I am finally going to tackle waxing my own boat. I bought a 10" orbital buffer/polisher at a flea market ($10!), reviewed posts on this site for recommendations of products (decided to go with the West Marine One Step polish/wax) and am actually looking forward to getting busy. The buffer came with a couple of covers for the pad, but I have never used one of these things before, so I have a couple of basic questions: I am also going to separately compound part of the hull before applying the One Step as I want to at least try getting some old vinyl lettering shadow off of the transom before I put on some new letters. What type of pad cover do I use with the compound? What type of pad cover do I use to apply the one step? Lastly, what they heck is the difference between "polishing" "buffing" and "waxing?" The covers I saw for sale were being sold as for specifically for one or two of these activities (which I guess means not for the others), and I don't really know which applies to what I want to do.
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Copied from another board - expert advice
I found this to be a worthwhile set of recommendations which might be of interest to others: I just got home, was going to jump in the shower and wash off all the sanding dust but thought I would check e-mail, now I'm putting the shower on hold so that I can give my gel coat talk. I do work as a detailer among other boat work. My speciality is waxing. Unlike paint, gel coat is porous. Seen under a microscope, the smooth, glassy finish on your boat is millions of tiny holes or pores. The walls of these pores gradually breakdown from exposure to ozone and ultraviolet light, filling with oxidized resin molecules called "chalk". This chalk eventually turns the entire outer surface a dull, opaque color. Micro-debris, marine scum and salt residues also collect in the pores accelerating the oxidation process. Traditional compounds primarily address the effects of oxidation (chalky finish) not the cause of oxidation ( resin residues and micro-debris in the pores). While compounding temporarily restores gloss, oxidation is still continuing under the surface. I do not like using compounding products for several reason. One is listed above. Compounding will also remove a small amount of gel coat, most gel coat isn't very thick to begin with and some gel coat is very soft. The compounding also leave very small scracths in the gel coat in effect exposing more of the gel coat surface to oxidation. If I must compound then there is one product I will use: Menzerna Power Gloss. The abrasives in Power Gloss are a fraction of the size normally found in compounds and milled to a uniformity of size. There are two other options. One use a good cleaner/wax that is solvent based, Interlux makes a good one and also Garry's Royal Satin. Neither of these will scrathes the gel coat, both are easy to use. The second option is to use Bon Ami, yes that is correct, Bon Ami. It will not scracth the gel coat, it will take the layer of chaulk off but not clean the pores, nor will it restore gloss. Both of the two methods above require you to come back with a good quality wax. Yes even the cleaner/wax needs to be coated with a wax. Cleaner waxs do not have enough wax in them to hold up for more than 3 months, even less in salt water. For waxing I like Star Brite Premium Marine Polish with PTEF, the new 3-M Scothgard Liquid Polish or Collinite #885. If you want you boat to stay looking good, wax now and then again in the fall, at least two times a year. If you don't use your boat over the winter you can put a coat of the Star Brite or 3-M Scothgard Liquid Polish on and not buff it off, come spring buff it off, none of those nasty water mark from all the dirt and rain to clean off this way. Now a word on buffers. The cheap auto buffer you see at Costco or other stores don't do the job, don't waste your money. For those of you new to machine polishers, there are two basic categories, dual-action and circular. Dual-action (also called orbital) machines are preferred by the majority of enthusiasts for maintaining automotive finishes. With dual-action (D-A) machines, the pads do not rotate. They oscillate or "jiggle" in a random pattern. This random motion means the machine can not put swirls in the finish. This motion is also ideally suited for applying waxes and sealants. Because D-A machines are not designed to "cut" or remove paint, they really can not fully remove swirls or scratches or restore gloss to dull gel coats. Buy the following if you have never used a professional polisher. Dual-action polishers are safe and easy-to-use for the novice operator. They allow light compounding and waxing to be accomplished in a fraction of the time it would take by hand. The least expensive and best you can buy for not a lot of $$ is The Porter Cable 7424 Dual Action Polisher, it will run somewhere around $150. If you want to spend more and have the option of cirular polishing then you can go for the Makita BO6040 Two Mode Polisher has an orange knob on the left side of the machine which switches it from a random orbital motion to a circular motion. This one will set up back around $300. Circular polishers, the kind used by body shops, are designed to "cut" or remove paint. They can abrade away the surface completely eliminating swirls, scratches and paint defects. Unfortunately, in inexperienced hands, circular polishers can burn through the paint right down to bare metal. Their higher speeds also make them unacceptable for applying most waxes and sealants. This is not a concern when working on gel coat (fiberglass) surfaces. Circular polishers are excellent for restoring gloss to dull gel coat finishes. If you want to invest in a circular polisher than I would go for the Hitachi SP18VA Polisher, it will run about $150 if you shop around. I own a Porter Cable which I like very much but the Hitachi is lighter, believe me when I tell you that 8 pounds can get really heavy, the Hitachi comes in at just over 6 pounds. I will spare all of you and not go into the difference in pads but I do have to say that the wool pads that everyone buys are compounding pads, not polishing/finsihing pads. One last note 3M Finesse-It II is not a wax. It leaves no protection on the gel coat. In fact I really don't like Finesse-It, but lots of people do. Of course I do hope everyone knows not to polish/wax the non-skid. OK you are thinking no one would do that but there are lots of power boats owners that do! If you want to clean your non-skid the best produce I have found is Marykate Cleaning Detail Non Skid Deck Cleaner. And of course a very stiff brush on your hands and knees. Sorry this was so long but I wanted to give people some useful information. I'm off to wash the dust off, have a great evening. Simply, Suzy S/V WholeHeart E-34 Andrew.Rogers@Lazard.com wrote:
