Which paint?

I am trying to decide on a topcoat paint for my boat when it is finished. I have never used a two part polyurethane but have read that it can be difficult to obtain a good finish – not sure if this could apply to all 2 part urethanes. I think I would prefer to use a good quality single part urethane which seem to be quite popular. The fact that the boat will spend 98%of its life under cover on a trailer – well ventilated will be a major factor in deciding which way to go. The boat is glass sheathed outside and epoxy coated inside and it will be well looked after.
Any ideas frompeople who have experience with both types?

A good quality single part polyurethane will provide nearly as good a finish as the two part LPU's but with much less trouble and cost. It can be brushed, brushed and tipped off or sprayed. Just careful brushing will produce a good job. Use a good primer and prep first.

An Australian company by the name of Norglass produce a range of marine finishes and glassing products which have some good reviews. One of the paints I have been looking at is their "Weatherfast Premium Gloss" which they classify as a "modified polyurethane" whatever the hell that is. To me the BIGGEST problem with paints is sorting out the marketing blurb from the facts. Norglass Paints and Specialty Finishes: Weatherfast Premium Enamel Gloss
I have just about decided on their Premium Gloss and Pri-Coat, their primer undercoat to suit.
Thanks again for your help. (I have the false keel screwed & glued in place as per your suggestions). It looks good but 5 years will probably be a better judge.

Yeah, getting though the content list and figuring out what it really is can be daunting. Generally there's a few basic types; the acrylics (latex), which can have modifiers added, the alkyds (oils) which also can have modifiers added, but also other some times marketing pushed names added like polyurethane reinforced, etc., The epoxies,which can be as simply as a modified alkyd, with bits of the BPA molecule mixed in or real epoxies that are two part. Lastly are the polyurethanes, which can be a simple alkyd, with some base resin changes or full blow fancy stuff that requires an activator and special drying and temperature additives.

As to which, look at the MSDS and handling sheets and see what the resin is, the thinners used and most importantly the "solids" content in the cured film. Once you've picked a type of paint, just find the one with the most solids content for your price range. These solids are what remains behind once it cures, so literally what protects the surface.

The Norglass product you've listed is a basic alkyd and commonly referred to (in the old days) as a enamel. The term enamel is more a marketing plow than anything else, but often does, separate the polyurethanes from the alkyds. This seems a reasonable paint, though Norglass Weatherfast Premium Enamel, looks to be a better, possible slightly more costly product. The best advice is talk to the locals about what they use and how well it's held up. Calling the tech line might help, once you get through the advertising fluff and sales pitch (of course all their paints are great, crap).

I have used Norglass Weatherfast Premium Enamel on my boat and can recommend it. I managed to get an excellent finish with a brush. Only things to be careful of is don't apply in hot weather, and you will need to wait a few days for it to dry in cooler weather.

Did you use the gloss or satin Premium Enamel? Their website describes the satin as a modified polyurethane but does not say the same about the gloss product. The satin is only available in white but I think the manufacturer will tint it on order.
Thanks for your reply.

A few people seem to be using the jotun paints. There is talk on the forums of the stuff being better value for money than other marine paints. I've not used it myself but might be worth reading some threads from people who have ?

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Did you use the gloss or satin Premium Enamel?

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Gloss.

If it on a boat that does not sit in the water. Killrust Epoxy is pretty hard to beat.

I have managed to almost completely avoid painting all my life but recently had to do some. I read around the various boating forums I read and found a number of good reviews of altex 2 part poly. It's a NZ company and an australian retailer, mr antifoul had it for a much better price than I could get norglass, including delivery.

I bought some and have just put it on a rudder. The paint is wonderful, flows beautifully and delivers a nice finish. It is made specifically for rolling and brushing. The rudder will need more work because the twit holding the brush managed to muck it up, but I am very happy with the paint.

Plan to work in a well ventilated area as it smells. I don't know how it compares to other paints.

I have also read of people using paving paint to do boats.

First - Thanks to everybody for their responses to my post. I've been flat out on the boat trying to make some progress before going north for the winter in a couple of weeks so haven't had time to check out the forum.
I have painted the outside and the bottom of it with Norglass premium enamel. I added a flattener to it, not a lot, so that blemishes would not be so obvious. I am pleased with the result. Now for the interior. I think I will use Norglass Slip Resistant deck paint which will also help with hiding the blemishes. I intend using a decking oil or similar on the on the slatted floor boards and slatted thwart. Thanks again to all the responders.

First - Thanks to everybody for their responses to my post. I've been flat out on the boat trying to make some progress before going north for the winter in a couple of weeks so haven't had time to check out the forum.<br>
I have painted the outside and the bottom of it with Norglass premium enamel. I added a flattener to it, not a lot, so that blemishes would not be so obvious. I am pleased with the result. Now for the interior. I think I will use Norglass Slip Resistant deck paint which will also help with hiding the blemishes. I intend using a decking oil or similar on the on the slatted floor boards and slatted thwart. Thanks again to all the responders.