Gel Coat Question

[nelsonk44215]

I found a awesome deal on, at least I think, on a 2000 Triton over the weekend. The problem with it is that the gel coat on the upper gunnel is in pretty bad shape. It is chalked pretty bad with spider cracks the whole way down each side. Is there away to clean this up without having to redo it? It looks like it had been left outside the entire life of the boat. Thanks for the info guys.


Nelson

[bassinman#1]

You can wet sand the gelcoat and with 1500 grit wetsand paper, and then buff it out with a rubbing wheel and some medium cut rubbing compound. And then wax it with marine wax.

[Lightningboy]

The above advice is just right; you can sand/buff the gel to shiny again.

The spider cracks could be a problem.  Slide a fingernail across the cracks, if it doesn't easily catch your nail, it's probably just the gelcoat.  If the crack catches your nail, there may be damage to the glass structure underneath.

[Big dreams]

I have a similar question.  The top of my boat has a lot of scratches in it.  Some of them are fairly deep and are through the metallic.  How much can you sand on the top of the boat before reaching the metallic?

Also, the bottom of the boat is white.  I tried cleaning it with boat, car, and dish soap but nothing will take off the faint yellow discoloring.

Any ideas?

[Mike S.]

I looked at a 29 foot Baja a couple of years ago at a local dealer here in Muskegon.  It had the yellowing of the hull, so I asked the dealer what they do about that problem.  According to him, they acid dip the boat to remove the discoloring on the hull.  He said it doesn't hurt the boat at all, just cleans it up.

[Big dreams]

Anyone know who can do it in the Mid Michigan area and how much acid dipping costs?

[stackenem]

You can do it yourself. Just get a bottle of muratic acid from the pharmacy wet the bottom of your boat and just wash it down with the acid. I had a white boat that I bought used that was real yellow and it cleaned up just like new. Make sure you rinse it down real good after. then give it a good soapy bath. Make sure to wear a mask when doing it so you don't breathe the fumes as they stink pretty bad. I think I used a stiff bristle long handled brush to do this with but there wasn't much left of it when I was done.

[Big dreams]

You can do it yourself. Just get a bottle of muratic acid from the pharmacy wet the bottom of your boat and just wash it down with the acid. I had a white boat that I bought used that was real yellow and it cleaned up just like new. Make sure you rinse it down real good after. then give it a good soapy bath. Make sure to wear a mask when doing it so you don't breathe the fumes as they stink pretty bad. I think I used a stiff bristle long handled brush to do this with but there wasn't much left of it when I was done.

I am familiar with Muratic Acid.  I will give that a whirl and see how it goes.  Thanks for the tip.