by Oldragbaggers » Tue Jul 24, 2012 7:39 am
We're using fiberglass. It will waterproof your teardrop completely if done properly, will add a lot of strength, especially puncture resistance, and we have never had any problem maintaining a painted surface on fiberglass. My experience (25+ years worth) is that it is as easy to paint as any other surface once properly prepared and primed. We always put a fresh coat of paint on our boat hulls every season or two and it's an easy 1 day job. Clean it (we just scrub good with Comet cleanser and a greenie-weenie, which also gives it a light "sanding"), fill any abrasions you've picked up along the way, sand the areas you filled and another light allover sanding, wash it down to remove sanding dust, one fresh coat of paint and you're back on your way with a tear that will look as new as the day you first launched it.
If you're keeping it painted, wax is not necessary. You would only wax over gelcoat but I don't think any of us are going to use gelcoat in our teardrop build.
I'm not disputing the strength or durability of canvas at all, for many it is the absolute right choice, and fiberglass is definitely more expensive and the initial application is a bit more tricky. You'd definitely want to do your research, familiarize yourself with the process, experiment a little, and if possible even watch someone work with it if you have that option available to you, because it's too expensive to waste and big fiberglass mistakes are not easy to correct. (You CAN correct them. It's just a lot of hard work to do so.)
But I wouldn't want to you to decide not to use fiberglass just because you think it will be difficult to maintain. Our experience has always been just the opposite. And once you do fiberglass, unless it meets with catastrophic damage, it is done. You won't have to do it over and over again.