I found this to be a worthwhile set of recommendations which might be of interest to others: I just got home, was going to jump in the shower and wash off all the sanding dust but thought I would check e-mail, now I'm putting the shower on hold so that I can give my gel coat talk. I do work as a detailer among other boat work. My speciality is waxing. Unlike paint, gel coat is porous. Seen under a microscope, the smooth, glassy finish on your boat is millions of tiny holes or pores. The walls of these pores gradually breakdown from exposure to ozone and ultraviolet light, filling with oxidized resin molecules called "chalk". This chalk eventually turns the entire outer surface a dull, opaque color. Micro-debris, marine scum and salt residues also collect in the pores accelerating the oxidation process. Traditional compounds primarily address the effects of oxidation (chalky finish) not the cause of oxidation ( resin residues and micro-debris in the pores). While compounding temporarily restores gloss, oxidation is still continuing under the surface. I do not like using compounding products for several reason. One is listed above. Compounding will also remove a small amount of gel coat, most gel coat isn't very thick to begin with and some gel coat is very soft. The compounding also leave very small scracths in the gel coat in effect exposing more of the gel coat surface to oxidation. If I must compound then there is one product I will use: Menzerna Power Gloss. The abrasives in Power Gloss are a fraction of the size normally found in compounds and milled to a uniformity of size. There are two other options. One use a good cleaner/wax that is solvent based, Interlux makes a good one and also Garry's Royal Satin. Neither of these will scrathes the gel coat, both are easy to use. The second option is to use Bon Ami, yes that is correct, Bon Ami. It will not scracth the gel coat, it will take the layer of chaulk off but not clean the pores, nor will it restore gloss. Both of the two methods above require you to come back with a good quality wax. Yes even the cleaner/wax needs to be coated with a wax. Cleaner waxs do not have enough wax in them to hold up for more than 3 months, even less in salt water. For waxing I like Star Brite Premium Marine Polish with PTEF, the new 3-M Scothgard Liquid Polish or Collinite #885. If you want you boat to stay looking good, wax now and then again in the fall, at least two times a year. If you don't use your boat over the winter you can put a coat of the Star Brite or 3-M Scothgard Liquid Polish on and not buff it off, come spring buff it off, none of those nasty water mark from all the dirt and rain to clean off this way. Now a word on buffers. The cheap auto buffer you see at Costco or other stores don't do the job, don't waste your money. For those of you new to machine polishers, there are two basic categories, dual-action and circular. Dual-action (also called orbital) machines are preferred by the majority of enthusiasts for maintaining automotive finishes. With dual-action (D-A) machines, the pads do not rotate. They oscillate or "jiggle" in a random pattern. This random motion means the machine can not put swirls in the finish. This motion is also ideally suited for applying waxes and sealants. Because D-A machines are not designed to "cut" or remove paint, they really can not fully remove swirls or scratches or restore gloss to dull gel coats. Buy the following if you have never used a professional polisher. Dual-action polishers are safe and easy-to-use for the novice operator. They allow light compounding and waxing to be accomplished in a fraction of the time it would take by hand. The least expensive and best you can buy for not a lot of $$ is The Porter Cable 7424 Dual Action Polisher, it will run somewhere around $150. If you want to spend more and have the option of cirular polishing then you can go for the Makita BO6040 Two Mode Polisher has an orange knob on the left side of the machine which switches it from a random orbital motion to a circular motion. This one will set up back around $300. Circular polishers, the kind used by body shops, are designed to "cut" or remove paint. They can abrade away the surface completely eliminating swirls, scratches and paint defects. Unfortunately, in inexperienced hands, circular polishers can burn through the paint right down to bare metal. Their higher speeds also make them unacceptable for applying most waxes and sealants. This is not a concern when working on gel coat (fiberglass) surfaces. Circular polishers are excellent for restoring gloss to dull gel coat finishes. If you want to invest in a circular polisher than I would go for the Hitachi SP18VA Polisher, it will run about $150 if you shop around. I own a Porter Cable which I like very much but the Hitachi is lighter, believe me when I tell you that 8 pounds can get really heavy, the Hitachi comes in at just over 6 pounds. I will spare all of you and not go into the difference in pads but I do have to say that the wool pads that everyone buys are compounding pads, not polishing/finsihing pads. One last note 3M Finesse-It II is not a wax. It leaves no protection on the gel coat. In fact I really don't like Finesse-It, but lots of people do. Of course I do hope everyone knows not to polish/wax the non-skid. OK you are thinking no one would do that but there are lots of power boats owners that do! If you want to clean your non-skid the best produce I have found is Marykate Cleaning Detail Non Skid Deck Cleaner. And of course a very stiff brush on your hands and knees. Sorry this was so long but I wanted to give people some useful information. I'm off to wash the dust off, have a great evening. Simply, Suzy S/V WholeHeart E-34 Andrew.Rogers@Lazard.com wrote:
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