smokediver
06-09-2005, 05:22 PM
I have been seeing a lot of posts regarding faded stripes / gelcote / paint ... I would like to share my 14 years of experience doing this on my off days from the fire dept . I will start by saying that I mostly work on boats that are painted , however , it works equally well on gelcote . I am not going to knock any products as product familiararity is real important ... I will just say what works for me after doing this for so long ...
1. Start with a clean , dry surface even if you are gonna wet sand , dry it first .
2. Go light and work backwards , meaning , try a compound before taking out the sand paper ... If you are going to sand , you don't need and extra cut compound ..
3. Usually , a suface that is wetted and looks great , can look that way dry , just need to take your time and you will get a great result ..
4. If you do wet sand , you don't need a white wool pad , a good foam cutting pad is way better .. 3m makes foam cutting and polishing pads and while they are expensive , they are very good . Remember how tandy computers were amazing when they first came out ? So were white wool pads ... Now there is foam ...
5. Start with 800 grit paper and a sanding block , don't use your bare hand ! If you need to go heavier than 800 , get some help from someone unless you have a good knowledge of what you are doing .
6. After sanding with 800 take a good look at the finish ... Make sure the blemishes are out that you were after ...
7. Now , to get excellent gloss , you need to reduce the size of the scratches made by the 800. Switch over to 1000 then 1500 ... Happy now ? OK ... I go down to 2000 ... Like I said earlier , if you sand , sand , forget the extra cut compound ... On hard finishes like Awl-Grip.... you need to go all the way to 2500 ... that is a hard paint !
8. ok, the sanding is done and it has been washed again and dried ... Now for the compound ... I prefer 3m rubbing compound # 5933 .. Don't get super duty 3m compound , unless you plan on buffing your dock box , then i would apply that with a white wool pad :) ... Start out nice and slow applying the material in about a 2 - 3 foot section . Increase the speed to about 1800-2200 rpm. This is applied with a white FOAM pad . See how the scratches are getting smaller , now they are swirls .
9. Switch over to a black polishing pad and use a good swirl remover .. 3m makes an excellent swirl remover , for both light and dark colors ... Apply like the compound to start , but increase the speed to about 2500 rpm ... Looking wet now !!!!
10 . finish off with a good carnuba wax . If your finish was real bad , you will need to wax about once a week until the finish stays ..
I hope this helps ... Below is a black Hinckley, yeah , I know , they are way over priced and I am still trying to figure out why they are ! ... I maintain the finish on about 14 or 15 of these here in town ... Most are dark colored and all are painted .. I have no choice but to work in the direct south florida sunlight .. It can be brutal in August !
1. Start with a clean , dry surface even if you are gonna wet sand , dry it first .
2. Go light and work backwards , meaning , try a compound before taking out the sand paper ... If you are going to sand , you don't need and extra cut compound ..
3. Usually , a suface that is wetted and looks great , can look that way dry , just need to take your time and you will get a great result ..
4. If you do wet sand , you don't need a white wool pad , a good foam cutting pad is way better .. 3m makes foam cutting and polishing pads and while they are expensive , they are very good . Remember how tandy computers were amazing when they first came out ? So were white wool pads ... Now there is foam ...
5. Start with 800 grit paper and a sanding block , don't use your bare hand ! If you need to go heavier than 800 , get some help from someone unless you have a good knowledge of what you are doing .
6. After sanding with 800 take a good look at the finish ... Make sure the blemishes are out that you were after ...
7. Now , to get excellent gloss , you need to reduce the size of the scratches made by the 800. Switch over to 1000 then 1500 ... Happy now ? OK ... I go down to 2000 ... Like I said earlier , if you sand , sand , forget the extra cut compound ... On hard finishes like Awl-Grip.... you need to go all the way to 2500 ... that is a hard paint !
8. ok, the sanding is done and it has been washed again and dried ... Now for the compound ... I prefer 3m rubbing compound # 5933 .. Don't get super duty 3m compound , unless you plan on buffing your dock box , then i would apply that with a white wool pad :) ... Start out nice and slow applying the material in about a 2 - 3 foot section . Increase the speed to about 1800-2200 rpm. This is applied with a white FOAM pad . See how the scratches are getting smaller , now they are swirls .
9. Switch over to a black polishing pad and use a good swirl remover .. 3m makes an excellent swirl remover , for both light and dark colors ... Apply like the compound to start , but increase the speed to about 2500 rpm ... Looking wet now !!!!
10 . finish off with a good carnuba wax . If your finish was real bad , you will need to wax about once a week until the finish stays ..
I hope this helps ... Below is a black Hinckley, yeah , I know , they are way over priced and I am still trying to figure out why they are ! ... I maintain the finish on about 14 or 15 of these here in town ... Most are dark colored and all are painted .. I have no choice but to work in the direct south florida sunlight .. It can be brutal in August !