FOUND! 37 Aluminum Riviera

If it is this nice.. price= Steal! 812= Kentucky .. Probably why
Freshwater too!

http://www.boats.com/listing/galler...ce=1&wuom=126&pszipcode=20190&sfm=false&pic=3

37 Riviera

http://www.boats.com/boat-details/Chris-Craft-Roamer-37-Flybridge/122265841


I think I know which one I would buy of these two.


Homer

Roamer Painting

Here is the deal. Having been through it the hard way.

In the end, painting is the cheap part. It's the prep.
Prep can be done by you and depending on how fussy you are... you will get a good or a bad job. There is a technique to it. Done right, everyone will gawk at your Roamer. If it it is just anther coat of paint on crapola (what most people do).. it will look better but not great.

There is a multi-step process. The popular paints are Awlcraft, Awlgrip and Alexseal.

Alwexseal is now the best as it has the basic hardness of Awlgrip but it is repairable and slighty shinier. Awlgrip really is not very repairable. (Same German chemist developed both).. Alexseal being the new stuff) They are both linear polyurethanes. Awlcraft is much softer, easier to spary and repariable.. slightly less shiney but certainly shiney.

In most cases, I would use Awlcraft on a Roamer because as it blisters you can repair it fairly easy and rub it out. But it is not as hard as Awgrip or Alexseal so will scratch easier.

Also, it is painter specific, a good painter who specializes knows how to treat each product.

I know where to find the best painter for not much and stay away from any of them around Annapolis/ Bay .. they will rip you off for the most part. Smart thing to do is to get the boat ready and fly them in from North Carolina. I know one who is incredible... no orange peal, no drips, no nothing.. and not expensive.

Problem with aluminum.. Blistering, particularly where dissimilar metals touch: It can create an electrolytic reaction sometimes causing blisters. This is particularly a concern where the welds are under the rub rails. I think because the welds are a different grade of aluminum.. just my theory. Also, micro pinholes in the filler can cause it too.

I think it might only cost a few thousand dollars paint and labor if you boat is ready to shoot.. but then again Roamers require a lot of taping as the stripes have to be done separately. I do not think Roamers look good unless the stripes are similar to the original configuration... just my opinion.

If you go into a marina and order a paint job you will get ripped!! Find a do it yourself place and go at it.. I can tell you where they are. I do not have much good to say about the trades around Annapolis.. grossly over-priced with an attitude to boot.

You can call me anytime. I know the good guys and the bad, the good deals and the rip-offs.. after all, been doing this restoration for a long time and am about done.

Please do not be one of these people who picks up a Roamer cheap and does a basement job... take the time and do it right, but its not gonna be easy and you need to really know what corrosion could lurk under the toe rail because that is where you can get blistering too creeping out. That deal down in Kentucky sounds incredible. I would look at that 37 aluminum footer there for sure.

If you do it.. yes, keep it under a shed or you will slowly lose it.. too much wood. I look at it like this... any white plastic chair will hold your butt sans charm, AKA production Clorox bottle boats... with no front sear or decent walk around. A Roamer is more like sitting in a nice production Stickley if you like to rock. You would not leave your Stickley outside.. a plastic porch seat... who cares... so the plastic gets a little fade.

Where are you thinking?.. I am looking for a covered shed too when I bring mine back north.

Homer