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Repaint omc stern drives

C

captain_peter

Contributing Member
Hello ones again our boating p

Hello ones again our boating pears. Spring is in the air and boating season fast approaching. And is that time ones again to start getting our flotillas in ship shape.
One of the least spoken topics that I found is preparing the Stern drives for painting. Since the drives are under water preparation is of great importance. I tried to do some cleaning with paint removal which did half decent job in removing the paint but the white oxide where ever is pitted didn't have any success in removing it even after the use of steel brushes sand paper and steel wool.I wondering if any one of you guys have any suggestions in getting rid of the oxides.
 
"I used 220 to feather it out,

"I used 220 to feather it out, and re-painted with Primer, then a Tremlad White Spray Bomb...turned out great.

S."
 
"Thanks Scott for your quick r

"Thanks Scott for your quick response.
The difficulty I am having is getting into the tiny little holes filled with white oxide ( aluminum rust you may call it,)That is caused by electrical stray currents. I appreciate any suggestions thanks."
 
"I used a soda blaster on mine

"I used a soda blaster on mine and it came out factory new. The soda blaster cost me $160.00 which on sale from Eastwood. The blaster only takes off loose paint and oxidation, not the metal. Note, at a higher pressure setting it will take off all the paint."
 
"Good idea on the blaster... I

"Good idea on the blaster... I used those little bristle wheels to get in deep. They are colored red, and are basically a few strands of wire insides a plastic coating. Takes paint off nice, with mild pressure.The Tremclad held up extremely well over 1 season so far. Only thing that lost paint was the prop.Exhaust soot doesn't hold well, either; which is nice. I'm still tuning."
 
Thanks Mike for your input. Ca

Thanks Mike for your input. Can you tell me if soda blaster is similar to a sand blaster or is it a differrent animal. And if it is how much PSI and Scfm It requires from the compressor. Any other stores this is available at that you know of. I am located Near Toronto Canada. Thanks
 
Some more questions Regarding

Some more questions Regarding preparation before painting the out drives. I am wondering if there is some kind of cleaning product that will get rid of the oxidization on the out drives specially where is pitted. How about something like muretic acid? is it safe to use on aluminum?
 
The soda blasting will take of

The soda blasting will take off all oxidization. just use a good primer before painting. When I used to paint boats & cars there was a product called Flash Bond. I not sure if it is still around. If it is I will ask my paint suppler. And get back to you by the days end.

Frank
 
"muriatic acid is not aluminum

"muriatic acid is not aluminums best friend, actually they are worst enemies. muriatic acid eats aluminum. You could try Mag Wheel Cleaner, available in any auto store, that is a very mild acid (wear gloves) and is designed to work on cast aluminum. Else the best is Soda Blasting, then to seal it people traditionally used a ZINC Chromate Primer, this has been found to be unhealthy and maybe tough to find."
 
"Hi Brian, Thanks for your qui

"Hi Brian, Thanks for your quick response. I like the idea of the mag cleaner. and also the soda bluster, where can I rent or buy one of this blusters at a fairly reasonable price. Thanks."
 
"I've been in the process

"I've been in the process of stripping and repainting my drives. I Used sand paper and a wire wheel to get the big stuff off. I found a chemical at the boating store called ON/OFF. Its used to clean boat hulls. It has the right kind of acids in it. It cleans and etches in one step. Just be carefull with it, it burns."
 
"Hi Catalin, I was working on

"Hi Catalin, I was working on the drives yesterday and I used paint remover to remove the paint which worked fine, the only problem I have to get into the little holes filed with oxide powder caused by stray electrical currents. Thanks for your response."
 
Yeah the pitts full of oxide w

Yeah the pitts full of oxide were a big problem for me too. I used a sandblaster to get most of the oxide off. The ON/OFF will also clean out the pits. Just be sure to pick a resperator from your local hardware store before you use this stuff. It burns like hell if you don't.
 
"Hi Catalin, You just answered

"Hi Catalin, You just answered all my questions right on the button. I thank you very much you been a great help."
 
Hi Catalin one more question w

Hi Catalin one more question what size of a compresor did you use and where did you get your sand blaster and what size? Thanks ones again.
 
"I don't remember exactly

"I don't remember exactly how big the compressor is but it is a stand up model and its about six feet tall. The blaster is a 35 gallon model. Got it from Harbor Freight. Its a piece of junk, most of the valves and the water separator broke off. I just plumbed it straight without all that stuff and it works well. Paid $50 for i new. Got to love chinese slave labor. Also if you get a sand blaster of any kind make sure you either buy prepakaged blast media, or if you use play sand run strain it through i screen first. If you don't strain it, the blaster will clog. Its a pain to unclog it."
 
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