Make the boat shine?

[agallant80]

When I bought my boat it was last feb and it was too cold for the dealer to give her a good cleaning and wax, I used her all season and did not wax her. I have two weeks off in December and knowing north carolina I will get a day or two in the 60s. I was going to go down to the boat and give her a good waxing. I have a Ryobi power buffer (not the best in the world but it works)

Any recommendations on what wax to use, methods, polishing compound to remove the swirl marks and small scratches from the black hull would be appreciated.

Sad, the boat has been put up for a month and I have the worst boat ADD I think I can have. Im dying to get down there to do something to her.

 

[idonthaveaname]

Re: Make the boat shine?

I like this Collinite Fiberglass Boat Wax #925

but you will find everyone has an opinion. 3M makes some good wax as well.

Also, believe it or not, floorwax..yup floor wax does a great job. ZEP 1 gal. Wet-Look Floor Polish-ZUWLFF128 at The Home Depot

Apply and let dry and it will last for a long time.

 

[Slip Away]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Ford, Chevy, Mercruiser,Volvo, Straight 30W, 25W40.........

 

[britisher]

Re: Make the boat shine?

I used Attwood Hull Cleaner followed by Attwood Cleaner/Wax. Both bought in Walmart. Finished it off with a buffing using a cheapo RA polisher I picked up HF. The Attwood Cleaner/Wax was in a group review done by Boating and it was the least expensive and came out top. That's what I like to hear - Cheap & Effective.
For stubborn marks I used plain ordinary auto rubbing compound.

I like to keep things simple. If this therad ends up like the one on getting rust marks off the hull, it will run to 2 or 3 pages and have every method known to man. I will wait in trepidation for someone to suggest how they use a drive through car wash for their boat and then I've heard it all.

 

[idonthaveaname]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Just a notation - One should not be using a rubbing compound on gelcoat--it's not really made for that. It's best to use products designed for gel coat. Using the wrong compound can damage the gel coat and actually make it fade faster. Your basic carnuba wax should be fine auto or marine. Truthfully you don't even need a buffer. Good wax/sealer should come off fairly easy.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Make the boat shine?

I was under the impression that you use one pad on the buffer to apply the wax, a towel to remove most of it and a buffer pad on the buffer to finish things up. Is that correct?

 

[captain zac]

Re: Make the boat shine?

buffer for the scratches with polish
wax if you like I do some say yes some say no
With that new of a boat it should not need much

Hary

 

[britisher]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Apologies. I should not have used the term Rubbing Compound. What I meant was Polishing Compound. The one I use is Turtle Wax Premium Auto Polishing compound. To the feel it is actually a smoother paste than the Attwood Boat Cleaner/Wax. I appreciate that gel coat is not paint as such. It is a surface coating as 'paint' also is. The main difference on the thickness of the two is that gel coat is about 10 times thicker than the automotive paint coating on your car. On that basis, a compound designed for auto paint that is 10 times thinner than gel coat is hardly likely to be too aggressive on gel coat for that very reason. I also pointed out that I use it only on stubborn marks, that the Cleaner/Wax doesn't get out. I have noticed that there is a fair amount of personal preferences expounded on methods & products and you just have to slice your way through the posts. It's just like, what oil should I use? You will get hundreds of opinions.

 

[idonthaveaname]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Opinions are always welcome and the fact is there are many very innovative ideas in this forum. I came across the ZEP floor wax from and "opinion" here and can tell you it really works well and lasts a long time (over 6 months so far). Same with finding Colonite which is a great cleaner. Still, I am cautious of opinions unless from a reliable and trusted source. I do believe however anyone contributing here has the best of interests in their hearts. That being said, I also ask for opinions and provide back what has worked for me. In the end I research relentlessly and try to arrive at the best decision. Here is a link that appears to be very helpful and it's from a professional...

The West Advisor: Gelcoat Maintenance

This covers the subject very well and I have used some of the recommendations.

 

[KnotConnected]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Just my opinion (and one many people will and have disagreed with),

When I got my boat, it had been stored out in a field for a few years (both during the on and off seasons). I found that the only way to REALLY clean her up nicely after the years of neglect was to wax & buff by hand, going slowly small area by area and being sure to pay attention to details. After you've put the work into restoring her the auto pads are great for keeping it looking nice and saving time, but if you've got some catching up to do go for good old elbow grease.

 

[bajaunderground]

Re: Make the boat shine?

On my Baja I wet sanded with 1000g and then 1500g, then hit it with a polishing compound (Mothers) and from that point forward I only used Mother's Synthetic California Gold Wax. Easy to apply/remove and lasts all summer (although I used about once a month).

People over at Checkmate-boats forum really love the Aquabuff 1000 and 2000 prior to waxing...those cats are crazy obsessive about their metal flake!!!

~Brett

 

[bruceb58]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Keeping it clean/covered is way more important than any wax you will ever put on it.

 

[agallant80]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Keeping it clean/covered is way more important than any wax you will ever put on it.

I do keep it clean and covered (the cockpit at least) The boat just looks like crap from all of the brackish water its been in this year. I have washed it a few times but I want to put in some effort seeing as my company closes down for 10 days for Christmas and New Years. My wife has to work so I have time to burn.

 

[britisher]

Re: Make the boat shine?

Opinions are always welcome and the fact is there are many very innovative ideas in this forum. I came across the ZEP floor wax from and "opinion" here and can tell you it really works well and lasts a long time (over 6 months so far). Same with finding Colonite which is a great cleaner. Still, I am cautious of opinions unless from a reliable and trusted source. I do believe however anyone contributing here has the best of interests in their hearts. That being said, I also ask for opinions and provide back what has worked for me. In the end I research relentlessly and try to arrive at the best decision. Here is a link that appears to be very helpful and it's from a professional...

The West Advisor: Gelcoat Maintenance

This covers the subject very well and I have used some of the recommendations.

"Colonite". Is that an enema??:joyous: