Avoiding damage to the paint
 

I am in the process of repainting my boat. The last time the boat was painted (base and clear coat) the movement between the hull and some hardware like the bow rail or the hatch hinges caused the paint to move. If there was enough movement, the paint even chipped.
Does anyone had any experience using some type of buffer? Maybe a medium hard rubber washer/gasket between the paint and rails/hardware? It seems to me that hard mounting items like SS rails to paint will will likely remain a problem without some type of isolation.

I have heard you should glue the part to the boat with some epoxy to hold it in place.

Sprague ask your painter to knock down those areas like where the rubrail goes. I think the problem has more to do with the film thickness and the method of primer that was used under your current paint. I looked at those areas when it was in my shop and even though i think you are correct about the repair area on the bow there is still a problem with the existing paint. Nows the time to nip that problem in the bud, with the graphics you are putting on the boat i would hate to see the problem continue. I'm not saying the boat needs to be stripped but areas like the edge of the deck and hull where the rail goes and any other places that will have a fitting with a load put on the paint just need to have some of that film thickness sanded down. Any paint jobs i do i keep paint thickness down as much as possible and any hard edges never have more than a single paint job on them. Cant wait to see the finished product, it will definetly be different than any thing out there now.

I use 5200 on all fittings, I put it on, and install the fitting, just snugging the fasteners, wait til the sealer starts to harden, then tighten the fasteners full, and remove avy that gushes out, kinda makes a flexible rubber barrier.

put the 5200 on from the inside. it doesn't squirt on the paint.

Dave,
Do you mean that painting the boat 4 times is too much! The transom has been been painted 6+ times. This was discussed yesterday and I agree that reducing the film thickness at the contact points would help.
What to you think about the ultra violet light process to speed up the cure paint cure time at target area.

5200 is the way to go and is awesome , but the excess and cleanup really suks

contact points . . . thats the word i was looking for yesterday :D yes 4 paint jobs is a hefty film thickness. Loose some of that an ya might pick up a few MPH to.

are you referring to UV cured primers?