Interior Finish

[tmw]

The inside, top-part of my CP-16 looks a bit flaky... literally.


I want to do something about this, and have some questions.  Should I start by sanding it down, and how how much can I sand before worrying about damaging anything?  How would I work around all the screw things that go through the fiberglass?  What kind of paint would be best?  Should I try to encapsulate the stuff, or do I need to get it really smooth before painting?  I'm pretty sure this is going to be a character building chore...

[Ted]

The little black caps will pop off and you can put them back on later.

I would be most concerned about getting off the old white paint but I wouldn't go much deeper than that - there is no reason to. The smoothness of the finish is up to you but I wouldn't be too worried about damage if all you are doing is getting off the paint except... be careful with an electric sander - you can put on new paper and it will cut deeper than you may want.

This job will require some breathing protection for sure. On my first Compac, a 16, I took down the interior paint and repainted it. Not fun work at all. If you can use a sander with a vacuum cleaner attached you won't regret it.

[nies]

Had same problem, not as bad, wired brushed and hit the hight areas with sander(almost impossible to get a flat surface without weaking the glass), cleaned with alcohol and primed and painted with a marine paint for fiberglass(white). you will have to remove screws and ports to get a good job............................nies

[Cats Paw]

Good time to remove and re-bed deck hardware and ports. When I refinished the interior of RU-ACH C-16 a window fan was placed down across the stern hatch opening helping to pull fresh air in the companion way exhausting out the sanding dust.