scratches (imbedded)

master_photog

master_photog

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I'm not having any luck removing the unfelt scratches in my gel coat. I'm using (aggressively) the 7424XP, an orange pad and Meguiar's 105 compound.

Does anyone else have a suggestion on what to try next?

This is a 2012 boat and I've noticed these scratches since day 1. What is the possibility of the scratches being underneath the gel coat? In other words, a bad fiberglass job that has been gel coated??

Again, I cannot feel these scratches, but they are a painful eyesore in just the right light and angle.

Here are some links for your review of the scratches.

http://www.cs2photography.com/s1.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s2.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s3.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s4.jpg
 
Im not very knowledgeable in boat polishing but I would have to think you need to go with something more aggressive like the LC thin wool pad and I would think that you would need more in way of a tool as well like a flex or a rotary.
 
Agreed. PC isn't going to get it done. If that's your only choice you will need MF pads.

A better choice is the rosary buffer. You might be able to rent one or I've read Harbor Freight has an affordable one.

Traditionally RB W/wool pads is the combo for gel coat. You should read the info in the marine threads. Some of those scratches look pretty deep.

Also see if moderators can change tour thread title to indicate gel oat or a boat.
 
Those look horrible! Could be Shoty gelcoat fabricating. You can feel them at all? They look like marks from rubbing aginist the dock or trailer.( cant tell where the scratches are from the picture)The boat was never re-gelled or painted at some point or a repair the wasn't properly filled and then gel coated. If you could feel them you'd have to level out the scratches by sanding then compound, polish ect.. From what I've seen on tv boats are made backwards , the make mold first, then spray the gelcoat, then spray a few layers of fiberglass resin. The factory could have messed up really bad, but seems unlikely, and what ever happened, did so at a later point. I'd take it back to the dealer or salesman of its still in warranty have then repair it.
 
Try No.7 Polishing Compound and you'll see outstanding results.
Find it anywhere, it's all I use on gel coats:)
Give it a shot, heck it can't be beat for 5 bucks.
 
Theraven said:
Those look horrible! Could be Shoty gelcoat fabricating. You can feel them at all? They look like marks from rubbing aginist the dock or trailer.( cant tell where the scratches are from the picture)The boat was never re-gelled or painted at some point or a repair the wasn't properly filled and then gel coated. If you could feel them you'd have to level out the scratches by sanding then compound, polish ect.. From what I've seen on tv boats are made backwards , the make mold first, then spray the gelcoat, then spray a few layers of fiberglass resin. The factory could have messed up really bad, but seems unlikely, and what ever happened, did so at a later point. I'd take it back to the dealer or salesman of its still in warranty have then repair it.
Click to expand...

These scratches have been here since day one of receiving the boat. I've tried to correct them on my own, but have had no luck with the tools I've mentioned (the DA, the meguiar's M105 and the orange pads). I can't feel these at all, the finish is very smooth.

I may try the more aggressive rotary and some wool pads before asking the dealership for help.

Thanks!
 
Mike
Should be able to tell you his thoughts tomorrow when he sees this but I know a DA is not powerful enough for sure.
 
Evan.J said:
Mike
Should be able to tell you his thoughts tomorrow when he sees this but I know a DA is not powerful enough for sure.
Click to expand...

Do you know how to bring Mike's attention to the thread?

Thank you
 
master_photog said:
I'm not having any luck removing the unfelt scratches in my gel coat. I'm using (aggressively) the 7424XP, an orange pad and Meguiar's 105 compound.

Does anyone else have a suggestion on what to try next?

This is a 2012 boat and I've noticed these scratches since day 1. What is the possibility of the scratches being underneath the gel coat? In other words, a bad fiberglass job that has been gel coated??

Again, I cannot feel these scratches, but they are a painful eyesore in just the right light and angle.

Here are some links for your review of the scratches.

http://www.cs2photography.com/s1.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s2.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s3.jpg


http://www.cs2photography.com/s4.jpg
Click to expand...


From the looks of the scratches in the pictures, they were in the mold or in the prep work when the boat was painted.

I'm logging off for the day, my eyes are bugging out, but see this article, same kind of idea...

Here's what Dieback or Shrinkback looks like in fresh paint


I don't think you can fix this unless the coating you're working on is thick. I do troubleshooting by placing a tape-line on an affected section and then buffing on only one side of the tape-line. Real quick you can see if you're "affecting" the surface and removing the defect or not.


:)
 
I never mind if someone posts their questions to the forum, that is create a thread like this and then shoot me a PM to bring it to my attention or have me chime in.

What I try to get people to shy away from is sending me all their questions in a PM when they should be posting it to the public forum. It's what the forum is for...

You would not believe how many people join this forum have a 0 post count, (that means they're new and have not posted yet), and then send me a Private Message with all their questions. :laughing:

It's not that I don't like it or appeciate it, but do a word count some day on how many words I type that are on the PUBIC forum and then multiply that by about 10 to include,

  • Private Messages
  • Facebook
  • The other forums I post to
  • E-mails
It's all about "typing time" and the best leverage of typing time is where lots of eyeballs can see it, not in a Private Message. And I'm a speed typist!

