Gelcoat chips on the bow. Repair Cost?

[mvinc01]

Hi Everyone.

I have a 2004 Nitro 188 Sport that has three open chips and two good scratches in the gelcoat up on the bow, under the rub rail. I've take some perspective pics and posted them on the photobucket link below and on this thread.

I would like to know if anyone can take a quick look at these and give me a very general idea of a fair cost to have it repaired and the overall difficulty of the job.

The chips were there when I purchased the boat and I knew about them. The scratches we did last weekend putting the boat back on the trailer.

I really appreciate your help and any advice you may have. We are somewhat new to boating, but are really enjoying it.

http://s160.photobucket.com/albums/t172/mvinc01/Gelcoat%20Chips/?action=view&current=BoatGelcoatChips014-1.jpg

 

[POINTER94]

Re: Gelcoat chips on the bow. Repair Cost?

You could do this yourself with about $50-100 and a sander. Purchase a gelcoat repair kit for around $30. The white will be easy. You may have difficultly matching the flake. Your may want to match it colorwise without the flake. Otherwise you are off to a professional. A couple of hundred bucks would be my best estimate. If you are new to boating, these are not the last gouges you will ever see. On a difficulty scale you are at around a 1 or a 2. This is easy work, getting a perfect color match is the challenge. The good news is white is the easiest to match. Nitro may be able to provide you with additional information on colors and may be a source for the gel.

Sand the scratches with 220grit sandpaper and then move up to improve the shine. Finish up with a rubbing compound then wax to get the max shine.

 

[oops!]

Re: Gelcoat chips on the bow. Repair Cost?

yep....let me elaborate on the previous post.....

a gellcoat finisher will charge you 75 an hr....those chips can be done in 2-4 hrs under the right conditions with the right tools by a pro.

if you do it your self....its allmost as easy as painting, sanding....sanding some more, then sand, then buff with a very fine sand paper and polish.

however the trick is as mentioned....the metal flake....if you diy......i would match the white (even where the metal flake is) then after the repair is done....just use a type of paint to make it look like the surrounding metal flake.(kinda like a color crayon)

if you want to dyi........we can walk you right thru it.

cheers
oops