US1 Fountain

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glassdave

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yes separate pads for each product and wool only for gel. For Vitreo i just use a large osculating terry cloth bonnet polisher/applicator and wipe off by hand with microfiber cloths.

Totally Buff you can use a little more liberal then a few drops i work it pretty good over the surface and as you go it diminishes itself down to a finer polish and literally ejects itself out of the pad. Its really an interesting property the way it breaks down, you never have to spur the par either but it does leave a bit of a mess around the area of little balled up bits of stuff. The thing i really like about Totally is how easy it actually comes off when your done buffing, any little smudges and smears just kinda wipe off and dont stick like dry concrete like some other compounds. Its just a really well thought user friendly product. I start slow with the pad and increase as it breaks down till i am rolling pretty good with the pad speed then just pull the shine out as the totally comes off the surface.

No misting of water for any reason.

Vibra is their most aggressive compound and i only use it if Totally doesnt give me the shine i want. Its requires regular spurring to keep the pad cleared out but it works on the worst of oxidation

My method is to hit with Totally buff and wash with soapy water then full wax with Vitreo and upkeep the shine with FOY's Quick Shine spray detailer.

I always pull all snaps and any easily removed hardware and roughly tape off things like cleats and aluminum windshield bases, deck hatches etc..

US1 Fountain

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Wildman_grafix

I have used the same stuff on my boat and did just as Dave said. Works very well, and now I just use the VIbra by hand every couple months. My boat had some sun fade on one side from sitting on the side of the house waiting me to re rig it and getting killed in the monring florida sun every day.


The sun down here is crazy intense.

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glassdave

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you mean Vitreo by hand correct? . . . just want to keep it straight for the readers

10M

I just got done with mine, new to me but was neglected for a couple years. I had the FOY stuff from my old '88 10 meter that I brought back from really oxidized, tried everything over 7 years and this is the best stuff I used. Somewhat easy to use and it's white, so it doesn't stain like the colored stuff.

Just got a newer 38 that was really really oxidized, chalky white and uneven. I used the twisted wool pads from Harbor Freight that look like hi-pile carpet (previously was using the wool bonnets, thanks for the correction GlassDave). Tried only Totally Buff/vitreo on less oxidized sections first and could still see uneven/dull spots. So went for Vibra Cut on the deck. Found that full speed on the buffer and lots of pressure worked best to remove oxidation, but it looked scary after! Tons of swirl marks, scratches etc.but it wasn't dull anymore... Makes a mess too, dust everywhere.
Then went to new pad and Totally Buff. Much easier to use, not as "grabby" and less mess. Still had some swirling and was a bit shinier than before... I was nervous that the aggressive swirl marks weren't going to come out... It still wasn't like glass like I was expecting.

Finished with Vitreo on an orbital and wiped off by hand. It saved the day, evened out the last of the marbled sections and put a nice shine on everything. If you look at it at the right angle in the sun you can see a few spots that look like they didn't quite get sanded down enough by the compounds, and the Vitreo got a little weird in certain spots wiping off... like it was kind of stuck on. Was harder to wipe off, I'm wondering if I was using too much Vitreo or didn't go hard enough with the compounds in those spots. But in general, I doubt anybody will notice except me because I was staring at it all day. If I keep up with it I think it will get better next time and this will be the last time I have to bring it back from that state of oxidation. Overall came out about as good as it could have, but it was a ton of work. Took me all day just to do the deck. Oxidation was severe, it had mold in it when I unwrapped it...

Figured I'd post here because I read everything I could but still had to experiment and figure it out. Don't be afraid to use pressure and RPM... I'd post pictures but the before pics don't do justice to how bad it was. Now looks better than most of the newer boats next to it.

US1 Fountain

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I have an Meguiars Cut'N Shine wool cutting pad from a while ago. Was going to pick up a a couple new ones tomorrow from local auto body paint supply shop. Didnt know there are different types of wool pads. Is what I have whats needed? Looks like shag carpeting. Same thing as the HF pads?

Thanks

10M

I didn't know either, for awhile I was using a wool bonnet that is really fluffy and ties on with a string. But yes the ones that look like carpeting are what you want, sticks on with velcro.

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Not sure how much compound to put on the pad. Just a few pea sized drops, or a nice swirl? Whats considered a little more than a liberal amount? I see it both ways on YT videos. Gave it a shot today using a new wool pad and just placing a few dabs of compound on the pad. Not wanting to risk too much and loading up the pad. Spread it around in a 2 x2 area and use a low 1000 rpm just using the weight of the buffer to work, keeping the pad flat. After a bit, I get what looks like dried compound. Is that from to much speed, too much compound, or buffing too long? My pad always looks clean and unloaded. A wet sponge is used to wipe the dry compound off, then towel dried, then another round follows. The hull has a shine, so its not heavy oxidized. Its just not glass shine. It looks so easy with great results, when someone else is doing it. Then I watch YT videos looking for answers and see what looks good, but then read the comments and see alot of pros comment on how that not how its to be done. Going to just pour tranny fluid over it. That chits shines. lol

Using a 8" rotary buffer. Also saw some small 4" wool pads at my auto supply shop. Those would be the ticket for tight areas. But the machines Im seeing are all orbital DA's, such as the Porter Cable unit. Seems like I would want a rotary, vs a orbital DA?