rafiki_
Well-Known Member
Nigel, you don't want oxalis acid lingering on metal parts. You can leave it on grp or wood.
help needed best stuff for cleaning dull listless gelcoat
- Thread starter hawthorn2
- Start date
Nigel, you don't want oxalis acid lingering on metal parts. You can leave it on grp or wood.
gjgm
Well-Known Member
some tips here:
http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=117266
It is a bit like decorating.. the better the preparation, the better the finish- and , incidentally, the much longer the shine lasts.
To be clear- it's is the compounding/polish that creates the shine; the wax is just protective. You also cant do this with by hand or with some Halfords top-hat polisher. You need a proper one to get the cutting/polishing to work. Lots on Youtube, of course.
The two in one products are ok for middle of the road job, but they wont match the full process. Just depends how many days you want to spend on it
http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=117266
It is a bit like decorating.. the better the preparation, the better the finish- and , incidentally, the much longer the shine lasts.
To be clear- it's is the compounding/polish that creates the shine; the wax is just protective. You also cant do this with by hand or with some Halfords top-hat polisher. You need a proper one to get the cutting/polishing to work. Lots on Youtube, of course.
The two in one products are ok for middle of the road job, but they wont match the full process. Just depends how many days you want to spend on it
Nos4r2
Well-Known Member
Mix oxalic acid with wallpaper paste and paint it on-you can avoid the metal parts then. Hose it off after about 5 minutes.
Ref polishing, I find Farecla Profile 300 to be far superior to the G3 /G6/G10 route. You only need to use the one pot rather than do it over and over with different grades as the particle size breaks down as you use it. Make sure you've got a water spray bottle handy to stop it drying out, and add a couple of drops of washing up liquid to the water.
Couple it with a Farecla G-mop on a rotary polisher(search it) and it seems to be the best combination.Don't bother trying the red/blue mops that come with the cheaper polishers as they're too soft and really only for car paintwork. They'll break up in a few minutes.
I did the whole of my rib with Profile 300 and a G-mop after a major refit and it brought it up to an as-new finish from gelcoat that'd had scratches removed with 1000 grit wet'n'dry.
Ref polishing, I find Farecla Profile 300 to be far superior to the G3 /G6/G10 route. You only need to use the one pot rather than do it over and over with different grades as the particle size breaks down as you use it. Make sure you've got a water spray bottle handy to stop it drying out, and add a couple of drops of washing up liquid to the water.
Couple it with a Farecla G-mop on a rotary polisher(search it) and it seems to be the best combination.Don't bother trying the red/blue mops that come with the cheaper polishers as they're too soft and really only for car paintwork. They'll break up in a few minutes.
I did the whole of my rib with Profile 300 and a G-mop after a major refit and it brought it up to an as-new finish from gelcoat that'd had scratches removed with 1000 grit wet'n'dry.
Trundlebug
Well-Known Member
+1 I've also used Profile 300 with great results. It's far better than G3 (which I used to use until I was persuaded to try Profile 300, glad I did) which as you say is designed for automotive applications.
As regards waxing afterwards, any decent car polish will do, you probably already have some at home.
There are as many opinions on wax polish as there are products, but for example all the following have been recommended at some time or other on here: Meguires, 3M, Auto Glym, Mer, Simoniz hard wax, Silverwax, etc.
Last edited:
Nos4r2
Well-Known Member
Or my personal favourite-bog standard mould release wax. Pretty much all the expensive ones are carnauba wax based, which is what mould release wax is
gordmac
Well-Known Member
If you do use oxalic acid, keep it off your skin and wear eye protection. If you say whereabouts your boat is you may find someone close who can have a look and advise you.