Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

Just bought an 87 21' Scarab that lived most of it's life in FL and CA. The robin-egg blue paint on the top is moderately faded and I'd like to bring it back a little.

The boat's going to be repainted probably over the winter, but I want to make it look it's best for the remaining boat season here in Annapolis, MD.

What is the best product to use that I can apply by hand. I'm not a big fan of buffers or of wetsanding, and while they will probably give the best results, I'd rather use good ol' fashion elbow grease. :evilb:

I've tried 3M Marine Finish Cleaner/Wax but that dsidn't do all that much. I've also used Meguiars "Deep Crystal System" Step 1 Paint Cleaner which works a little better then the above 3M product.

Any help/suggestions would be great.

On a separate note, I also have several mechanical questions on the Scarab subform that if anyone could help me out I would be thankful. The link is:

http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/s...d.php?t=108836

Thanks again in advance for the help

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

The color restorer you use to see on TV advertised years ago and i think you can buy at walmart or any large auto store works for 6 months and is easy to apply.I used it on an old nordic parasail boat that i used in florida and it kept the boat looking shiny and easy to clean for quite a while.I would only recommend this stuff if your planning on repainting because it gets a buildup after a while and starts to look cloudy and needs to be stripped kind of like a floorwax.

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

Hey Tommy you thinking Penatrol? How you doing btw? Ferraristyle - West Marine has marine Penatrol for $18 and Lowes for $8. The stuff at West is Marine Penatrol - whatever the diff is........ get it off quick before it gets sticky and should get you through to new paint.

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

When I first bought my F20, the brown paint was very faded from time in the Florida sun. I tried all kinds of stuff on it, nothing made much of a difference. Then one day, I was putting some teak sealer on it, and I got some on the side of the boat. When I wiped it off, it left it dark and shiny, so I did the rest of the boat with it. :) It lasts about a month, then after that, I did it with Thompson's Multi Purpose Waterseal. The good thing is, it only takes about ten minutes to do the whole boat. I have since repainted the boat.

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

3M Makes Gel Coat Compound Hi Gloss The Best On The Market But U Have To Use A Machine To Get Best Results

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

Maguire's makes a nice 3 step kit called a heavy oxidation remover kit.

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

I knew one guy that had a black hulled boat. He'd take a big jar of Vaseline, sit it in the sun, then put it on the boat. :eek:

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

303 will bring it back for about 1 month but you can do it in 10 min.

Re: Best Paint/Gelcoat Restorer To Use Without Buffer
 

Whos used that 3 step kit, how's it work?