Mast top coat 1

Today has been less certain when it comes to rain than we had hoped.

However, this morning we sanded the masts with 400 grit, then washed and dried them.

In the end we waited until 3pm for painting in the hope of more certainty about it staying dry.

This time rollers are not recommended (or at least need to be followed by a brush). So we went for brushes only.

We changed the way of supporting the masts so that they are "balanced" on the sail track with as few points of contact as possible. We then painted everything else. When it comes to the 2nd coat we will rotate them 180 degrees and so the areas where they are supported will all get one coat. This avoids a long wait between painting sides and reduced the chances of resting the mast on bits that are not fully cured.

One tin is supposed to be enough, it certainly didn't feel that it would go far enough as we were painting the main mast, but in fact it was plenty for both masts (we are going to get extra paint for the spreaders and mizzen boom all of which we can do in the garage at home).

The results:

Despite the name of the International Paint we are not expecting Perfection in terms of finish :-) However, they should be good from a distance and certainly better than they were before we started. Of most importance to us is that we have dealt with all the corrosion and should have a well protected mast for years to come (we can work on any small areas where there are problems over coming years to ensure that the protection lasts).

Should be another part of the boat that will outlast us :-) That has to be good for sustainability :-)