plain white gel coat repair

[hanker71]

i have a 2000 triton that has a area on the drivers side top cap that has been beat up pretty good due to being docked in a storm.the area is all white.is this a tough project for a rookie?

[bwizard]

You should be able to handle it. Go for it.

[hanker71]

well i honestlt dont have a clue on where to start.what product do i buy?marinetex?

[BASSCAT7]

White gelcoat is the easiest to repair.

You an use White Marine Tex if you don't care that it will match perfect, or buy the matching white gelcoat from the factory and repair it to match.

Best bet is just get a small amount of white Gel , from the boat manufacturer, or get one of the Evercoat Gelcoat repair kits.

http://www.jamestowndistributo...r+Kit

The Evercoat kit has everything in it you need and is perfect small repairs, just know that there are different shades of " white", so the white in the kit may not be your white. .

The kit has everything you need in it to do the repair, the factory would use the same type of polyester gelcoat that is in the kit to do the repair.

Clean the chip area real well, lightly sand the edges to remove any loose particles, try to bevel the edges sloping into the repair area. Make sure there are no ledges.

Tape off the area around the repair.
Stay close to the repair. Make sure there are no tape ends in the sanding area. The purpose of the tape is to avoid a mess and protect the area around the repair from the sand paper.
Follow the instructions for mixing the catalyst into the gelcoat.
Usually mix about 1/4" inch of Gelcoat in a non waxed paper cup with 5-6 drops of MEKP catalyst.
Make sure to stir completely.
Build the gel a little over as it will shrink some.
Lay the film they give you directly onto the repair, it seals off the air so the gelcoat can cure.
Should be cured in 4 hours, but waiting overnight to sand is best.
If the surface is still sticky on top but the gelcoat is hard underneath, wipe off the tackiness with acetone so your wet sand paper does not gum up.

Acetone is also used for the cleanup ( fingernail polish remover )

Sand with 600-800 Wet sandpaper to get a smooth finish, keeping the paper wet, if sanding lines are still seen up the sandpaper to 1000-1200
Once you get the chip sanded smooth you can compound and wax.

[hanker71]

ok thanks.any idea how big of a area one of those little kits will do.i would sa i have about a 6x8 repair.

[BASSCAT7]

You'll probably need more white than is in that kit , that is a good sized repair, not a small chip to fix.

For something that large you'll want matching factory gelcoat .

[hanker71]

ok so i guess i should call triton and get it from them?i say 6x8 because i watched the video in the link and it says to go out beyond the actual repair by a few inches,so i figured overall would be 6x8.thanks for the help guys!