Mike ashworth.......Use your 2000 grit with reasonable pressure for about 30 seconds then hit it with the perfect it and the white pad. Should remove the swirl marks. If you still see faint scratches use the compound again with the black pad and that should make it glossy
20130224_150542.jpgThis is what i am dealing with. Just purchased this. A 99 ranger r73 with suzuki 150. Thw whole boat feels like sand paper. Should i start with 1200 or 800. Ill put some more pics up will need some advice on repairing where the boat beat up against the rock.
1999 Ranger R73 sport Project restore
Suzuki 150 super six
Ranger I just did my top cap yesterday and started with 1200 to 1500 and 2000... It is amazing the difference. Just get a case of beer and music and go at it. You'll know it is right when you feel it and its smooth as a new boat.
After you test a section go ahead and do all three stages and whipe it down, and do the compound polish and wax... if you like it stay with the 1200, if you feel like it could be better go with the 800 to 1200 to 1500 to 2000. A good way to see the original color and other color was in my case test the area where your trolling motor was. If you cant tell a difference when youre done, youre all good to go!
20130310_102753.jpgWell this is what i got from 800-1200-2000. How often do you change your sandpaper out? I will have to buff it as well, still a little cloudy but feels 1000 times better. I have alot of damage below the rub guard to fix too...Thanks for all the help on here. This is my first bass boat and am soooooo excited to get this going. Gonna be a little slow though i have a handicapped child so gotta watch the money but ill keep track of my pics and start a new thread with progress..
1999 Ranger R73 sport Project restore
Suzuki 150 super six
Looks great. Luckily you dont have that big of a silver stripe, mine is rather large and is such a pain. As for sandpaper, I used about a a box and a half of each. Just depended how bad the area was and I went over it with 200 twice to make sure it was smooth. Buffing and polishing in a few days!
What is the general consensus on using aqua buff 1000/2000 for doing this work??
Here is my update: I had sanded for two days (probably 10 hours total) and got it as smooth as I could. You dont want to skip layers of sanding or try and do it quickly. I went over to a friends last night to borrow his buffer and while we were doing his the speed messed up and burnt a few spots in the gelcoat (which for those who dont know will look like a dull greyish mark, so if you are doing this and see this stop) and also ruined some of the raised letters. That being said I did not use that buffer, there are other options out there but I decided to use a little elbow grease and try out a 1 sq. ft. section of the boat by hand, and it turned out great! Yeah, a buffer would probably make it a little more shiny, but a little elbow grease will get it done, so if you guys cant get a buffer this is what I did:
Washed boat
compounded with a circular terry cloth applicator pad
Washed that off and used another terry cloth pad for the polish did that then whipped off, by this time it was shiny shiny
then opened up the wax and began applying it with a microfiber, waited till it hazed and with another microfiber buffed it clean to protection.
Because I am doing this by hand, and probably not getting the gelcoat hot enough with my elbow grease I will probably reapply the wax 1-2 more times in the next few weeks to make sure the new gelcoat surface doesnt absorb it all.
After the lake I whipe down with Bass Boat saver - which I love because you can literally wipe down anything and everything to clean and protect it. And when I get home if its not too late I'll grab the spray wax and wipe it down really fast. Hope this helps you guys if you cant seem to find a polisher, it'll suck, but I feel like if the sanding was done with time and care it will be no problem, like mine. Prep is everything.
image.jpgHey y'all. I have been following BC's steps for restoring the gel coat on my '98 Procraft 16'. I have this kind of cracking in the gel coat in various places on the boat. No cracking on the transom. This is almost all on the top rail. It was left uncovered to bake in the Texas sun by the previous owner. I'm pretty sure it's not stress cracking. The fiberglass in this boat is solid as a rock. Anyway when compounding the areas I have wet sanded, the compound fills the cracks and looks like the photo you see here. The other gel coat looks great and it's very smooth and shiny. I know I can't get rid of these cracks but what can I do to seal them so stuff doesn't get down in em? Should I power wash the boat real good after I compound it, then hit it with some kind of sealer?? Then wax? Any suggestions greatly appreciated.
I am in the middle of sanding my '89 ranger. The oxidation seems to be coming out fine but the gel seems to be yellow in spots! Is this normal or do I need to sand a little more in these spots?
Thanks, Glen
Looking to tackle some oxidation on my 07 Triton. The boat was wrapped for a few years. When I removed the wrap some oxidation has taken place in a few spots. It doesnt appear to be too bad, but it is pretty visible since my boat is darker. Should I still wetsand, or would buffing be able to remove this?
Thanks.
IMG_0038.jpg IMG_0039.jpg
"See beyond what others see."
Basscat,
My 98 Ranger is in pretty good shape i can see very very little oxidation starting and some minor scratches, my trailer fenders on the other hand i can see the oxidation. I bought the 3M SUPER duty compound, 3m perfect it 3000 polish, and Pro-Tec sealant. I also bought the compounding pad and polishing pad and harbor freight sander. I plan to compound and polish the boat with the super duty compound, but i think i will need to wetsand my trailer fenders before compounding them with the super duty compound. I believe i will start the fenders with 1000 grit wet sand, what should i finish with grit wise before compounding with the super duty?? I plan on doing it this weekend with the temperature about mid 50 degrees F, is this ok to do it at these temps? I will take before and after pictures for you guys.
Here it is all buffed and polished 98 Ranger 690 with 09 175 Opti.
myboat.jpg
I'm looking to wet sand,buff and polish out my 92 Ranger and what are the best temps to do this project.I figure this project will happen in the fall but what is too hot or cold? I want the best results..
How about if you're in the flake? just the gunnel's are messed up? Is new Gel coat my only option?IMG_20130719_212355_353.jpgIMG_20130719_212413_049.jpg See it looks pink under the decals
Id say you would have to wetsand and buff...Ive done all these things to my BumbleBee and the fog came back within a year...I admit I didn't wax it often during that time, but it should have lasted longer than that?? Now Im in the process of re-watersanding and buffing, before wrapping the boat, so it will adhere good and maybe last a few more years...I assumed the wrap material was UV resistant?? I guess not, if your faded under a wrapOriginally Posted by TTP
timmernator, you need to use our Nu Paint Moisturizer and Sealant Polish even if you are going to wrap it. It will restore the oils to the gel coat and protect it from any UV intrusion. Give me a call if you have any questions. PM sent.
I just now started to wet sand the top cap of my Procraft.(the top cap was rough and dull before I started) I used the 800 grit and have it real smooth.I do plan on hitting it with 1000 and 1200. Question I have is, its still dull when dry. When it is wet is shines. Its this typical of this restoring process? I dont want to invest more time and money for the compound, polish and wax if it wont work. Thanks in advance
After you compound and polish, it will shine like it does when it's wet. Then seal it.
Thanks, Thats what I was hoping to hear lol
Not trying to beat a dead horse but 1 more question. When I punch in the 3m compound 05973, Im coming up with 3 differant bottle colors, Black, purple, and a yellow. Some bottles have "Perfect it ll rubbing compound". Which one are ya'll using? Everything else is in the "shopping cart" waiting to be ordered
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