For the folks wondering how to remove vinyl lettering... use a heat gun. It's a mega version of a hair dryer and available in the paint department of your Home Depot or Lowes. Any vinyl applique when warmed, comes off easily.
Tips For A Great Buff & Wax
- Thread starter Maine Sail
- Start date
An easier option are the 3M Stripe Off wheels. They work wonders and are a lot faster than heat gun. Some of the lettering is very thin and fractures easily even with heat making for a tedious chore..
+1 for the 3M wheels. They make removing decals almost trivial and there is no worries about damaging the gelcoat.
Cheers,
Brad
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Maine Sail,
Great tutorial! I can hardly wait to try and bring back the gelcoat on my '79 C25. Also beautiful job on that Bathtub:dance:. Do you have a tutorial for detailing cars??
Great tutorial! I can hardly wait to try and bring back the gelcoat on my '79 C25. Also beautiful job on that Bathtub:dance:. Do you have a tutorial for detailing cars??
Any recommendations for a power buffing tool that can get into places you simply can't get with the makita that is discussed here? I love the machine for the hull sides, but working this weekend around the hand rails on the cabin top, the port lights, the twist snaps for the enclosure, the winch bases, etc and having to do all the small areas by hand there has got to be an easier, or at least less painful on the fingers, way.
Maine-
trying to source plastic skirt for use in cleaning hull step. came across this Duck Bill product which has tape built in. wondered if this tape would work?
http://www.findtape.com/product640/Duck-Pre-Taped-Painters-Drop-Cloth-Film.aspx?bc=N&vid=6946
Thanks.
trying to source plastic skirt for use in cleaning hull step. came across this Duck Bill product which has tape built in. wondered if this tape would work?
http://www.findtape.com/product640/Duck-Pre-Taped-Painters-Drop-Cloth-Film.aspx?bc=N&vid=6946
Thanks.
Looks very cool and a lot less labor intensive. Please let us know how it holds up, I've not used it.....
The tape is ordinary quality. It's better to laid down a good 5 days masking tape first and put this on top. Wont rip when you take it off. FROG tape is better as the paint wont creep.
Maine-
Getting closer to spring! I would like to use my porter cable unit rather than my Makita polisher to do the compounding/ polishing phase. My hull is white and doesn't have that much oxidation so I thought I would try to use the Presta Ultra cutting cream in one step, rather than a compound step first. My question is which Lake Country foam pad is the one to use for this combined compound/polishing step? I have white, black, and orange foam pads (all 6 inch). Also, how much Presta will I need to do a 42 ft boat, a quart, or a gallon?
Thanks.
Getting closer to spring! I would like to use my porter cable unit rather than my Makita polisher to do the compounding/ polishing phase. My hull is white and doesn't have that much oxidation so I thought I would try to use the Presta Ultra cutting cream in one step, rather than a compound step first. My question is which Lake Country foam pad is the one to use for this combined compound/polishing step? I have white, black, and orange foam pads (all 6 inch). Also, how much Presta will I need to do a 42 ft boat, a quart, or a gallon?
Thanks.
When buffing vertical surfaces try supporting some of the tool weight with the main or jib halyards in combination with bungy cord.
FWIW, Geohan
I would try the black first then go to white if it is not giving you enough cut. Orange is a "cutting" pad so I would not use that with the Presta if you want a 1 step and high gloss finish. Without seeing the hull I'd probably say the black would be the best bet but the white may work faster..
Orange = Light Cutting / Compounding
White = Polishing with very light "cutting" ability
Black/Gray = Finishing pad with no "cut"
I'm getting ready to do the buff wax on our boat. Two questions I've come up with:
-if putting on vinyl name/graphics I should do them after polishing and before waxing?
-how long can things sit between steps? Ideally I would do it all at once, but realistically it will take me several weekends. Is the timing more critical between initial cleaning, compounding, or polishing?
BTW, I used a generic 3M stripe off wheel to remove some old vinyl lettering. Worked like a charm.
Thanks
-if putting on vinyl name/graphics I should do them after polishing and before waxing?
-how long can things sit between steps? Ideally I would do it all at once, but realistically it will take me several weekends. Is the timing more critical between initial cleaning, compounding, or polishing?
BTW, I used a generic 3M stripe off wheel to remove some old vinyl lettering. Worked like a charm.
Thanks
We are looking for a polisher and am wondering about the Shurhold machine. Any experiences to share? We also need to remove some old painted stripes and the name as it's chipping away and looking sad. Will a compound do this?
I'm curious as well as to how quickly all steps have to be done. If we do the acid wash on one side of the hull, but do not complete the compounding, does the hull have to be washed a second time? I would think after the On/Off washing, all you would have to do is wipe the hull with a damp towel before starting compounding on another day?
Thanks Maine, for all the great info!
I've read through this thread a couple of times, & since this is only our second year with our boat, my head is spinning a bit. This year, I get to buff & wax while hubby gets to deal with bottom paint.
Last year we only compounded and waxed even though I think there was moderate oxidation. (Cuz we didn't know any better.) Now it looks somewhat shiny in spots and matte in others. It doesn't appear to be chalky, just not shiny in places. Should I sand? By hand in a circular motion, I assume? What should it look like after sanding?
If I don't need to sand first, then do I start with compounding?
Anyone know how much materials I need for a 27 ft Catalina?
Thanks in advance!
I've read through this thread a couple of times, & since this is only our second year with our boat, my head is spinning a bit. This year, I get to buff & wax while hubby gets to deal with bottom paint.
Last year we only compounded and waxed even though I think there was moderate oxidation. (Cuz we didn't know any better.) Now it looks somewhat shiny in spots and matte in others. It doesn't appear to be chalky, just not shiny in places. Should I sand? By hand in a circular motion, I assume? What should it look like after sanding?
If I don't need to sand first, then do I start with compounding?
Anyone know how much materials I need for a 27 ft Catalina?
Thanks in advance!
sailcruiser said he used a quart on his 36'. I bought a quart each of the Presta products, but haven't yet started on our Catalina 27. I'll be doing it in the water, which will be challenging. Especially since I'd rather be out sailing!
I did the clean, compound, polish, wax procedure on our transom this weekend. I didn't get a mirror finish, but I didn't try terribly hard and it looks so much better than before. The next section I do will hopefully be better. We went sailing that afternoon and the next day and discovered that the fresh wax is a real soot magnet.
Any ideas on how we can avoid that? Kinda frustrating to get it all spiffy looking and then smear black soot all over it.
Any ideas on how we can avoid that? Kinda frustrating to get it all spiffy looking and then smear black soot all over it.