Rolling non skid

[Capt.Frank]

I have rolled and tiped Algrip before with good succes. I am going to roll some non skid on the top of my new hard top. My queston is foam or nap roller? My plan is to roll a base coat over the top. Sand the area I want smooth. Tap and roll non skid mixed in the paint. Then one of regular paint over the hole top. If needed another coat on the smooth areas.

How does this sound?

[CaptPatrick]

Frank,

Carry your gloss through completion, including a second coat if needed. Allow it to harden for a couple of days. Mask off and fine line tape the area for the non-skid. It's much easier to get a good tape line on a smooth surface than it is to try and tape over non-skid.

Try a few 1'x1' samples to find the texture you're happy with. Short nap & foam roller covers both will work, with slightly different results. Try different sand mixtures to the degree of roughness you like. If you opt for the foam, be sure the quality and construction is designed for high solvents paint, (usually a red or blue core). The cheap foam covers will fall apart if used with a 2 part paint.

You don't have to use an expensive paint for the samples. A one part latex will do fine, just try to match the viscosity of the paint that you'll use on the hard top. Pull the fine line tape before the paint cures.

If you over coat the non-skid on the hard top, pull the tape after the non-skid and re-tape for the over coat.

Br,

Patrick

[IRGuy]

Frank and Capt Patrick...

My dumb question for today...

Why put nonskid on a hardtop?

[RussP]

Frank, as Patrick described prep for non skid. For a 100% pro finish mix 50% fine & 50% coarse non skid material in a conventional spray gun. Roll on the paint to be non skidded and spray the nonskid material over the wet paint. After it dries blow off the excess material and your done. I know it's not cheap but the AwlGrip nonskid material is the best. It is near imposable to get consistent nonskid when rolling.
RussP

[CaptPatrick]

Why put nonskid on a hardtop?

From time to time, you may need to crawl up there and the non-skid makes for a better footing...

[Capt.Frank]

I am not going to non-kid the hole top, probobly 1/2. Long term is a crows nest for cobia and dolphin. Short term keep rain off me and can finial mount a spotlight on top.

Russel a regular spray gun with a big tip?
I have been told the 50/50 already. Use a sifter and sift on the non-skid.

I figured mix it with the paint better finish. Rolled first coat to day. sand it tomorrow with 220 and paint second coat.

[Pete Fallon]

Capt Frank,
I just did the tops of both of my old beat up single piece engine boxes that I got from Marlin's boat, mine is an express cruiser. I had the original 2 lid flip up box tops, that were really hard to work around without dismantling 1/2 the boat.
I can't use a spray gun in my attached condo 2 car garage. So after fairing the old boxes, I rolled & tipped 3 coats of Oyster White brushable Awlgrip. After drying for a couple of days, I tapped off the area and lightly coated the top of the boxes. While still wet I used a 15 ounce Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder bottle with 8 oz. of non skid sand in it. Shook & squeezed non skid on lightly then used a hard foam roller with thinned Awlrip brush reducer, lightly rolled over the non skid.
The Awlgrip non skid is pretty hard on your feet and knees, so I knocked down the high spots with 120 grit and added another heavy coat of paint. It came out real nice and even with bare feet it doesn't abraid your skin and still has good non-skid feel with boat shoes.
Just a suggestion if you don't have a gun with a big tip, learned about the baby powder shaker trick from an old Yankee painter. Like Patrick said use a good foam roller rated for 2 part paint and a 1/2 way decent non too expensive brush for tipping. Don't use el cheapo brush or you will be chasing hairs all day long. The 15 oz size bottle lets you get a good squeeze of non skid, smaller size bottles just don't get enough material to come out and you can't control the amount very well.
Pete

[Marlin]

the guys at Merritts told me the locals that roll and tip decks , tape off the area to be finished, roll on a coat of awlgrip, let it set till it gets tack free, and then they spray a mixture of the awlgrip sand and alcohol, the alcohol flashes off and the next day u roll a second coat of awgrip on to soften the feel and keep the surface cleanable, thats my plan, never had much luck getting eithered rolled or sprinkled non skid to have any uniformity

[Capt.Frank]

Marlin whats the alcohol for? Any idea why mix it with the non-skid.

[Marlin]

the alcohol is the only media that the sand stuff is suppended in, when u spray it only the alcohol is the socalled overspray, no sticky paint that your neighbors may not like, i dont think u need to mask off the entire boat , give the surface a quick blow job after the sand stuff has been alloiwed to settle into the curing awlgrip, and roll on another final protective coat,

[Taggteam]

Has anyone ever thought to use DE (pool filter media) for non skid additive? I've not tried it yet, it is very fine....yet gritty. I may do a test piece...

[Marlin]

There is so much prep time and material cost just to get ready for this step,plus the time tested product on other boats, I wouldn't risk it,I try to follow the manufactures or pros suggestions, that wheel has already been invented !

[Capt.Frank]

Marlin, Thanks for the tips. I post some pictures tomorrow. The under side of the hard top How dark of a color should it be painted? I tryed lightening up some blue I had left from the hull, But I think its still to dark. I wanted a light blue to cut down on glare. Is it possiable to have the bottom to dark? I ask because before I sand down and put finial coat on to finish. I don"t want to repaint.

[Marlin]

When I did the underside of my hardtop I used a flattening agent made by Awlgrip, remember when u get inti custom colors, u may have to go back someday and do some rework, the color match may be more difficult, write down your formula including the flattening % if u go that route, good luck

[Capt.Frank]

Thanks Marlin.
I was not planing on using a flaten agent. Right now its a dark blue and was hoping the glare will not be that bad. Don't know I've had stamous for years.