Faded / Worn Gelcoat

Greg2

Greg2

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Looking at a couple of boats with blue hulls and both have areas faded by the sun and bits worn through/chipped so that you can see the white underneath.

I am fairly well versed in renovating gelcoat and the various products available but I am thinking that parts are beyond this sort of treatment.

So the question is what are the options and the likely cost?

Are gel repairs viable in terms of getting a decent colour match? Is re-gelcoating the entire hull or parts of it a viable option?

Is painting worth considering? Never been keen on this because I think it may chip easily but am I wrong to think this?

Any thoughts and ideas welcomed.
 
Awlgrip has to be the answer here, no? I guess it depends on the relative value of the boat, and whether or not a few 000's on a nice paintjob can be justified.

Cheers
Jimmy
 
Absolutely Jimmy - it will only be a consideration if it can be bought for the right price.
I take it that Awlgrip is good stuff then?
 
Greg2 said:
Absolutely Jimmy - it will only be a consideration if it can be bought for the right price.
I take it that Awlgrip is good stuff then?
Click to expand...

Yep - have a quick google about. If you/the boat are in the solent then you could do worse than talk to Desty Marine who could give you an idea of capabilities and costs.

Cheers
Jimmy
 
If a chipped blue gel coat shows white gelcoat below are you sure it's not painted? If what you see is laminate then fine, a gelcoat repair is quite possible. Blue will always fade but proper polishing will recover it unless it has been done so many times the gel wares out. If the manufacturer is still in business it s worth going back to them to see if they can still supply the original colour gel, indeed ask the owner because it may have been supplied with some spare. Don't be tempted down the painting route except as a last resort, Awlgrip is very difficult to repair and nothing is as good as Gelcoat for taking stick.

Yoda
 
Sorry for the slight drift but how easy and or expensive is it to apply a new layer of gelcoat compared to painting?
 
yoda said:
If a chipped blue gel coat shows white gelcoat below are you sure it's not painted? If what you see is laminate then fine, a gelcoat repair is quite possible. Blue will always fade but proper polishing will recover it unless it has been done so many times the gel wares out. If the manufacturer is still in business it s worth going back to them to see if they can still supply the original colour gel, indeed ask the owner because it may have been supplied with some spare. Don't be tempted down the painting route except as a last resort, Awlgrip is very difficult to repair and nothing is as good as Gelcoat for taking stick.

Yoda
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Fairly confident that it isn't already painted. The gel is faded on the usual places at the stern and there are some bashes and dents that go down to the white substrate. If repairs are doable with a good colour match then I would be happy with that but if not then the whole hull might need either a paint job or re-gel coating. Good shout about the original manufacturer - it is Fairline so I think they are still about :-)
 
Just spoken with Desty and their recommendation is to paint the hull with Awlcraft 2000. They say that most of the main manufacturers are using it now for non-white hulls as a consequence of the problems encountered with coloured gelcoat fading. Easier to colour match and repair than gel.

Re-gel coating is an option but they wouldn't recommend wasting the money.
 
enterprise said:
Painting can be succesfully completed these days, most manufacturers are using paint finishes instead of coloured gelcote.

See here for a paint job on an a white hulled Targa to turn it blue, job well done by EBY.

http://www.fairlineownersclub.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1350
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Had a quick look at this and noticed the owner doesn't seem to be able to decide whether he had new gelcoat or awlgrip (ie paint) applied.

I assume it was the latter.
 
jimmy_the_builder said:
Awlgrip has to be the answer here, no? I guess it depends on the relative value of the boat, and whether or not a few 000's on a nice paintjob can be justified.

Cheers
Jimmy
Click to expand...
Anyone know about this vinyl covering-I saw an advert in one of the magazines. I think it is mainly used for advertising (as on big sailing boats/regattas), but they suggest they can put that blue band on equally well?
Never seen much about it....
 
On a similar note, I've spent all day cutting my milky, oxidised blue gel coat back (to a great shine!!). Any recommendations what I should use to protect it/keep it this way?? Last year it dulled in a month or two.

Should I be looking at a resin type polish or a wax??:confused:
 
Greg2 said:
Looking at a couple of boats with blue hulls and both have areas faded by the sun and bits worn through/chipped so that you can see the white underneath.

I am fairly well versed in renovating gelcoat and the various products available but I am thinking that parts are beyond this sort of treatment.

So the question is what are the options and the likely cost?

Are gel repairs viable in terms of getting a decent colour match? Is re-gelcoating the entire hull or parts of it a viable option?

Is painting worth considering? Never been keen on this because I think it may chip easily but am I wrong to think this?

Any thoughts and ideas welcomed.
Click to expand...

How sure are you that certain areas of the original gel are beyond renovation?

I would opt to restore an original finish than try to apply a new one over the top, unless it was very, very badly damaged.

If areas are thin or damaged to the point that new gel is required then you are into adding gel, but at least it will only be to those areas that can't be corrected.

Re-gel coating certain parts of the hull if they really are in need of it, then yes, certainly a viable option.

Only the condition as a whole can determine if re-coating the entire hull would be best, if it were then Awlcraft 2000 is a good option, very tough and great with UV, it will chip and scrape as will most but seems to survive neglect better than dark gel coated hull sides over time.
 
rickaskin said:
On a similar note, I've spent all day cutting my milky, oxidised blue gel coat back (to a great shine!!). Any recommendations what I should use to protect it/keep it this way?? Last year it dulled in a month or two.

Should I be looking at a resin type polish or a wax??:confused:
Click to expand...


Get the finish as 'glass' as you can beforehand rather than choice of product for protection. It really is more important to have a good clarity surface than choice of applied finish.

The high performance resins and waxes have different advantages and dis-advantages, the product list for either is vast, but the extra work in achieving true clarity is the key to durability.
 
gjgm said:
Anyone know about this vinyl covering-I saw an advert in one of the magazines. I think it is mainly used for advertising (as on big sailing boats/regattas), but they suggest they can put that blue band on equally well?
Never seen much about it....
Click to expand...

Have seen a yacht been completely done in black vinyl looks good but was under a year ago so cant say how long it lasts.
 
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