand might work? I already used a industrial thinner with acetone and xylene. Didn't happen. It came out "fuzzy". I sanded it off smooth, and a little primer remains. Proline is made by Sherwin williams, and I'm beginning to think that their reducer is only formulated for their products. 2 part marine epoxy can only be reduced, not thinned. Automotive epoxy is different, as well. I don't want to experiment or guess. I only have enough primer to finish one more coat of prime and it's $65 a quart. Any help would be great.

[gstanfield]

Any quality paint products are going to want their own reducers and only work well when used with the proper stuff. $40 is a low price to pay for a quality job. Remember that the bitter taste of failure lasts a lot longer than the sweet taste of money saved. I learned that the hard way on my FL14 build.

[CraigLam]

Thanks, G. I thought that's what was going to happen. The primer is great quality. It was a bear to sand. Good news, though, I'm getting a nice tax return. Maybe I can finish my restoration, now! By the way, I forgot to mention, I bought all the parts necessary for assembly. Not cheap! So, things should speed up a little. I'll post pictures of my progress as usual.

It's upside down, it stands up better. The green paint underneath, is a self etching primer for aluminum. You can see how I sanded it smooth. It's not bolted, the sections are just sitting on each other.

[gstanfield]

Sweet! Over the years I've restored many high $$ show cars, a few old trucks, an old semi-truck from the 30's, some antique motorcycles and even an old ford tractor, but I've never restored an outboard motor!! I'm enjoying watching this one

[CraigLam]

I thought I would update my project. I finally got a descent tax return, so, I decided to work on my outboard. It's a 2 part epoxy primer. After I let it dry, I sanded it with wet 320, 400, 600, and 1500. Very smooth.


My next project, as you can see, is the cowling. Talk about hodge podged. I can still get parts for this. A little Bondo, some sanding and paint.

I'm going to paint the leg unit white, the yoke blue, the transome unit blue and the cowling white. When I mean white, it's that light beige. I'll probably start that in a couple of weeks.

[gstanfield]

It looks very nice, although I'm concerned that you may have the primer too smooth for good adhesion of your color coat. Most single stage automotive paints that I use adhere best when the primer is sanded with 400-600 grit. If the primer is too smooth the paint won't stick well.

You're hard work is really showing and it's going to be an awesome outboard which is why I'd hate to see you have issues on down the road.

[dbcrx]

second that - 400 is fine for topcoating

[CraigLam]

Good advice. I have extra 400. I'll give it a once over with 400. Question: The guy at the paint store recommends 2 part ployurethane for the top coat. The quality of the Proline is amazing. Is there any other 2 part product, like Interlux, that you would recommend for above and below the waterline? Some of those companies offer free shipping, too. The reason I'm asking, is the Bearcat has a two-tone engine. Light beige and blue. And it only takes a half a quart to paint the motor. Proline is very expensive. Any help would be appreciated.

[CraigLam]

A little update. I took my welding test Monday for horizontal, not so good but I passed, and my verticle today. My verticle came out perfect! I saw them filling out the certs. Nice. I'll have 1/3 rd the requirements for a L.A. Certification license. Actually, I had no intensions of getting certified, I just wanted to learn how to weld. It started when I looked how much a trailer was. The cheapest was $3,000! I couldn't find a used one that I liked. So, I learned how to weld. I got a lot of help from people on this forum. Thanks, guys. When I start my trailer project, I will post photos.

Anyway, I called Smith Paint and explained about the cowling and if the had paint for me. They said they had fiberglass primer and a good enamel paint. I thought about this alot. The outboard, as you can see, is corrosian sealed and primed. This was very expensive. If everytime the outboard gets scratched or dinged, I can't afford $130 to repaint two-toned outboard. So, one of the vendors that supplies me with parts, says if you don't have the outboard sitting in the water all the time, a good quality enamel will do fine. Even auto paints were very expensive. So I'm gonna hunt around for a good enamel top coat. The OB 15 is a different story. No choice there. I'll be fishing maybe, two or three times a month, maybe a little more. After I get my welding cert. I'm taking a class in sewing upholstery. I'm getting a Sebo. It sews heavy material and leather. If I find a good paint, I'm gonna spray the outboard this weekend. I'll post more photos.