Bottom Paint

What's kind of cool lately is that we're working on what I might call the 'outer shell of the onion'.  Parts that won't have any more sanding, or any other coating on top of them.  The varnished brightwork is one of those; bottom paint is another.  By the same token, that makes it frightening if you're a perfectionist, because suddenly the excuse of "well, this will get covered up later anyway" is no longer valid!

Although the bottom of the hull is already sealed, bottom paint is important because it prevents algae and other organisms from sticking to the hull and degrading it over time.  The particular bottom paint that my Dad found is water-based and ablative, meaning it gradually sloughs off into the water over time, but doesn't have any nasty solvents in it.

The blue part is the bottom paint and follows the design water line except at the bow and stern, where it follows the curve of the chine (and so, will be somewhat out of the water).