Boat fiberglass restoration

[Coastalf350]

I have been in the yacht management business for a while and I have always contracted out the Compound and wax jobs. After being very unimpressed with the guys work I decided to venture out into the restoring side of thing. Keep in mind I work on sport fishers from 35 Cabo expresses to 66 Vikings. So far my method is clean entire boat with Dawn and dry. Start from the top down and use 3m products. So far the boats i have worked on have been pretty oxidized. My step 1 has been Makita wool pad with 3m super duty compound. Then follow up with 3m perfect it with another wool pad. Then finally a coat of Collinite Fleet wax with a 2nd coat two weeks later. The problem I am having is Im still getting halograms. I need some advice on what pads and what other polishes I need.

Thank you in advance.

[davidc]

Maybe try Collinite 870 cleaner wax with a DA and a foam pad before the 885 ?

Dave

[zx10r Elle]

Coastalf350,

Keeping it simple, looks to me your holograms are coming from the wool pad used in Step 2. Wool pads are typically aggressive, you may need to simply use a foam finishing pad for Step 2 along with Perfect-It.

I am no professional just stating what jumped out at me.

Steve

[GSKR]

I have been in the yacht management business for a while and I have always contracted out the Compound and wax jobs. After being very unimpressed with the guys work I decided to venture out into the restoring side of thing. Keep in mind I work on sport fishers from 35 Cabo expresses to 66 Vikings. So far my method is clean entire boat with Dawn and dry. Start from the top down and use 3m products. So far the boats i have worked on have been pretty oxidized. My step 1 has been Makita wool pad with 3m super duty compound. Then follow up with 3m perfect it with another wool pad. Then finally a coat of Collinite Fleet wax with a 2nd coat two weeks later. The problem I am having is Im still getting halograms. I need some advice on what pads and what other polishes I need.

Thank you in advance.

Boats are a new whole process of there own and I stay away from them to much labor and people don't want to pay for the time it takes.Depending on the severity wool pads are a last resort as this now plays out into a two step process.I find gelcoat is a real pain to work with.Try using foam cutting pads with a mild cleaner wax,sometimes gel oats are hard to finish down and they don't accept a lsp because it is so pourous that the wax dries right into the surface .keep it a one step process,maybe try a all in one product keeping the surface wet with product and wipe and you're done.

[damaged442]

I have used 3M marine restorer and wax with pretty good results on my 1989 Mastercraft. I initially applied it with an old Craftsman wax spreader. That did a great job of tackling the oxidation.

I have since acquired a PC7424XP and 5.5" LC CCS pads. Now, each spring I use Collinite 920 Fiberglass Boat Cleaner with a white LC CCS, and follow with their 925 Fiberglass Boat wax or 845 Insulator wax.

She isn't perfect, but she shines pretty good for a 27 year old boat!

[GSKR]

Da is relatively a good tool for a boat that is pretty new,I've never been able to use one on a boat,owners tend to call when there wrecked with fade and oxidation and after all that work buffing and scrubbing they revert back to its original fade in months.

[Coastalf350]

Thank you for the info! Instead of wool pads what foam pads do you recommend from let's say lake country. Want to keep it as simple as possible. I'm also getting a DA next month

[Mike Phillips]

I have been in the yacht management business for a while and I have always contracted out the Compound and wax jobs.

After being very unimpressed with the guys work I decided to venture out into the restoring side of thing. Keep in mind I work on sport fishers from 35 Cabo expresses to 66 Vikings. So far my method is clean entire boat with Dawn and dry.

Start from the top down and use 3m products. So far the boats i have worked on have been pretty oxidized.

1. My step 1 has been Makita wool pad with 3m super duty compound.
2. Then follow up with 3m perfect it with another wool pad.
3. Then finally a coat of Collinite Fleet wax with a 2nd coat two weeks later.

The problem I am having is Im still getting holograms. I need some advice on what pads and what other polishes I need.

Thank you in advance.

Looks like the normal industry standard for buffing out a boat and what you get is the industry standard of a swirled out boat.

The problem is two fold in your case, it would be 3 fold if you used cheap compounds as the abrasive would also be a part of the problem. 3M has very good abrasive technology so the abrasives are at least the least of the problem.

The two main problems are,

1. Wool fibers that make up the wool pad CUT the surface and leave hologram scratches in the gel-coat.

2. Rotary buffers only spin in a single direction forcing the fibers to cut the gel-coat in a uniform scratch pattern called holograms.


I'd recommend reading my article on this topic. It is the ONLY article I've ever found on the topic of holograms in gel-coat boats.


Holograms in gel-coat boats by Mike Phillips

[Mike Phillips]

You just missed my only boat detailing class for 2016 where I ONLY teach how to buff out boats WITHOUT leaving hologram scratches.

Hoping to post some pictures from the class this week... (no time so far)

Pictures and comments: Marine 31 Boat Detailing Class - February 6th, 2016


Here's pictures from the last class last year....

Marine 31 Boat Detailing Class Pictures - April 18th, 2015



The book I wrote on boat detailing is also the course outline for my class. In it I show how to use multiple, multiple tools and how to work by hand and the best part.... I explain the problem with holograms in gel-coat boats and also share how to completely avoid them in the first place.







On Autogeek.com

How To Detail Boats With Marine 31 by Mike Phillips

[Mike Phillips]

And here's how you remove the holograms left by a wool pad on a rotary buffer....


It's simple really. It has to do with a saying I've been typing for years....


Change the action of the tool


Instead of using a single direction rotary buffer switch over to ANY dual action polisher for the last machine polishing step.

In my boat detailing classes I show how to use

FLEX 3401
RUPES BigFoot 21
Porter Cable 7424XP



I show them being used with the RUPES coarse blue foam cutting pad and Marine 31 Captain’s One-Step Compound & Polish.


You can purchase all of the above, tools, pads, compounds and the book at Autogeek.com or Marine31.com

After the above step you can then seal the gel-coat with a wax, sealant or strip off the oils and seal with a coating.

I cover ALL the above and so much more in my new boat detailing book. It is without a doubt the most in-depth book I've ever written.


Hope that helps... my next boat detailing class will be in February of 2017. It will always follow the Stuart Boat Show which is usually held in January.

We use the boat show to fill the class with all the local boat guys.

The last two classes were SOLD OUT.