Well the dry season is here and it’s time to paint Splendid’s hull.
Splendid was born in China and I’ve always gone with a Chinese color theme ( black, gold, and red). As you all know I have a “Shrimp boat” mentality when it comes to paint. I don’t want to look like the rich guy in the anchorage and if I get hit I like the fact I can do a little glass work if necessary , grab a paint brush, and not worry so much about the finish. I love brush strokes in paint as it gives a feeling of classic boats. As many of you know I have the ability to spray paint and can get a quality finish if I want it, I just don’t want it. And I’m fully aware that black paint is hotter. I actually want Splendid warmer than ambient inside as it’s the best way to keep her dry and fight mold which is a constant battle in the tropics. However I don’t plan on spending all of my time in the tropics either, in colder climates the warmth will be more than welcome.
The top photo is as Splendid sits today. Carla is making a new black sail cover for 
the mizzen, and we just put up our black ATN Genoa sleeve (not shown) which I must say I love! Putting 7+ pounds of Sunbrella on the jib as a sacrificial sun-cover is about one of the stupidest things I’ve heard of in the sailing industry, as all you do is knacker the performance and shape of the jib, especially in light air.
With our “white hull” color plan we have a black sheer stripe, and with our “black hull” color plan there is no sheer stripe. There will be a Chinese character on each side of the forward hull, and the Chinese character for wind on the stern (not shown). You can click on the image to increase its size if you wish. I didn’t do the best photoshop job, but you get the general idea.
Carla and I are going to build a new set 
of sails from Sailrite sail kits (they do the cutting, we do the stitching) from tanbark dacron. I have always loved tanbark sails as well as classic boats. I got a photo of this gaff-rigged beauty (Sinbad) with tanbark sails as she sailed past us last week.
We are going to do the majority of the painting in the water. As soon as I can afford it I’m hauling out for a bottom job and replacing all the threw-hulls with Forespar maralon fittings. 
I hope everyone’s 2013 is turning out well, mine is. Getting Splendid to where I want her is a real reality for 2013. I want to be set free from all the work. Maintenance mode will be a welcome friend and I’m looking to spending the rest of my days taking care of our home.
We have a charter coming on the 7th through the 12th so I’ll most likely be too busy to blog. If you interested to come for a visit we have window open after the 12th for 8 weeks. After that I’m planning on going to Linton for a few months to finish some projects if we don’t have any work.
So please leave a comment and let us know which color scheme you like better. We are thinking the white one will win?
Peace from paradise.
– alex