Swirls in gelcoat

**58LesPaul** · 03-16-2018, 11:37 AM

I have some light swirls in my boats gelcoat that I would like to try to get out before I coat it. They are not all over and barely noticeable but would still like to remove them. I used Marine 31 heavy oxidation compound with a microfiber pad to get rid of the oxidation and have tried the same pad with Griots fast correcting cream and perfecting cream to remove the swirls, but ain’t having much luck. Got any suggestions?

All I have is a Griots DA.

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**waterman** · 03-16-2018, 12:31 PM

Hello,

There was a thread on 4/26/17 and the same question was asked about gelcoat swirl marks. The title was removing light swirl marks in gelcoat. I’m sorry but I don’t know how to paste the link for you. That should help you.

Lou

Mike Phillips · 03-16-2018, 12:34 PM

Originally Posted by 58LesPaul

I have some light swirls in my boats gelcoat that I would like to try to get out before I coat it.

I used Marine 31 heavy oxidation compound with a microfiber pad to get rid of the oxidation and have tried the same pad with Griots fast correcting cream and perfecting cream to remove the swirls, but ain’t having much luck.

Got any suggestions?

Yeah.... quit using microfiber pads. Switch to an aggressive foam cutting pad and test the two Griot's products using a tape-line on an affected area. Then inspect the side you buff with the side that has the swirls you're trying to get rid of and hope for a difference.

Mike Phillips · 03-16-2018, 12:36 PM

Here's three slides from a power point I'm teaching this weekend at Detail Fest,

Note the bold text in the below slide...

And the quote above is something I've typed out many times on this forum on the topic of foam versus fiber pads.

I cover this topic in my boat detailing book too...

Mike Phillips · 03-16-2018, 12:58 PM

And for everyone that will ever read this thread into the future....

My boat detailing book is the course manual for the boat detailing class. This year instead of one boat we had two boats and both equally horrible condition and I'm very proud to say the Class of 2018 took these diamonds in the rough and turned them into glistening gemstones.

Pictures: 2018 Boat Detailing Class at Autogeek with Mike Phillips

**waterman** · 03-16-2018, 01:24 PM

Hi Mike,

In your book you suggest using the thin purple wool pad with the porter cable for catagory 2 for either one or two steps. Would there be a benefit to using the wool pad with the griots products to get rid of the swirl marks? Or would this not work with heavy duty compound?

Mike Phillips · 03-16-2018, 03:24 PM

Originally Posted by waterman

Hi Mike,

In your book you suggest using the thin purple wool pad with the porter cable for catagory 2 for either one or two steps.

Would there be a benefit to using the wool pad with the griots products to get rid of the swirl marks?

Or would this not work with heavy duty compound?

It's not that it won't work with the compound, it's the FIBERS cut the surface and leave micro-marring. Microfiber and or ANY fiber pad is fine for the correction step but not for the finishing step because of the individual fibers.

In my how-to book I share that I do not know the exact reason why gel-coat surfaces do NOT like soft foam pads for any time of abrading work. I find hard sharp foam cutting pads work best. This is what I show in my class. Here's a picture from the last boat class, if you look closely the students are using FLEX 3401 to polish with and those are RUPES blue and green foam cutting pads.

I also only use the Captain's Compound in my classes. The other Marine 31 compounds and polishes are as good as any other line of marine compounds and polishes but the Captain's compound uses different abrasive technology and if you read any of my posts on this forum long enough you'll see I am always talking about using the best abrasive technology you can for the best results. The Griot's paint compounds and polishes use great abrasive technology.

You can use the 6" RUPES blue and green foam pads on your Griot's 6" DA polisher but you'll need a 5" backing plate. If you have the 6" backing plate that comes with the polisher it will fit the RUPES 7" pads but I think these are too large for that tool to use effectively. Maybe the tool could rotate them under pressure but it would be pushing it.

I'm a HUGE fan of doing a job right the first time, thus the reason I always stress to everyone the importance of abrasive technology.

Look at the reflection of the people buffing on the boat in the gel-coat...

I promised these people I would show them,