HELP Coach!

[evil0ne]

Well I finally got sick of trying to use the oven cleaner or acetone etc on the reg numbers and went to the 1500 grit wet sand. I used lots of water on the paper and the boat and everything is off. Well, now I can't get the shine back. I followed the advice of: "After the 1500 grit I used a rubbing compound over the area and kept working down to a color restorer, and a final wax coat" and its just not coming out right. What to do?

My before polishing and after were difficult because the sun went down but below are some pics.

Before:



After:

[yearroundboarder]

I took the painted reg numbers off my 2003 Reinell and had the same issues. The shine can be restored...wet sand using 1,000grit, then 1,500grit, then polish with a "machine" buffer and some 3M finesse it or equivalent mildly abrasive liquid compound. It'll take several passes, but eventually the fine swirls will diappear.

[evil0ne]

I bet its the machine vs. hand. I didn't spend too much time on it yet, I thought I would post to see what others had to say when it didn't come out right away. As you can tell from the pictures it isn't that bad since I had such a hard time actually getting it to show in the pictures. I'll give it a few more tries before I just put the new #'s over the area and hope I don't see any marks left over. What products are people using?

[spharis]

You need to get a large polisher and get some 3M fiberglass restorer/polisher combo. The scratches are not deep enough to require additional sanding, now you just need to take a light layer of the gel off. If you don't have one, Harbor Freight has a nice adjustable speed for super cheap. It's the one I use. The adjustable speed makes all the difference in the world. You will get tennis elbow trying to remove that by hand.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=92623

And here's the restorer I use. It doesn't cut so much to require alot of experience in this type of thing.
http://www.tapplastics.com/shop/product.php?pid=60

You could also polish it, but it isn't required as the above is pretty similar to a polish. You can buy the polishes and restorers at WalMart.

[evil0ne]

Anyone know if Pep Boys, NAPA, Checker or Auto Zone would have the fiberglass 3M restorer? West Marine and Boater's World are on the other side of town. I figure one should have it for all those Corvette's out there.

[talltigeguy]

Spharis,

Wouldn't that polisher work nicely for just a standard wax job too? I have been looking for one for a while to get the wax job done more quickly.

[spharis]

Yes.....the variable speed makes it usable for alot of things. I even use mine to sand my teak platform. it comes with the velcro pad, so you just buy the proper applicator pad for the job; can be sanding disc, polishers, or compund pads.

[TeamAllen]

You can do it by hand, but the force required to do so is pretty aggressive.

I use a Dual Action Polisher made by Porter Cable (7424). It is often referred to as a PC. I would not use a rotary buffer! You need a product, as mentioned above, with a mild abrasive. I use Meguiars products. They have a great forum as well.

http://www.meguiarsonline.com/

Boat gel coats are easier to work on than cars. The gel coat is much thicker than paint finishes.

[evil0ne]

I found that 7424. Are you saying that you would not use the Harbor Freight model?

I'm looking at the differences and The Harbor Freight is 9.7amps and the PC is 3.7. The Harbor Freight goes from 300-3000rpm and the PC goes from 2,500 to 6,000.

[spharis]

If you don't want to have to remember to move the buffer in a circular pattern, then a swivel polisher (like the Porter Cable) can be used. The advantage is that they will kind of orbit around to prevent the pad from staying in one spot for too long a period. I have never found one that worked as well as a variable speed buffer though, as the RPM is usually not as adjustable, and has a limited range. If you just remember that you are using abrasive, and don't hold the pad flat, then you will be fine. Keep the thing moving. If you go to an auto body shop, most body techs will not be using orbital vibrators as I call them. You will never need to go above 3000 RPM on gel or paint. In fact, most tutorials from abrasive manu. suggest using the lowest setting on the Porter Cables. Having the low speeds are nice for applying restorers, buffing out scratches etc....the higher speeds are nice for polishing. Choosing a pad is just as important.

My gel is about 15mil. I took off about 3-5 to get the shine back in mine. I don't know how thick the new stuff is.

[chpthril]

I found that 7424. Are you saying that you would not use the Harbor Freight model?

I'm looking at the differences and The Harbor Freight is 9.7amps and the PC is 3.7. The Harbor Freight goes from 300-3000rpm and the PC goes from 2,500 to 6,000.

IMHO, For buffing/polishing, slower is better. Higher speeds for sanding.

[evil0ne]

The scratches are not deep enough to require additional sanding, now you just need to take a light layer of the gel off.

I'm glad you said that, I was worried someone was going to post a comment that I ruined the finish.

[evil0ne]

It's all better now. Check the pics. Check the domed numbers thread for the install pics.

[Coach]

What did you end up doing? Elbow grease or did you get the orbital polisher? I have a PC that I use but it still scares me to use on my new baby. Glad it worked out you had me scared. I did the 1500 all over my last boat and it came out great! Looking good- again

[evil0ne]

I got the Harbor Freight Polisher and the 3M Finesse It. No way the elbow grease would have worked. I had it on the lowest setting and never really had a problem.