35 Years Old and Showing It... BAD...

[NORTH81]

I'm not talking about my mistress, well I guess I am in a sense... She is a 1979 Champion Tri-hull with a 1982 Johnson 140 and not looking too hot these days. I got the boat through a "hell-of-a-deal" (at least she's paid for with a clean title).

The story goes I spent the past year figuring out all the problems with the engine caused by a direct lightning strike to the tree next to the lean-to she's stored in (two fried coils, fried timer base, cooked stator, etc, etc.). At least as a newer boat owner, I got a thorough understanding of what's going on under the cover. I got very intimate with the engine last year... Now that these problems have been remedied with plenty of frustration and money spent, it's time to focus on her looks.

I have been a lurker on this forum for some time and read plenty of stories of what others have accomplished. Though I have not found anyone with a finish in quite as much distress as my boat has. So I figure I will post my latest endeavor in the hopes that it may benefit someone else in some way. I am not looking to completely re-coat the boat, just make her a little shinier and able to bead water on the surface (yeah it's that bad...).

The attached picture is the finish i started with. It's to the point that the metal flake is completely exposed topside, and the gelcoat on the hull is super chalky. The metal flake topside felt like sandpaper. Here's the pic.

photo 1.jpg

Basically i started with a red boat that is pink from years uncovered in the sun (especially the hull). I tested my process on a portion of the stern topside and to my surprise, it will actually reflect light and bead water... That's a win for me!

photo 3.jpg

So looking at the second picture you can clearly see the difference in the finish from my test area up to where i stopped near the cleat. What i did was start with 320 grit wet sandpaper (again, yeah it's that bad). I wet sanded 320, 400, 600 & 1200. That is the finish you see in the second pic. I plan on following the same process on everything topside and then going over everything with 2000 grit, compound, polish then wax. Good lord this is an enormous amount of work! Any advise will be much appreciated and I'll keep ya'll posted.

[cat19]

Take a look at the photo page at Pro Tec Products and you will see brown/gold Laser boat. I am currently redoing this for a demo boat for our products. This boats finish was as bad if not worse than what you have and as you can see it will turn out pretty nice. Feel free to call if you have any questions.

[pops slowdog]

Hey OP, congrats on what looks to be a real project-and good luck. A little advice from my perspective is to find something to put on the boat that will retain your shine and finish after you go to all the work of sanding, buffing, polishing and waxing. Since your flake is out where you can feel it, you have no clear left to protect your color or to help keep the shine there. Here are a couple of pics of my '85 that also has the flake sticking out of the paint/gel coat. I have done what you are talking about twice. The last time I removed all the hardware (rails, cleats TM etc) so I could get a mor e uniform finish. I had it looking brand new both times and six to eight months of steady fishing/use in the Texas sun and it is back to looking like I had done nothing.I used good marine compounds and waxes for the finish too. The boat stayed in the garage full time when not in use also - then. Keep asking for advice and reading up on how to fix your problem correctly so you do not have to do it all over again. And good luck.

[twitch]

I wet sanded mine a couple yrs ago and it still looks like new after ther hard work you want to seal it so nothing can penetrate it again wax is not enough use Pro-tec sealant it works great and goes on easy ,2 of my buds also have done their boats with it and love it