Mike Stoops has my old sig line in his sig line on MOL.

It's all good... I just have to have balance...



:dblthumb2:
 
Contact the dealer and ask if the color is "IN" the gel coat or if it is painted.

I had a 2000 Baja 232, same as the model Mike Philips buffed out here. That color was in the gel coat. The gel coat is thick. Wet sand it...you will be amazed how fast it goes.

Typically, the manufacturer will use a black gel coat behind the color. I would suggest wet sanding a section that is white until you get the correction you seek; without seeing the slight gray tint that means you are running out of white gel coat.

I wet sanded by hand and then finished with M105 on an orange pad with an old Porter Cable 7424. The PC is very slow going, but the results are worth it!
 
Thanks for the help all!

Allenk4, what grit of sand paper do you recommend on the gel coat?

Again, thanks for the tips!
 
I started with 800 grit, followed by 1200 grit.

Use lots of water or your sandpaper will gum up badly.

I found that M105 was actually able to knock out 1200 grit sanding marks in gel coat.
 
FullAttn2Detail said:
Mike what do you think about using denim and velvet pads?
Click to expand...


I think they work pretty good for the right application, check out my article and the hi res pictures here showing what I did with a simple Porter Cable dual action polisher.


How to remove Orange Peel using a Porter Cable Dual Action Polisher


How_To_Remove_Orange_Peel_Without_Sanding_016.jpg





I don't think they will work for the project in this thread however. If the gel-coat is thick enough, it might be possible to wetsand the surface flat and then remove the sanding marks to restore gloss and clarity. Only testing will show...



:)
 
Mike.Phillips@Autogeek said:
I think they work pretty good for the right application, check out my article and the hi res pictures here showing what I did with a simple Porter Cable dual action polisher.


How to remove Orange Peel using a Porter Cable Dual Action Polisher


How_To_Remove_Orange_Peel_Without_Sanding_016.jpg





I don't think they will work for the project in this thread however. If the gel-coat is thick enough, it might be possible to wetsand the surface flat and then remove the sanding marks to restore gloss and clarity. Only testing will show...



:)
Click to expand...


How do you determine if the gel coat is thick enough for me to try the wetsanding? Do I assume that since the boat is only 2 years old that the gel coat is thick enough or is there a device to gauge/measure thickness?
 
master_photog said:
How do you determine if the gel coat is thick enough for me to try the wetsanding? Do I assume that since the boat is only 2 years old that the gel coat is thick enough or is there a device to gauge/measure thickness?
Click to expand...


Well first... lets get your pictures actually "inserted" as that makes it easy to see them and then discuss them. I just ,

  • Downloaded them.
  • Cropped out the pertinent portions.
  • Resized to 800 pixels wide.
  • Uploaded to your gallery.
  • Inserted them below.

These scratches are BAD!

s22.jpg


s12.jpg


s32.jpg




Here's what I would do...

I would find someone important where you bought the boat and send them the link to this thread, specifically this page with these pictures.

And ask them at what point in their boat manufacturing process are prep scratches like these instilled into the hull.

Then ask them what they recommend to remove them?

Someone at the place that built the boat, not sold it but built it, should be able to look at these pictures and give you some information.

Besides the above approach, if it were mine, I would try wetsanding a small section with some #2000 by hand or #3000 by machine and then compound out my scratches and inspect.

Most gel-coat finishes are thicker than clear coats on cars. That said you still have to be careful because they are not uber thick. There's no strength in the gel-coat when talking about a fiberglas boat. The strength in a fiberglas boat is in the resin with the glass strands in it. The gel-coat provides color/beauty. If boat manufacturers make the gel-coat out skin too thick it will crack because it doesn't have the strength like the resin with the glass. Make sense?


As for this picture below, try using some kind of flat pad so you have more pad in contact with the surface. The issue with convoluted pads is the only time you have "close to" 100% contact of pad with surface is if you apply a lot of pressure to squish the high points flat. If you have to do this you might as well get a flat pad.


s42.jpg




:)
 
UPDATE - this was a VERY EXPENSIVE trip to the dealership. Good news!! The owner of the dealership did not like the scratches he saw and needed professional advise from a local 'glass' guy. The owner's thoughts and fears were that this came from the factory this way. Once the 'glass' guy showed up and had a look, he confirmed this. The 'glass' guy said that sometimes these imperfections won't present themselves after a year or two in the sun, then they becom very apparent.

Anyway, the dealership, the glass guy and the manufacturer were more than understanding and admitting a flaw in their prep work.

The reason this was an expensive trip is because they offered huge money on our 2012 boat and gave us 2013 pricing on a 2014 boat. So, at the end of the day, we've traded in the boat for a 2014 - boating season is officially over.

Thanks for your help in giving me good questions to ask the dealership.
 
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