First Boat! Gelcoats are no joke!😳

[MshawnBauer]

So, I did my first boat yesterday! Gel coats are NO joke! I did a basic wash followed up with a single step buff/polish and wax as a LSP. I used the Meguiars M67 one step compound with foam pads on my Rupes 21. I broke it up into sections and went to town. Two solid passes on each section with the M67/foam/Rupes gave me (although not perfect) a big noticeable difference. I finished it up with a coat of Collonite IW 845. Honestly, I love my Rupes, but I think a rotary would have been more efficient. Start to finish it took about 4.5 hours. What are you guys, that do boats on the regular, using? I would have liked faster, better cutting power but rotaries make nervous. How would a forced roatation do? Maybe the new makita or Flex? Please advise! Boats are so much different than cars, lol. Very satisfying to do, but a lot more work than I imagined! I was going to do the trailer as well (polish the wheels and dress the tires but I just ran out of time). Your input and feedback are GREATLY appreciated! 👍

[Dan Tran]

Thanks for posting about your first boat experience.

I am looking to book my first boat too.

Good feedback. Great questions as I would like to know also.


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[Salmonbum]

Rotary and wool. Da's just can't do gelcoat like the old school way.
Gelcoat is pretty tough stuff but u do need to be careful. Always keep the pad flat and never hit the edge of a sharp corner. Gel is thin in those areas and you will burn right thru.
If a boat is really bad i start with 3M rubbing compound. Then 2nd step would be 3M finesse. Optional i do meguiars polish if needed but finess usually finishes well. Follow up with 2 coats of #26 on a black pad on DA.

[MshawnBauer]

I don't know what my deal is with rotary buffers, but they make me nervous, lol. What machines are you guys using for Rotary buffers?

[LEDetailing]

Dewalt 849 is still going strong, around 20 years old. I use that huge beast for my 1 & 2 inch flex pads. Nice machine and they have a very awesome feature! 3000 rpm spin cycle to greatly reduce drying times on my pads. Have used my Dewalt more for spinning pads dry than buffing lately.

Watched a Todd Cooperider video where they spin dry pads into a 5 gallon bucket to catch the water. Great idea and saves me time not having to run outside to spin pads.

[MshawnBauer]

Dewalt 849 is still going strong, around 20 years old. I use that huge beast for my 1 & 2 inch flex pads. Nice machine and they have a very awesome feature! 3000 rpm spin cycle to greatly reduce drying times on my pads. Have used my Dewalt more for spinning pads dry than buffing lately.

Watched a Todd Cooperider video where they spin dry pads into a 5 gallon bucket to catch the water. Great idea and saves me time not having to run outside to spin pads.

That's priced well too! I haven't considered a rotary until now (I usually only do cars, trucks, motorcycles and my Rupes 21 is a beast!) lol. What would be the advantage of jumping up to a Flex Machine? They are sure priced higher!!

[Mike Phillips]

Honestly, I love my Rupes, but I think a rotary would have been more efficient.

For heavy oxidation you need a rotary with a wool pad and an aggressive compound.

In my boat detailing classes and in my boat book I teach machine sanding instead of starting with a rotary because,

1. It's faster overall
2. You do a better job
3. Your results last longer
4. It's a lot easier on you

For those that cannot attend my boat class in February of each year, I wrote my boat how-to book to be the COURSE WORKBOOK.

Paperback book - How To Detail Boats With Marine 31 by Mike Phillips







Yancy was working on turning it into an e-book but I'm not sure when it will be available in electronic form.

I would have liked faster, better cutting power but rotaries make nervous.

Gel-coats are thick, nothing to be worried about if you use good products and common sense. The biggest thing is to re-polish with an orbital AFTER the rotary work so you don't leave holograms in the gel-coat. See my article here, the only article on this topic I've ever seen.

Holograms in gel-coat boats by Mike Phillips

How would a forced rotation do?

Maybe the new makita or Flex?

Technically you're asking about,

FORCED OCILLATION

A rotary if forced rotation. The FLEX 3401, the Makita PO500C and the new RUPES Millie are all forced rotation and forced oscillation.


I answer this in my how-to book and outline how and when to use the FLEX 3401 versus a rotary. When I wrote the book the Makita and the RUPES gear-driven orbitals were not invented yet.


Basically you can use the FLEX 3401 for light to medium oxidation but soon as it's severe oxidation your back to the rotary and or sanding and then the rotary. The thing about severe oxidation is it goes DEEP into the gel-coat, it's not just on the surface.

[Kamakaz1961]

As always thank you for the valuable information Mr. Phillips

[MshawnBauer]

For heavy oxidation you need a rotary with a wool pad and an aggressive compound.

In my boat detailing classes and in my boat book I teach machine sanding instead of starting with a rotary because,

1. It's faster overall
2. You do a better job
3. Your results last longer
4. It's a lot easier on you

For those that cannot attend my boat class in February of each year, I wrote my boat how-to book to be the COURSE WORKBOOK.

Paperback book - How To Detail Boats With Marine 31 by Mike Phillips







Yancy was working on turning it into an e-book but I'm not sure when it will be available in electronic form.






Gel-coats are thick, nothing to be worried about if you use good products and common sense. The biggest thing is to re-polish with an orbital AFTER the rotary work so you don't leave holograms in the gel-coat. See my article here, the only article on this topic I've ever seen.

Holograms in gel-coat boats by Mike Phillips









Technically you're asking about,

FORCED OCILLATION

A rotary if forced rotation. The FLEX 3401, the Makita PO500C and the new RUPES Millie are all forced rotation and forced oscillation.


I answer this in my how-to book and outline how and when to use the FLEX 3401 versus a rotary. When I wrote the book the Makita and the RUPES gear-driven orbitals were not invented yet.


Basically you can use the FLEX 3401 for light to medium oxidation but soon as it's severe oxidation your back to the rotary and or sanding and then the rotary. The thing about severe oxidation is it goes DEEP into the gel-coat, it's not just on the surface.

YES! Thank you Mike Phillips! I was hoping to hear from you! Great info!! I'm definitely interested in the book! Please blow up the forums with plugs when it's available I need e-form! I think I'll just pull the trigger on a Rotaty. I watched a YouTube video you did a while back comparing the big players (Flex, makita, dewalt, etc) I'm leaning towards the dewalt for cost reasons and it not being my primary machine.. thanks again! It's so great having someone of your expertise and detailing fame giving us pointers and tips!! Also, if your looking for an Autogeek affiliate/understudy in the Midwest, I'm your man, msg me!

[Whitewater25]

It's a toss up between the Dewalt & Makita rotary machine. Both very good,durable machines. I have the Flex PE-14 as well. If I had to pick only one,it would be one of the first 2 I mentioned. The rotary makes shorter work of boats and gel coat is more forgiving than paint making it the ideal learning surface. But remember,forgiving doesn't mean indestructible.