Polish.

[KINGFISHER 9]

One of my boats is grp (not my favourite one!) .... whenever I polish the upward facing bits from dull it lasts about a week before it goes flat again .... nothing seems to do the job! So ..... who uses what that works please?

 

[gjgm]

well, from the base, you might need first to compound it, then polish it, then wax it. Each previous task needs to have achieved a shine before you move onto the next. I expect your polish is just adding a little wax-gleam, but you havent returned the gelcoat itself to a shine by removing the oxidised layer

 

[Allan]

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from the base, you might need first to compound it, then polish it, then wax it.

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Can you please define "then polish it" please. I plan to compound my boat and then use a 'silicon' wax. Although I have yet to make my final decision.
Allan

 

[gjgm]

I d suggest you want to remove as little gelcoat as possible, yet achieve a gleam. You might manage that with a polish, or maybe something more abrasive like 3M GRP restorer, or whatever its called- that seems very well thought of.
Its a bit like using sandpaper. Compounding is a bit like coarse paper, and polish is like fine paper. You wouldnt try to varnish after coarse paper... you d work you way til you have a super smooth finish, and then apply varnish.
So,polish will have some mild abrasive and some polish/wax in it. It might be aggressive enough to do the job, or it might not. Cant answer that one for you!
So the polish is the finishing of the cutting back, and the wax is solely a protective film. Thing is, wax has three priorities; ease of use, protection/longevity and sheen/gloss... only each one of those is at the expense of another! You can bore yourself rigid investigating all the miracle claims. Personally, if its easy to use, I m more likely to use it little and often. That works for me, but each to his own.

 

[Allan]

Many thanks for that. I have never liked using the polishes you mention as they are normally recomended to replace the wax. I totally agree with the idea of using finer grades of abrasives before the final product. I also completely agree with your reasoning of the easier it is to use the more often you will use it. I keep my boat in Cardiff bay and it gets the Cardiff stripe after a few months. As I dry out sometimes, I plan to put lots of coats just above the waterline and recoat it, at least 2 or 3 times a year.
Allan

 

[ghostlymoron]

Every time you use cutting compound you are removing thickness from the gelcoat. Leave it dull or you will eventually have to paint it.