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

[achilles555]

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.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

Yes it will work, do a good job though and that means good prep work or it won't last.

You said it's gone, but not down the flake, have you tried buffing compound or anything like that?

 

[achilles555]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

i haven't tried anything yet. it may be down to the flake, because the surface is slightly "rough" like a fine grit sandpaper. the thing i am worried about with the clearcoat is getting all of the surfaces "roughed up" with sandpaper. The surface of my fiberglass is variable - some places are shiny (no gelcoat loss), some are middle of the road, and some are dull and slightly rough to the touch.

ondarvr -thanks for the reply. do you have any tips or suggestions that might help me through the process. thanks so much. ac.

 

[RobG]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

I've used Vertglas on my 1966 MFG, the shine was gone, heavily oxidized but looked good when wet. Kept the shine for 5 years before i touched it up.

here is the link.

http://www.marinestore.com/vertglas2.html?cart=328868870343302

 

[Coors]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

I've used Vertglas on my 1966 MFG, the shine was gone, heavily oxidized but looked good when wet. Kept the shine for 5 years before i touched it up.

here is the link.

http://www.marinestore.com/vertglas2.html?cart=328868870343302

Could you expand on that? I've read on the forum that it doesn't last; allways needing recoating.

 

[RotaryRacer]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

Try some heavy buffing compound to see if you can get the oxidation off. It sounds like it is just heavily oxidized. Test a small spot to see if you can get any shine back. You may actually be best served by wetsanding and then buffing/polishing to get the shine back.

 

[ondarvr]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

The problem you may run into with any type of repair is once you sand into the flake sometimes the surface starts to look blotchy, it doesn't always happen but it can.

Do a small area with each method, sanding and buffing and sanding and clear coat. Just get a small spary can of clear and see if you get the results you want, which ever way works the best go with it.

 

[wca_tim]

Re: My Gelcoat is gone. Can I use Auto Clearcoat instead of Gelcoat?

if it's not real clear that you're into the flake, what's the worst you can do by sanding? I've gone as far as wetsanding starting with 320 and working back up to 1000 or 1500... then go with a high seepd buffer and use something like aquabuff (want a water soluble buffing compound that does NOT have any waxes in it - otherwise the waxes will fill the pores in the oxidized gel, you'll think you got it all and then a few weeks later it looks milky on the surface again...) and finish up with machine glaze and good wax... if you can get away with buffing it out, it'll shine like it's new when you;re done. I did notice wetsanding at night with a light across it you can see very clearly where there is still oxidation remaining. It's work, but if it were me, and especially on a flake boat where there is probably a lot of clear gel to begin with, I would do what I could to restore the original finish before trying to clearcoat. Do a search on here and you'll find a number of very good detailed threads with excellent ideas and specific instructions of how to go about it...