repaint carbon 12'6

[breakbad]

I am going in for jaw surgery Tuesday. During my recovery I was contemplating repainting my used 12'6 all carbon board. The bottom is just clear on the carbon (gets hot fast, with single valve probably would pop), and the top is a 'royal' blue with a yellow pad. I always bag it, but was considering painting the bottom to help with the heat issue. But now that I'll have a hand full of free days I just want to do the whole thing...pad included.

I've worked with fiberglass before but never CF. Any suggestions on process / materials are greatly appreciated. I'm trying to keep the process relatively cheap/simple, but willing to spend a little extra time/money to get a nice glossy finish, with hopefully a lighter more heat reflective theme. 

Would it also be possible to incorporate a sticker/logo into the paint job? How is that done? Another option is my brother is visiting next weekend, who happens to be a brilliant airbrush artist. I could prep it for him...depending on dosage/duration of pain killer prescription  .

[TallDude]

Doesn't matter what type of fabric was use in the glassing of the board as far as paint goes. The existing hot coat or PU clear finish is all you need to concern yourself with. Make sure you sand it with a 220 ( or that's what I would use ) and don't sand in one spot to long. The heat generated when you sand can de-laminate the board. You want to give the primer something to adhere to. Make sure your primer and all your finish coats are of compatible. I get my primer from an automotive paint store. They sell spray cans in a light gray that has a fine slotted tip which lays it on like an airless. If you have someone who knows how to airbrush, I would run the process by them first. 

[breakbad]

Thanks for the reponse TallDude. I'll be happy just painting the board in white primer and adding graphics / airbrush.

Hows this?:
1. Sand with ~220, maybe second pass with to 400-600
2. prep solvent / wipe
3. Something like this (but in white)? http://www.eastwood.com/eastwood-s-2k-aero-spray-epoxy-primer-gray.html
4. Maybe Airbrush
5. Clear

[TallDude]

You can use a tack cloth to remove the initial sanding residue, then prime. Wet sand the first primer coat with 600. Let dry, and tack cloth off the residual. For a SUP that's all the priming I'd do. Just be careful on your base (color) coat not to mix urethane's and Krylon sprays. Some will react with others and bubble all over. Been there. If you're planning on using a commercial polyurethane clear coat (which are very durable car finishes) test some over your base coat first. If I'm just using Krylon base colors or Montana Paint  http://www.montanacolors.com/webapp/ , then you should use an acrylic clear sealer. Not really waterproof, but they hold up ok for a while.

[breakbad]

I got a spray gun and a 2 part acrylic urethane clear from auto paint shop. I didn't want to spend more money on paint so I regrettably bought rattle cans (glossy) for my 3 base coat colors. They are enamels and from what I researched are compatible with the clear.

I think I've managed to put on some consistent coats, but some of the 'tiger striping' is apparent. Will wet sanding w/ 1500 remove it? Will the clear hide the stripes? If not I'm open to implement a more radical cover up.

[breakbad]

Happy with results so far. I sanded the red and green down so some of the yellow shows through...gives it an 'old board' look. Will get better pics.

[kayadogg]

breakbad, looks good so far.  would love to see before and after pics if you have them.

not to derail this thread but it leads me to a question i've been thinking about... i just picked up a new 12'6 that was shaped for me.  it's all carbon but the top is painted but not a glossy top coat, it appears it was painted and then covered with a final hot coat?  It has the brushed carbon look so there is some distressed signs of carbon showing through (intentionally) but I'd like to add more as some of the areas it just looks awkward and not uniform, even though I know it's not supposed to be uniform.  It's really just some parts have large gaps of no brushed carbon showing and some have too much, I want to try to balance it out.  Can I sand down some of these areas to expose the carbon or will I have to sand through the hot coat to get through the paint?

[breakbad]

@kayadogg - I'd imagine there's a technique involved that you'd want to duplicate. May be worth calling whoever made the board and ask. Otherwise you may make it worse. If it's not glossy, perhaps sanding something around 1000 grit wouldn't hurt it too bad. Just depends on how picky you are with the outcome.

So, two days ago I had to touch up a couple spots of the base coat. Yesterday I needed another quart of urethane but couldn't find the same brand (in a rush because wife wants the garage back) so I settled on another brand. Sanded touchups, wiped and cleared top side of board. Low and behold, lifted the paint, but curiously only in the spots I touched up. I also have some drip...and a bug or two decided to make some art. Gonna start by wet sanding (by hand) drips/bugs with 600 and graduate to 1500. The lifted spots are probably going to require digging in with 220 and see if any base coat is left.