Wet sanding the gelcoat

I was thinking of wet sanding the gelcoat on the upper decks and the inside of my boat. I downloaded info about this on the BassPro Shops web site. Has anyone done this? or what product would you suggest to bring my gelcoat back to life?

[macojoe]

I have never done it but I have heard that you start with like 400 and end with 800 grit to get a like new look.

Thanks Macojoe, I think I going to try a rubbing compound first with a good buffer, not the one I got from autozone.

[fugazi]

here's my five cents.. definitely do the rubbing compound first and by HAND, I stress by hand because though a little labor intensive it always works. Use some old tee shirts or old washcloths they both work better than any power buffer. then do the "wax on then wax off" routine from the karate kid movie. another thing is I found out was that not all rubbing compounds are the same go with 3M stuff, -- namely the heavy duty rubbing compound-- though more expensive than other brands it contains more abrasives and solvents that blasts through the heavily oxidized glass. follow up with 3M's "finesse it" finishing material and finally buff it to a super gloss with a teflon based wax. hope this works for ya. ;)

[garbubba]

I'm looking at sanding the sides, partly to restore shine but mostly to remove the residue from the stickers with the previous owners name (my calypso) It's been on there for almost 2 years & nothing I have used will make it go completly away.

I have tried solvent, I tried rubbing compound, do you think wet sandin with 600 grit will do the trick, or is there a better way?

Doug

[fugazi]

Doug--

Have you ever tried using a product by Easy strip "paint and varnish remover"? it's sold at any home depot and the stuff works wonders. -- it's real caustic and noxious-- It is identical to interlux's "interstrip" remover. paint it on with a cheapo chip brush and it will remove any kind of decal/sticker residue. I used it to remove all the decals and pin striping on my v20 with good results. one thing I noticed when using the stuff is that You must glob it on the vinyl decal or residue, then leave and let it sit for about 15 to 20 minutes then come back with a putty knife and it scrapes off real easy. The gel coat underneath the decals will be virgin and there may be a slight difference in the old oxidized glass when compared to new shiny virgin gelcoat. that's when you gotta hit it up with some 3M heavy duty rubbing compound to get the new and old gelcoat to blend in terms of shine and lustre. finish with wax.

if this don't work...then go with wet sanding.

hope this helps.