My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use auto Clearcoat instead of gelcoat?

[acleme1]

I recently bought an '85 Charger that sat in the sun for over 6 years. Needless to say, the gelcoat is mostly gone, and the surface of my fiberglass is faded. Not quite down into the glitter chip, but close. I have a friend that paints cars out of his garage in his spare time. He has offered to "Clear Coat" my boat, if I will buy the supplies. The supplies are only going to cost about $75, but he is wanting to use on my boat the same products he uses to clear coat cars. Does anyone know if I can do this? It seems like it would be OK, but I have no idea how long it will last, or if it is worth it. Has anyone ever done anything like this before? Thanks in advance for any help you guys might be able to give me.

[ProcraftMike]

There have been mixed reviews posted here on using an automotive clear coat on boats. Some claim it has held up for years on their boats, while others that post here about flaking and peeling problems discover that the boat was auto clear coated.

I would think that if you found someone that new what they were doing and did a good job prepping the boat and the surface, you should get satisfactory results.

The problem is, if it starts flaking or peeling in a few years, now you have a real problem on your hands trying to fix it.

[SRJbb99]

I would wet sand it and use vertglass: http://www.marinestore.com/ver...45964

[MrPink9]

I have the same exact problem. My dad's boat was sitting in the Arizona sun for over 6 years. The clear coat was peeling on over half of the top cap of boat in many areas down to the metal flake. Well I finally got around to restoring it about 6 months ago and researched a lot of different options for fixing the clear coat as I didn't want to spend too much money on it. I tried the Vertglas that the other poster wrote about. It was nice and made it look good again but it wasn't near like the orginal clear coat finish and it only lasted about 4 months in this brutal sun out here. So I started experimenting with an Automotive spray on clear coat. After reading many tips on this forum I think It ended up looking pretty near to the original finish fo the boat.

My procedure was this; I cleaned and scrubbed to remove as much oxidation as I could. Then sanded any areas where the clear coat was peeling ( from the good area to the bad). I followed the tips found on this forum for wet sanding, use 1000 to 2000 grit and used a bit of soap in the water. I made the mistake of sanding too deep in some areas so be careful. After the sanding I began to spray on the clear coat in the areas that had peeled away ( of course I washed the boat again first). I sprayed 3 to 4 thin coats, giving proper drying time in between coats. After it set up I used the wet sanding techniques described on this board. Used 2000 grit and wet sanded. Then used 3M Perfect It 3000 rubbing compound apllied with a high speed buffer and the 3m foam cutting pad. This was followed by a polish with the buffer and then a quality wax. I am very happy with the results. Even though it was time consuming work it saved a lot of money. I don't know how long it will last as I just finished that part of my project, but I don't see any reason why it shouldn't last as long as the orginal finish as long as I keep it mantained.
I don't have pictures yet as I wanted to finish the rest, carpeting, deck extension, seats, gauges, etc. Once it is all done I will post pictures. I hope this helps some. I know I wouldn't have been able to even begin to start on my boat if it hadn't have been for this forum. If you have any questions just ask.

85 Champion, 200 Mariner and thats about it right now

[BASSCAT7]

Sounds like you prepped the gelcoat surface well to accept the clear.

Now the key is to keep it maintained with a good sealer/wax with Uv protectants in it.

The sun will kill that new clear if not maintained.

[Hawg]

just get clear GEL Coat and have him thin it down enough to shoot through his gun. You really need to use clear gel coat to chemically bond with other gel coats.