Redbeard,
We need more information. Your question about needing primer suggests this is a new boat which has never been painted before. If that is the case, check with your Hunter dealer about the correct procedure for a brand new bottom. Chances are the gelcoat below the water
line is already impervious to water, so no need to seal it. But you will need to use a solvent to wash off the mold wax, and then may need to use a chemical etcher (sold by all the
paint manufacturers) to "rough" up the bottom so that the
paint will adhere. You don''t want to sand the bottom because you will most likely void the warranty, and damage the gelcoat to let water in eventually.
If it''s an older boat that has been painted before, figure out whether it has a hard or soft (ablative)
paint on it. You can dent the soft
paints with a fingernail, but the hard
paints are, well.........hard. Next, sand the old
paint LIGHTLY, just enough to give it "tooth" for the new
paint to grab onto. Be careful not to sand any bare gelcoat areas -- treat them with more chemical etching stuff. Then wipe the bottom down with solvent to remove dust, and apply new
paint.
Generally you can put any kind of
paint over a hard
paint, but soft
paints usually require the use of other soft
paints. check on the specs for the brand you eventually buy for your situation.
I''m with tsenator on using ablatives with the slime blockers in them. I use Pettit Ultima SR here on the Chesapeake with good results. The ablatives wear away like a bar of soap, so no build-up of coats you will have to sand/scrape off one of these years.
Good luck.