Gelcoat restoration

[Asolek]

Hey I have a older checkmate and the gelcoat is starting to show its age on the bow and down the sides. I wanted to buff it real good to maybe take a little material off the gelcoat to bring back a nice shine. I was thinking maybe buff it with a rubbing compound and then use a polish/wax. Does it sound like it will work or just make a mess of my boat?

 

[Diplomat82]

Asolek,

Check out my photos in the Overhaulin forum under '82 Diplomat Cosmetic Restoration'. My Mate was pretty faded and I was able to bring back the shine.
I used 'Aqua Buff 1000 & 2000' then 'Flitz' and Finished it up with 'Maguiars Machine Glaze'.

Good luck and make sure you post some pics.

 

[Asolek]

diplomat that is amazing! That is the perfect post for me because my boat is the exact same color and faded just like that. Where did you buy all the products to do the job?

 

[Diplomat82]

Thanks Asolek,

The Aqua Buff was from www.aqua-buff.com (I bought 1lb cans...I think I could buff the boat 10 more times and still have some left over.)

Flitz came from www.flitz.com "FLITZ METAL, PLASTIC, FIBERGLASS POLISH & PAINT RESTORER" I bought a 2lb can....way more than needed.

Meguiar's Machine Glaze #3 came from a local auto store.

Just make sure you have a good quality polisher that can rev to 2500rpm.

 

[Reed]

Gel coat

Diplomat I have a quetion, I have a 1979 Trimate ll , the clear gel coat is starting to crack and in one spot is seams like something was on the clear and now it is erodid down to the metal flake it just happened over the winter while I was workin on it???? I would love to send the top shell to checkmate and get it re-done but I'm afraid it will be costly if you can send me your e-mail to Greghi65@aol.com I can send you some pics of my boat , Micro soft is blockin me so I can't post my pics on here Greg

 

[SouthernBoy]

Duratec Gelcoat

Has anybody on this board re-gelcoated their boat using the Duratec Additive. I am on the fence, trying to decide if I should clearcoat the top of my Checkmate or use this Duratec Stuff. I have read on other boards a lot about this. Here are some links if anybody has any input.

http://forums.screamandfly.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32441&highlight=duratec

http://forums.screamandfly.com/forums/showthread.php?t=40086&highlight=duratec

This guy repaired his transom and sprayed this stuff, mixing metalflake in the gel to match the original stuff

http://forums.screamandfly.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=24188&perpage=15&pagenumber=20

Here is the company website with the stuff

http://www.fibreglast.com/showproducts-category-Gel+Coats+&+Hardener-10.html

And a post on Hotboat showing everything a guy bought in order to re-gel his boat.

http://www.hotboat.com/forums/showthread.php?t=71330&highlight=duratec

 

[Diplomat82]

Greg,
My boat was just severely faded.....I don't believe the Gel coat was ever sanded or really buffed out before. I had called Checkmate about how to restore the shine myself, Mike suggest wet sanding first then the Filtz and finish it off Meguiar's Machine Glaze. So instead of wetsanding I decided to try Aqua-Buff......I believe I got the same result.

If your gel is cracking or flaking it sounds like someone reshot some clear or some other coating over the original....once you start to feel the metal flake there is no gel coat left. I have no experience if this is happening....but alot of other guys have delt with this......maybe they will chime in.

 

[petersfield]

JUst wanted to say Diplomat82 you did a great job on your boat! I will be doing mine right away too! shawn

 

[Diplomat82]

Thanks Shawn,
Just make sure you have plenty of "refreshments" on hand.......and plan on your shoulders aching for a couple of days after.

Good luck and make sure to post some before and after shots.