Here you can see that Danny has sanded the back corner of the boat so he could do a color match. You can see the dots of gel above the rub rail where he is getting the color dialed in........
I can't believe how "yellow" it looks compared to where he sanded!!
Old electronics screw holes are filled at the passenger console with the exception of a few for the RAM Mount that is going back on later.......
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There was a hump in the deck where the trolling motor mounts, so much so I had to use old school rubber spacers and only had 4 bolts holding it on. Danny took care of that for me though.......
She's nice and flat now! The Ultrex will be nice and solid up there from now on!
All sanded, masked off, and prepped for gelcoat!!
So then I get tied up on the phone and with customers for quite a while, and missed some steps. I walk back in and find this.......
At this point the top cap has been sprayed with the white gelcoat and the deck stripe and pins has been shot!
Take a look at the edge of the deck stripe, it is higher than the white gel. How they get this to all come out smooth in the end and not sand through all of the clear coat and flake is beyond me. I have come to the conclusion that these guys are artists and just flat out good.......no, they are GREAT at what they do. Just wait until you see what it looks like in the end!
Here the red pin had been shot earlier and covered by tape to protect it from over spray. The last color to go on is the Raspberry top deck, above the pin stripe.
I have no idea how Danny is ever going to make this look right in the end. But believe me, I have seen lots of his work and I have 100% faith in him!
It's starting to come together!!
What does a gelcoat restore of this magnitude cost ball park? I've got a 1997 VS that could use a very similar treatment...
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So now it's time to spray the top of the deck. First the repairs are sprayed black so you won't be able to see them through the new flake.......
Here is a full cup of "Awesome" getting ready to be sprayed.......
The flake is mixed with clear coat, and Danny has added the MEKP (Methyl Ethyl Ketone Peroxide) that will cause a chemical reaction and make it harden. He is checking the consistency with the stir stick to make sure it is correct to be able to spray.......
And here we go.......
Tape lines pulled.......
So it now has to sit for a little while, but now it is time to get the clear coat ready to shoot. The clear actually looks purple when in a cup. I wish I would have taken a picture of it after the MEKP was added, it actually turned brown!
Here are some shots right after the clear coat has been applied.......
So I have to be honest.......as I shot these images I caught myself wondering how in the world will this ever look right in the end? I have seen hundreds of boats when they left this shop and they all looked wonderful, I guess it's just a little different when it's your own Ranger, your own pride and joy, your own "family member" as my wife would say.
You can see in the following pictures the transformation that took place with lots and lots of hours. The sanding process alone is an art form of its' own.......
Partially sanded, still a long ways to go.......
Check it out, this looks AMAZING.......
WHOA!!!
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