Wedge painting...

[spinxt]

I'm thinking of getting my wedge & wedge bracket painted in the off-season. My qustion is this...how do I remove the wedge plate? I see the large bolts that hold it on to the transom, however I cannot see what is on the other side. Is there a gasket between the bracket and the transome to prevent leaks? It looks way too simple to remove and I'm afraid I'll screw something up.

Any thougthts?

[jetskipro550]

I could be wrong, but even if you have it professionally painted in a season or two its going to have peeled off cause its under water and its a PITA to take it off each year to paint it. So why not just tape off the transom, buy some decent spray paint and have at it? You can do it every year to make it look good and it will only cost 5 -10 bucks a year.

[WakeGirl]

Pull it off & have it powder coated.

[onamission]

If your going through the trouble of taking the bracket off I say go right for the Stainless bracket and foil and sell the old ones.

[spinxt]

I forgot to mention......I have a guy that will powder coat it for free.....any change of opinons?

[WakeGirl]

I forgot to mention......I have a guy that will powder coat it for free.....any change of opinons?

Not from me. Powder coating is by far & away the most durable for that application. The new SS bracket is cool, but even if you didn't have a buddy that would do it for free it would be a lot less expensive to powder coat. It's not what you know, it's who you know.

[Lakenut]

So why not just tape off the transom, buy some decent spray paint and have at it?

Because after a week in the water it looks like crap again. I don't know why Bu even has an aliminum foil as an option. Should have been stainless from the get go. I mean, how expensive would a stainless foil really be. If it is the only option, peolpe have to buy it.

[gonorth]

Maybe powder coat will work in this application but powder coat on a trailer isn't worth a darn. Looks nice for a year but by the second or third year it starts to peel off, starting at the fenders and anywhere else that stones hit it.

[WakeGirl]

Maybe powder coat will work in this application but powder coat on a trailer isn't worth a darn. Looks nice for a year but by the second or third year it starts to peel off, starting at the fenders and anywhere else that stones hit it.

Are you talking about your trailer? Not all powder coat is created equal. The stuff that comes stock from most factories (such as on our towers) is usually crap. If you get it done by a local shop that knows what they're doing, it's extremely durable. We did a boat trailer once as well as numerous lumber racks, it holds up much better than paint.

[jetskipro550]

So why not just tape off the transom, buy some decent spray paint and have at it?

Because after a week in the water it looks like crap again. I don't know why Bu even has an aliminum foil as an option. Should have been stainless from the get go. I mean, how expensive would a stainless foil really be. If it is the only option, peolpe have to buy it.

One whole season with our swim platform brackets spray painted and they look like new...but I plan on doing it every season to keep it that way.

[gonorth]

Wakegirl, I'm talking about a utility trailer I bought like 3 years ago, not my bou trailer. (although my bou trailer has a couple small spots where the paint is bubbling up too.) When I got that utility trailer a friend told me I'd be sorry for geting powder coat, that the fenders would lose their paint within a year. Well, he was about right, the front started loosing it in about a year and now are pretty much bare and the entire undercarriage is bare and it is spreading.

I can imagine that PC comes in different qualities and the surface preperation of the item being painted probably varies widely. The bakeing process has to be a lot easier to maintain proper temperature on small items like wedge brackets than it is for a trailer too.

[jshap]

I totally agree with Tracie. As she said, not all powder coats are created equal. There are many different grades of powder coating. Make sure they use one pegged for Marine applications, like Tiger-Drylac Series 38. A good powder coat should hold up well for a wedge and it shouldn't cost too much in materials.

[99response]

To pull that bracket off you have to pull apart the whole rear of your boat. It is through bolted in the hull. To reach those bolt heads the rear seat has to come out, trunk must be taken apart and the gas tank moved back to access the holes ~2-3 hours of work if you know what your doing. I'd say leave it alone.

Chris

Edited October 16, 2006 by 99response

[Malibudude]

So why not just tape off the transom, buy some decent spray paint and have at it?

Because after a week in the water it looks like crap again. I don't know why Bu even has an aliminum foil as an option. Should have been stainless from the get go. I mean, how expensive would a stainless foil really be. If it is the only option, peolpe have to buy it.

I supposed you could have the wedge zinc plated. I've not had these issues w/ the wedge but then gain my boat doesn't reside on a lift in the water.

[SacRiverRat]

Don't screw with the bracket - that makes the process way too difficult. Just pull off the foil, and get it powder coated.. I did, and it looks great, and has held up for 2 seasons so far.

Also did the swim platform brackets.