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About This Video
GAT partnered with Tracker Marine (Lebanon, MO) — an OEM boat manufacturer producing bass, pontoon, and Jon boats — to replace an aging wet-paint line that could no longer meet EPA VOC emissions limits. The new system includes a 3-stage aqueous pretreatment washer, a convection dry-off oven, three hybrid gel powder booths in a single large powder room, a final convection cure, and a custom power-and-free conveyor system, sized for boats up to 8’W × 5’D × 26’L and 2,000 lbs. See GAT’s Tracker Marine customer story for the full case study.
The video itself is third-party footage: a factory-tour segment produced by BoatTest.com (narrated by test captain “Captain Steve”) touring Tracker’s powder-coating line. GAT shares it to show the process in action — the spoken transcript below is BoatTest.com’s own narration, not a GAT-authored script. It doesn’t name GAT directly; the case-study details above come from GAT’s own video description, not the narration itself.
Full Transcript
The following opinions are solely those of BoatTest.com and its test captain. Hi, Captain Steve, for BoatTest.com. Now, lots of things differentiate the way one boat manufacturer does things over another. But recently, we took a tour of the Tracker boat factory and found something that really separates this builder from all the others: it’s the method they use for applying paint to its boats. Let’s take a look.
Tracker has a solid reputation for building quality boats. They’re strong, all welded, and in some cases welded with precision machines for a more exacting joint bond. But customers don’t see that quality because it gets painted over — that paint is what the customer sees. And here is where Tracker makes a difference. Applying paint to metal is a traditional method that looks good at first, but paint doesn’t adhere to metal forever. It flakes, chips, and when air gets under a chip, it can begin to rust or oxidize. There’s an alternative, and it’s one we usually see with wakeboard towers or side rails on premium boats. It’s called powder coating. And powder coating is exactly as the name implies: dry paint powder is sprayed onto the metal and then melted on for an even covering that lasts longer and is much more durable. But powder coating a whole boat? You bet. Let’s take a look at how it’s done at Tracker.
It starts with a chemical wash. Even though the boat is unused, it still has lots of hands on it, and those hands have oil on them. A clean surface is a must, so this wash ensures a clean hull. The boat is suspended from a rack and moves through this whole process at 5 ft per minute, meaning Tracker can do 90 boats a day. Then the boat needs to be dried. A worker blows off all the nooks and crannies and gets the major water off before the boat goes into a short oven with just enough heat to evaporate any remaining water. Then the boat is turned sideways and gets a coat of powder paint applied to the bare metal. This is done by a machine for an even coating.
So, how does the powder adhere to the metal? From an electrostatic charge. The powder is positively charged and the boat has a negative charge — opposites attract, and the powder adheres. A worker covers any additional areas that the robotic sprayer couldn’t reach. And notice the pressurized Tyvek suit. While powder coating is much more environmentally friendly than regular paint, inhaling the powder is still not a good idea, so precautions are taken. Once it leaves, it goes through a small oven to bake this first coat on. When it comes out, it’s checked for quality control.
In some instances, a two-color scheme is applied. For that, a reusable pattern is taped in place all around the hull. Then masking tape is applied just above the pattern, and then the pattern can get removed. Once the tape is in place, the parts that don’t get painted get masked off — all while the boat is moving at 5 ft per minute, mind you, with another coming out of the oven right behind. Then the second color gets sprayed, and by workers this time. This is mostly because it’s easier when irregular patterns need to be applied. Mechanical sprayers are used for coating everything, but here it’s more efficient to use people than program the machine for a different pattern over and over again. The color is also applied to the inside, above the decking yet to be installed, for a more aesthetically pleasing look to the finished product. Meanwhile, the powder gets continually refilled into the spraying lines. Then it makes another trip through a small oven to seal it all together. After that second baking, the masking is removed. And it’s here where any overspray can simply be wiped off as well.
Then the boats get a final application of clear coat. This gives it its final coat of protection. And this application actually goes on white — it looks like the first coats are getting ruined, but not to worry. A worker is again present to get any areas the machines can’t reach. And notice the extra powder on the floor: this gets reclaimed and reused. Try that with paint overspray. Then it’s into the long bake. This oven will cook the entire boat for about 20 minutes at over 400°F. Once it’s done, it’s pulled out of the oven and left to sit for a few minutes under a series of fans to cool. Here’s one that’s just come out of the oven, and it still measures just under 250°F. And when it’s done, the finish is perfect, as well as durable. The level of gloss is amazing to see, considering that the final coat went on white. The whole process takes two and a half hours per boat at that 5 ft per minute pace. Then it’s rolled upright and put onto a dolly for moving to final assembly. Obviously, powder coating is a more expensive process, but Tracker prides itself on quality, and this is another way to add more of that to its products. It also has a zero-carbon footprint for a much greener process.
So, that’s our look at painting the Tracker way. For BoatTest.com, I’m Captain Steve. We’ll see you on the water.
Watch on YouTube.