Day Four - Introducing the Miss Trial

The Hewes is named - The Miss Trial

The next step in the Hewes project was to apply a second coat of hull paint to the edges and the center console, followed by a second coat of non-skid deck paint to the hatches, the floor and the poling platform. That process took two afternoons, but what a difference the second coats made. When finished, it was well worth the effort.

Now that the tedious paint work is done, it was time to name the boat. A few days ago, I ordered the boat's name in vinyl lettering from Amazon.

The Amazon website for the lettering decal

Customizing the decal with the letter style, size, and color choice

Over the years, I've had some experience with applying SS stripes to the hood of cars and I figured applying decal lettering shouldn't be any different. Watching a couple of YouTube videos confirmed that the process was basically the same for both.

Cleaning the surface with Windex

Step 1 was to clean the hull sides where the lettering would be applied with Windex to ensure good adhesion.

Taping the decal to the side with masking tape

Step 2 was to tape the decal onto the side of the hull with masking tape, one piece on each end and another in the middle of the decal.

After applying the decal, peeling off the facing sheet

Step 3 was to remove the masking tape from the right side, peel off the decal's backing until I reached the center piece of masking tape, and then cut the backing off. I then sprayed some soapy water onto the hull and the back of the decal (4 drops of dishwashing soap into 16 ounces of water mixed in a spray bottle) and pressed the decal onto the hull. Using a plastic body filler spreader I squeegee'd all the water and bubbles out of the decal. This was repeated on the left half of the decal. The final step was to peel off the facing sheet an hour or so after the decal was applied, leaving only the lettering.

The finished product

After finishing one side, the process was repeated on the other side and voila! The Hewes was named. 

Hello, Miss Trial.