Oxidation

[alleng8304]

Hi- Everyone- This my first post. Does anyone have good solutions for heavy oxidation. My 1989 Sunbird 208 is red and white. The red stripes are good in some places but heavy oxidation in other places. I have had some luck & success with 3M products and Pro Polish at 1500 RPM. There is a guy on U-tube that uses 320 grit dry followed by 1000 grit dry and then compound. That sounds a bit harsh to me. Also a video of Bio-Kleen Xtra cut, also on u-tube looks good. But expensive. I have tried several products at minimal success. Does anyone have foolproof success? Anyone out there used Bio-Kleen products.
Thanks-
AllenG

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: Oxidation

if your red is anything like the red on my 1988 Cruisers. good luck on a "fool proof method". I have wet sanded twice and cut-n-buffed a few times over the past 3 years. It works well for a while, however the sun is harsh. nearly 26 years of sunlight has lead me to considering re-gel coating or painting. my red has faded/oxidized to a dull pinkish red.

 

[Brian 26]

Re: Oxidation

320 grit is a little harsh for me. I'd see what the 1000 wet does, if you need a deeper cut then try 600 wet.

Not sure about the dry sanding he's suggesting, I always wet sand.

 

[Starcraft5834]

Re: Oxidation

Red gel-coat always takes a beating from the sun (UV) and when badly oxidized there really is only two ways to fix it and that's to remove the oxidized layer. AKA, wet sanding. The second way is to re-gel coat or paint.

That is what I was going to say...you want it looking new, do that.. you can get it looking better with sanding/buffing.. I used an acrylic based clear coat something.... to bring back shine...... I cant remember name,, actually restored shine pretty well...

 

[Silverton34c]

Re: Oxidation

That is what I was going to say...you want it looking new, do that.. you can get it looking better with sanding/buffing.. I used an acrylic based clear coat something.... to bring back shine...... I cant remember name,, actually restored shine pretty well...

You can always go to NAPA and get some Synthol (sp?) rubbing compound. I used to use that back in the day and it would cut through any oxidation I could throw at it. I would also start with the 1000 wet sand before boing stronger grit.....these is only so much gel coat there...ever think of sanding it and spraying with topside marine paint?

 

[MikDee]

Re: Oxidation

Vaseline! Will bring it back, no real effort, but just rub it in, give it time, then rub it in continually, leaving time in between, until it's done.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Oxidation

We had a mfg. rep from smoove wax in to speak to our fishing club last night.

He brought in an old, white and green sail boat hull to demo. Heavy oxidation, color faded. It took him about 5 minutes using his Pro-Cut 1000 and a buffer to make a 3' x 3' area look like new. Pretty impressive results

Smoove Wax Gel Coat Cleaner, Boat Surface Wash, Fiberglass Wax | Smoove Wax

 

[MikDee]

Re: Oxidation

Recommending vaseline since 2007- http://forums.iboats.com/boat-topics-questions-not-engine-topics/best-cleaner-wax-215978.html

 

[alleng8304]

Re: Oxidation

Thanks to everyone who has givenme some good advice. As I said, I got some fair to good results with 3 M products. The problem is that there are so many products, most with crazy names, how does one know which is the best. I still have some stubborn spots, but most of the red has a decent shine. Perhaps I should try wet sanding. Again, which product is best. If someone can tell me how to upload a file I will send a pic. Uploads all fail here

 

[jc55]

Re: Oxidation

I think that I'm going to try the Vaseline. Thanks MikDee!

 

[dingbat]

Re: Oxidation

I think that I'm going to try the Vaseline.

You can put lip stick on a pig....but it's still a pig.

 

[jc55]

Re: Oxidation

Maybe so but wet sanding and buffing gel coat doesn't give you another 15 years. It gives you 6 months.

 

[SDSeville]

Re: Oxidation

I am a big proponent of Vaseline if you don't have the time to do it right. I did it for years and it looked pretty darn good for 30 to 90 days at a time (definitely worth the 45 minute investment).

However, I finally spent the 10 hours wet sanding, compounding, and polishing and it still looks nearly showroom perfect (except for the little dings a 28 year old boat will have) 18 months later. ...and I haven't even waxed it.

 

[MikDee]

Re: Oxidation

Once you get all the color back with vaseline, you can wax, or polish the boat to suit,,, and it will hold up well!

 

[Thalasso]

Re: Oxidation

The only way he is going to get that to look good for a long period of time is with a two part epoxy paint job.

 

[Bayou Dave]

Re: Oxidation

The vaseline idea sounds interesting for a quick fix. Does anyone know the steps for applying it?

 

[alleng8304]

Re: Oxidation

I am sure that Vaseline is good in a pinch, even some KY jelly. But let's get back to the question-removing oxidation. Vaseline will give it a shine but the oxidation will come thru it. I am convinced is the only way to remove is wet sand and buff with a good product. Again, has anyone tried Bio-Kleen xtra cut or perhaps vaseline Xtra cut. Thanks

 

[dingbat]

Re: Oxidation

The vaseline idea sounds interesting for a quick fix.

Craig's list is full of "quick fixes"

For Sale.......looks like new......lol

 

[MikDee]

Re: Oxidation

The vaseline idea sounds interesting for a quick fix. Does anyone know the steps for applying it?

It is best done in warm, or hot weather, just apply a little at a time,,, it goes a long way. It will clean, & remove any chalky, or grimey, buildup as it absorbs into the finish. Remove excess, then let it do it's thing until it looks dry. Then apply again as many times as necessary to bring back the color, & shine. Leaving time in between for it to work. Eventually All the org. color, & shine will return, then you can wax or polish to suit.

 

[Augoose]

Re: Oxidation

It is best done in warm, or hot weather, just apply a little at a time,,, it goes a long way. It will clean, & remove any chalky, or grimey, buildup as it absorbs into the finish. Remove excess, then let it do it's thing until it looks dry. Then apply again as many times as necessary to bring back the color, & shine. Leaving time in between for it to work. Eventually All the org. color, & shine will return, then you can wax or polish to suit.

I've got to agree - the Vaseline did a great job. I'm usually not a fan of quick and easy jobs over doing something the right way, but in this case it really works. Two years ago I took a glob of Vaseline and ran it with a white cloth down my trim line which was green and about 3" thick. I accidentally forgot to wrap around the end of the far side of the boat. Two years later I can see exactly where I stopped. The area where I applied the Vaseline is still a dark green and where I stopped it distinctly changes to a much lighter, faint green.
Although I haven't tried it, I would expect that a nice polish job like MikDee said on top of the Vaseline would look great.

Its not a great example photo but its all I had on the computer at the time - the photo on the right shows what I started with, faded paint, etc (disregard the chip). The photo on the left is what it looked like two years after ONLY applying Vaseline and washing it occasionally throughout the summer. It wasn't even a sunny day the pic was taken but you can tell how much darker and vibrant the pinstripe is. Works on chaulky white gelcoat too..