: . . . Does anyone have a good solution for a
: high gloss, bright (don't hit me) yellow paint/ finish? Many of
: the preferred paints are limited in their colors.

Any boat supply store should have marine enamels. You don't want one labeled for hulls, you want one designed for topsides. Yeah, they say they aren't meant for use underwater, but since we don;t store our boat in the water for all their lives, they work just fine. You can get these enamels online from WestMarine, Defender, or several others, or check the website for a West Marine store near you. www.westmarine.com, www.defender.com, and store locator for
West Marine is: http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/AjaxStoreLocatorDisplayView?langId=-1&storeId=11151&catalogId=10001

These companies list paints and enamels under "maintenance products" in their catalogs and online. West has Pettit and Interlux products, as well as several others. They also have a house brand.

A quart will give you 2 to 4 coats, depending on how heavy you apply it. More than enough. Most people seal their fabric with a clear urethane or polyurethane, and then paint over it. You might be able to do the sealing and finsih color at one time, or at least with a single product and several coats with this enamel. I haven't tried it myself, though.

If you are looking for hardware-store items then you need an exterior urethane or polyurethane for sealing the skin fabric. On top of that you might use a polyurethane enamel, like Varathane, in an opaque color. Or, look for Rust-Oleum, either in a spray can or by the pint. For many years the galvanized steel SCUBA air tanks were painted with Rust Oleum yellow paint. It holds up well under water, and it is readily available at Walmart, K-mart, Sears, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. at a reasonable price.

Hope this helps.

PGJ