WFair
Member
The time has come to resurface my entire stage. It will be 1/4" oil-tempered hardboard (commonly referred to as Masonite, even though they no longer make it) screwed down to 2 old layers of 3/4 plywood. I plan to paint both the front and back with Rosco Tough Prime before installing it to help with sealing from humidity. I will also be leaving the requisite nickel width gap between sheets and I will acclimate them to my space for a few days before installing them. Ok...there was the background.
Now, on to the painting...I can order the hardboard with both sides smooth, or only one side smooth. The smooth side is VERY smooth, to the point that I am concerned about adhesion. Will I need to sand or otherwise rough up the smooth side before using Tough Prime? Would it be better to (gasp!) install the panels upside down with the ROUGH side facing up and assume that after a couple of coats of paint, it will be fairly smooth anyway? If the consensus is to go ahead and paint the smooth side, is there any reason to get the double-sided smooth version of the hardboard?
Another posting back in 2009 ( https://www.controlbooth.com/threads/need-advise-on-masonite-as-stage-surface.8278/ ) suggested using Sherwin-Williams ArmorSeal Treadplex for floor paint. Has anyone done a side-by-side comparison of it versus the Rosco Tough Prime? Are there other recommendations for super-hardy water-based paints for a stage floor? Is there ANYTHING that can handle this much abuse from the paint department at Home Depot or Lowes? Everything I have ever tried from there has had durability issues.
Thanks!
Now, on to the painting...I can order the hardboard with both sides smooth, or only one side smooth. The smooth side is VERY smooth, to the point that I am concerned about adhesion. Will I need to sand or otherwise rough up the smooth side before using Tough Prime? Would it be better to (gasp!) install the panels upside down with the ROUGH side facing up and assume that after a couple of coats of paint, it will be fairly smooth anyway? If the consensus is to go ahead and paint the smooth side, is there any reason to get the double-sided smooth version of the hardboard?
Another posting back in 2009 ( https://www.controlbooth.com/threads/need-advise-on-masonite-as-stage-surface.8278/ ) suggested using Sherwin-Williams ArmorSeal Treadplex for floor paint. Has anyone done a side-by-side comparison of it versus the Rosco Tough Prime? Are there other recommendations for super-hardy water-based paints for a stage floor? Is there ANYTHING that can handle this much abuse from the paint department at Home Depot or Lowes? Everything I have ever tried from there has had durability issues.
Thanks!