Decided to give a whirl today.
Here are a few before pictures:
And after:
And the story:
I decided to peel off the vinyl pinstripes that run the entire length of the boat. I'm assuming these things where all the rage back in the late 80s, because this boat had 7 pinstripes. Yes, that's not a typo. SEVEN pinstripes. I decided to just do 1 side tonight, and I'll finish it up tomorrow.
After I got all the stripes off and all the gunk cleaned off, I was going to wax the boat. But, I've been reading about all these folks that have been using Vaseline with huge success. Okay, I'll give it a shot.
It goes on really easy. I used a wax applicator pad to apply, but I'm sure you could use just a regular rag too. A little bit seems to go a long way, so don't get carried away with it!
I allowed it to sit for a while as I worked on a few other projects. After it had soaked in place for about 45 minutes, I went back over it with a soft clean rag to get rid of any excess.
My final verdict? I give the vaseline trick a B-.
Yes, it did a decent job of getting rid of the oxidation. I also gave the boat a similar look to wax, but not quiet the same "shine" as a high quality wax.
If I did not have a buffer, I would consider doing it again. Or, if I planned on selling a boat and I didn't want to go over the entire thing.. I may consider vaseline again.
But, it just doesn't hold a stick to a true cut and buff then wax. It is thousands of times easier, I will give it that! If you are looking for a quick once over to improve the look, not bad. If you don't own a buffer, not bad. If you want the boat to look DETAILED, skip the vaseline and go with a traditional 3 step cut, buff, and wax.
I also snapped a quick picture of the vinyl I ADDED today instead of took off. Thundercraft boats have been out of business for many years now... So I hope this doesn't count as "renaming" the boat. As far as I know, this boat was never given an official name (other than the manufacturer?s name on the side), so we all started calling the boat the "Thunderchicken" out on the lake. Name stuck, and was officially added today.
Here are a few before pictures:
And after:
And the story:
I decided to peel off the vinyl pinstripes that run the entire length of the boat. I'm assuming these things where all the rage back in the late 80s, because this boat had 7 pinstripes. Yes, that's not a typo. SEVEN pinstripes. I decided to just do 1 side tonight, and I'll finish it up tomorrow.
After I got all the stripes off and all the gunk cleaned off, I was going to wax the boat. But, I've been reading about all these folks that have been using Vaseline with huge success. Okay, I'll give it a shot.
It goes on really easy. I used a wax applicator pad to apply, but I'm sure you could use just a regular rag too. A little bit seems to go a long way, so don't get carried away with it!
I allowed it to sit for a while as I worked on a few other projects. After it had soaked in place for about 45 minutes, I went back over it with a soft clean rag to get rid of any excess.
My final verdict? I give the vaseline trick a B-.
Yes, it did a decent job of getting rid of the oxidation. I also gave the boat a similar look to wax, but not quiet the same "shine" as a high quality wax.
If I did not have a buffer, I would consider doing it again. Or, if I planned on selling a boat and I didn't want to go over the entire thing.. I may consider vaseline again.
But, it just doesn't hold a stick to a true cut and buff then wax. It is thousands of times easier, I will give it that! If you are looking for a quick once over to improve the look, not bad. If you don't own a buffer, not bad. If you want the boat to look DETAILED, skip the vaseline and go with a traditional 3 step cut, buff, and wax.
I also snapped a quick picture of the vinyl I ADDED today instead of took off. Thundercraft boats have been out of business for many years now... So I hope this doesn't count as "renaming" the boat. As far as I know, this boat was never given an official name (other than the manufacturer?s name on the side), so we all started calling the boat the "Thunderchicken" out on the lake. Name stuck, and was officially added today.
