awlgrip maintenance

[richk]

How to I maintain the awlgrip finish on my hull?

 

[Don S/V ILLusion]

The conventional wisdom is to not buff it as the surface layer can be jeopardized. Assuming it is in good shape now, there are only two things the manufacturer recommends you use on Awlgrip: Awlwash and Awlcare, the former being a mild soap and the latter an acrylic wax. Given the price of the paint job, it isn't worth using a cheaper alternative.

 

[Maine Sail]

Exactly what Don said Awlwash & Awlcare. The only time you can buff and Awlgrip product it is if you have Awlcraft 2000 which is an acrylic urethane not a Linear Polyrurethane.. If you don't know what it is assume t is Awlgrip.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

Long ago the Awlgrip folks said do not wax their Awlgrip surfaces as the paint is so hard that dirt will not easily attach to it, but wax will attract dirt. Then they came out with the two products mentioned above for cleaning and preserving (the sun can chew on their special wax instead of the paint surface). That pretty much answers your question. Someone mentioned sanding. You can sand Awlgrip, but you would only do that for repairs, or as a last result before a needed repaint if the hull were terribly oxidized. But, you really want to use the right sandpaper, right compounds - all designed especially for paints and not fiberglass (too agressive). 3M makes a bunch of products to do just that, but usually you don't find that stuff on anyone's shelf. It is in the shop of the pro who understands the products and procedures. The original Awlgrip was very hard when cured. You only had about a 3 day window to fix sags, runs, orange peel, etc. after a paint job. Then came Awlcraft, which is a softer paint and more repairable - something that can be sanded and buffed long after it has cured which makes it a lot easier to blend in paint patches after repairing scratches, etc. But, actually now there are wonderful products on the market designed after much more R&D where you can work on the original very hard Awlgrip too, but like I said, these products are not easily found on the consumer market.

 

[jcastle]

Where to find awlgrip maintenance products

Here is where you can find those products... The cheapest place I have found.
http://www.bottompaintstore.com/awl...maintenance-products-c-13630_13683_13635.html

 

[ronbo]

For small areas, you can restore gloss to Awlgrip by using 3M products such as Finesse-it.
The dark green top surface of my spray rail facing the sun became dull over time.
Awlcare helped to a degree but Finesse was better at removing oxidized coating.

Ronbo