I'm spray painting different parts of my board but I'm wondering if its going to wash off with water? Is there a speacial type of paint I should use? Also how do you spray paint lettering, I was thinking about making a template on the comp and printing it out but I can't figure out how letters like "o" "R" and "g" would work, any ideas?

It will last a season in my experience, I painted a board and actually used several different types of paint and a good bit of the original graphics are showing through after one year. I didn't rough the board up with any sandpaper first

it won't wash off in the water, but if you don't use laquer or something it will rub off on other things, like the interior of your boat.

schlack it. and I'm certain i didn't spell that right. Its like a gel coat, but it can get really thick so be careful. any kind of clear sealant should do. I dont' think the pain you put underneath it will matter

thats <b>paint</b>

Sand it lightly first and use flat paint. It seems to stick better in my experience. I've painted a few boards flat black and the only time it comes off is on sliders.

Hobby/craft stores will have stencils for letters and numbers. <BR> <BR>CIE is right. lightly sand w/200 grit to rough the surface, clean with Mineral Spirits and paint. A cover coat of polyurethane will seal it. <BR> <BR>Don't use Shellac or Varnish, they chip much easier than poly. <BR> <BR>Good luck, doesn't sound like you've done too much of this. Take your time and get it right the first time. Trying to clean up mistakes will take longer than just doing it right.

I should have said earlier, but I'm not actually painting the bottome, it's an integ wakeskate and I'm painting the area where the griptape goes and then laying a cut out of the griptape over it, do I still need to use the polyurethane? and where can I get some?

will the griptape stick to the polyurethane?

yep. The only bad thing is if you don't prep the surface to be painted properly and use the correct paint ( enamal ). The paint will start to flake off the subsurface.