Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Hi all!
New guy here and really enjoying all the restores. I recently purchased a 24ft '93 Beachcomber with a 120 Johnson and am doing a little work fixing it up with new console, fence panels, Marideck, bimini, etc. I see that some of you folks have painted your railings. My rails currently have the stock silver aluminum finish. I'd like to paint mine (flat khaki) and am curious what kind of prep work y'all did before painting. Sanding? Sand blasting? Primer? Wipe it down and spray? I want it to look good and hold up for a while.
I promise to post pics!!

Low buck: Sand, rattle can prime, rattle can paint. This method will scratch fairly easily.

Better: Sand, etch prime, automotive paint with hardener. This method is durable.

Best: Sand blast, professional powder coat. This method is VERY durable, and will last a long time. And is the most expensive, and you will most likely have to farm out ALL of the labor.

First of all Welcome! I am concerned that unless you powder coat those rails you may be opening up a can of worms. Fixing spots and repainting scratches might be the product of painting rails IMHO.

Thanks for the welcome and information! Option 2 was what I was thinkin. Powder coat is out of my budget. If the scratch maintenance gets overwhelming, I've got a 4000psi pressure sprayer that should handle the removal.

I had my toons and rub rail etch primed and automotive painted on the second boat I ever built. It held up fantastic. I kept it in the water all summer for 8 years and other than a few very minor nicks & scrapes it looked new. Think of it this way...if you prep and paint properly it's no different than a car and they look fine for years if taken care of.

Ive used method #2on the last three toons I've built and plan on using it again on the fourth. Just spend the time and prep the rails to the best of your ability, it'll be worth it in the end... We always used lacquer thinner to clean them really good before we painted.... Use a good etching primer, should look nice!

Most of the painted rails appear to be on the Bentley Encore pontoons. I still prefer the silver anodized finish that most other brands use.

I really think those painted rails hurt Bentley sales dramatically. You can now get'em anodized or painted from them.

This past boat show I noticed a new theme. There were several boats with powder coated tubes as well as rails, they all had large crowds gathered around checking them out. I think it gives it a much sportier look. But that's why they make all kinds, it would be a boring world if we all liked the same thing

Yes, they look great. some of the sylvans are beauties. they'll all offer them soon. probably next year since I bought this year.