First time detailing -- 18' boat (picture)

[SuperDave4x4]

Ok fellas.. And ladies.. This is my first attempt at detailing so bare with me.

I'll be detailing my parents (now mine haha) 2001 188cc Sailfish center console boat. To my knowledge it has never been detailed. The boat was bought new and used very little.

As for tools all I have is a HF rotary with the included hook and loop 7" backing plate. I'm looking for help on which pads to get for the rotary and which compound, polish and wax to get.

Here are a few pics of the specimen...


Exterior of the hull. Not bad at all. You can see where there was a water line sticker towards the bow but was removed.




Top side of the boat. I guess this would be light oxidation. It looks better in this picture that what it really is. The further forward you go the worse it gets. The sun hit the these areas regularly while under the shed.




The inside... This is the worst spot. No chalky residue when I run my hands over it, it just has no shine.




This is a little further down in the boat from where the above picture was taken. It was a little more protected from the sun.

So with those pictures I'm hoping that gives you experts a better idea of what I'm working with and help me out with which pads and product to use.

Any guidance is extremely appreciated!!!!!

[SuperDave4x4]

62 views and no replys? I guess my thread title was misleading. Y'all probably thought the detailing was already completed.. Haha

[ShawnCT450R]

Dave - I bought the five pack of white wool pads from HF at the same time I bought my Rotary. They worked great, and the price was good. I clean mine after every section (with the frowned-upon screwdriver method) and they are holding up great.

[ShawnCT450R]

Also, check my reply to your post in my RV thread. I described which machines/pads I used for each product. The thread also has a pic of the products I used. Those products were recommended by boat people in a boat shop (since our gel-coat exterior is basically the same). Hope this helps. If you would like to discuss further, PM me your number and a preferred call-time, and I'll give you a call.

[Hoytman]

Keeping with the theme of least aggressive method first...

Have you tried a test spot with a nice all-in-one (AIO) product or cleaner wax such as Meguiar's M50 or Meguiar's Flagship Cleaner wax or some other similar offering? A marine cleaner wax such as those that Autogeek carries just might be the ticket on those sides since they don't appear to be that bad.

However, on the top-side you might be better served by a Meguiar's product called M67 One-step compound. It's a diminishing abrasive compound that cuts hard and fast and then breaks down into a nice fine polish that finishes nicely. I really can't see you having to use anything stronger than that even on the top-side. Shurhold's Buff Magic would be another one-step product that has good cut as well as finishes nicely. Yet another would be 3M Imperial Compound and Finishing Material...though the name recently changed (at least on the newest bottles) to 3M Marine Compound and Finishing Material (I think that's what it changed to).

There's no less than 3 products for you to consider that cut hard, fast, and finish nice. You will need to apply a sealer or a wax after using these products.

There are other products that also cut hard that would be good for doing that top-deck, but it would involve more than one step of work. It sort of depends on how much effort you want to exert and how much additional shine is worth the extra exertion. M67 produces a real nice shine on boats that are far worse than your photo's. Any of the 3 one-steps (3M, M67, Buf Magic) should offer you the shine you're looking for with the least amount of effort. All that's left to do is top it with some Collinite 846, or Collinite 885.

meguiars marine, meguiars mirror glaze marine, marine wax
Shurhold Marine & RV Care, Shurhold Buff Magic, Shurhold marine polish
Collinite Car Wax Products, Collinite Wax, Insulator Wax, collinite 845, collinite double coat

Autogeek is also offering a new line of products called Marine 31 boat care products, boat detail products, best boat wax , but it's only recently been released so there's not many peer reviews on it yet.

I would honestly try some test spots on the top-side and the hull using nothing more than a one of the cleaner waxes in the Meguiar's link that is provided.

Hope this was helpful.

[hernandez.art13]

I describe your work as talking to a boy about girls. Yeah I've seen it, bur wow and sheesh....

Where did you work on it? Water or land?

And the screwdriver method seems to not work if you are using it for different jobs, but for one boat it sounds fine IMO

Great job though!!!

[primo spaghetti]

wool pads, and aquabuff 1000 and 2000.

nothing wrong with the meguiars line above, but aquabuff is the cats meow.

[SuperDave4x4]

Shawn, thanks for the info!

Hoytman, thank you for the details!

I had some Atwood cleaner wax from a while back and hand waxed parts of the boat. The side of the boat in the picture has some on it and I tried some on the helm. The side of the boat cleaned up some but a rotary and some good product would probably work much better. The helm soaked that stuff up and looked dull and faded a few hours later.

One of autogeek techs recommended Marine 31 Gel Coat Final Step Polish then the Marine 31 Gel Coat Carnauba Wax and Sealant.

As for how shiney I want it, I just want the boat to look nice. I know the interior of the boat needs more work but I don't want to spend countless hours making it more than showroom shiney. It's a fishing boat. Haha however having it waxed helps immensely when cleaning fish blood and slime. Not to mention when the water is dirty here it stains the side of boats if they are unprotected.

A two step process would probably be as far as I'd go on the interior. As for the exterior, an All In One sounds like it would work perfect... It correct me if I'm wrong.

[Hoytman]

wool pads, and aquabuff 1000 and 2000.

nothing wrong with the meguiars line above, but aquabuff is the cats meow.

Another good suggestion and a product I've heard good things about, but never had the privaledge of trying. I think Jamestown Distributors carries that product.

[Hoytman]

As for how shiney I want it, I just want the boat to look nice. I know the interior of the boat needs more work but I don't want to spend countless hours making it more than showroom shiney. It's a fishing boat.

Understand completely. I spend a lot of time each year walleye fishing in the walleye capitol of the world.

If my memory serves me, Aquabuff is very similar to Shurhold's Buff Magic and is also used similarly. Primo, I'm sure will correct me if I've misunderstood that product.

If you just want it to look nice, then to me it sounds like you want to spend minimal time taking care of your boat and still maintain a decent look.

In the regard of looking nice with minimal time involved I'd recommend the following products in no particular order:


M67
3M Marine Compound and Finishing Material...two similar products.

Buff Magic (two colors offering different amounts of cut, both pink and white)
Aquabuff (again offering two levels of cut)...two similar products.

Either of these 4 should sever you well in one step with wool on a rotary.
Topping it with Collinite of your choice using a dual action polisher makes the entire two steps a breeze. Then, go fishing.