anti-fouling on outdrives ?

[Quint4]

I am considering slipping my boat instead of trailering this season (freshwater). I am in the process of sanding & painting my outdrive after extensive maintenance. Should I paint my Bravo II with anti-fouling paint or just go with a good primer and the standard gloss black MERC? I will haul it every month for a good cleaning....thanks.

 

[Redhook98]

Go for the Trilux. Not the spray, but the paint-on stuff. Sand the drive down. A couple of coats of Primocon and the two coats of Trilux. You will be good for a long time. No real noticeable loss of speed either.

 

[Sorrento 25]

Probably not an issue in fresh water but in salt water be sure to paint the anti-fouling inside the water pickup passages under the plastic covers. I found quite a few barnacles growing in there when I restored my drive. The painter missed this and some other concealed and hard-to-reach areas around the gimbal and those were the only places I found barnacles.

 

[Redhook98]

Oh, and make sure to leave an inch of open fiberglass between the drives and the bottom paint on the hull. This is to prevent the copper oxides in the paint from encouraging added corrosion on your drives and wasting your zincs (or magnesium in fresh water)