Buffing old gelcoat

Maine Sail · Mar 24, 2012

Captainron1 said:
Hello, I have purchased a 1979 30ft O'Day which has had no care for at least 12 years. I want to bring the gel coat back to its original finish. Presently the paint looks white and dull but a little rub shows the off white color and even hope of a gloss!! I have purchased a variable speed polisher and wonder what polishes to use to bring back the finish as quickly as possible and then how to protect my hard work.
Many Thanks
Ron

Tips For Great Buff & Wax (LINK)

brian3820 · Mar 24, 2012

Hi Ron. I am here to tell you, MaineSails link in the above post is the way to go for sure! I purchased my Hunter in October. It had sat out on the hard for 7 years. No wash, no wax... Just the sun and elements. If you touched my boat, it looked like you had just ran your hand over a chalk board. Now, you MUST commit to the idea, as it is a lot of work. I had to wet (MUST BE WET TO GET GOOD FINAL FINISH) sand my boat starting with 600 grit and work my way up... then use ALL of the various compounds mentioned, then polish and wax... My boat looks fantastic now... I can't say enough about the above link... LOTS of work, but in the end, your boat will look beautiful... If you have any questions, email back or email MaineSail... Good luck..

monkeybars · Mar 25, 2012

the above is a good process but overly complex,just get some "polish" compound, not rubbing compound, and any good auto wax of your choosing don't get carried away on specific brands,the important thing is just to put any kind of wax on it every year without fail, start your buffing on the transom in a out of the way spot to learn where a mistake is not so visable,ie. burning thru gelcoat all the way to glass.

Maine Sail · Mar 25, 2012

monkeybars said:
the above is a good process but overly complex,

Actually quite simple but I've taken the time to explain all the steps to get a hull looking as new or better than new for a complete beginner.

These are the results of folks who had no previous experience..

And even easy enough for a power boater...

The "overly complex" detail is there to hopefully prevent beginners from doing things like this:

monkeybars said:
just get some "polish" compound, not rubbing compound,

Some boats may need a heavier compound or even wet sanding.. Polish alone simply will not cut if the hull is already beyond a polish.

btm0905 · Apr 2, 2012

I just finished buffing out my 76' which had heavy oxidation. I wasn't going for perfection but I wanted to get some 'shine'. My advice and experiences: I agree that you shouldn't focus on the brands necessarily but lighter colored compounds seem to work better and won't stain if you let them dry to long. Invest in a nice polisher/buffer...I bought a cheapo from Harbour Freight and the handle broke and it tended to overheat. Change the pad often and buy the highest quality you can, as you can easily rinse and reuse them and save time, energy, and money. Lastly, take your time and if possible take off your rubrail ( i was replacing mine at the time) in order to get the best results. I cant say mine looks like the pictures above but shines and looks great for a 76' and all it took was 2 rounds of rubbing compound, 2 rounds of polish, and a good waxing.

plainssailor · Apr 2, 2012

I just finished compounding my 77 Oday 25 which was left for three years. I used 3M heavy scratch and oxidized remover then the next step was 3M product for lighter sctaches. Then a wax on that. I could not believe it, it looks like it just got pulled out of the mold! It took about 29 hours to do the boat from the water line to the bump rail, and then the cockpit and gunwales, and cost about 200.00 dollars with the rental of a Makita buffer, but worth every penny and blister!

peterbud · Apr 10, 2012

Main sail is their an option to your system if you dont have access to the high speed buffer. I know it will not be as good but i just dont have the cash to invest in the makita buffer right now.