I am trying to bring back the gel in a 1986 boat is it better to sand with 2000, spray net gel, paint with imron, paint with interlux perfection.
The big question is which one will look the best and last the longest with the least maintanace.

AWLGRIP is the tuffest paint around imho

Friend of mine cleared the sides of his 1979 Donzi with dark bue original gel coat sides. Gel was faded real, real bad, and he just sanded it good, and shot it with clear -- that was 3-4 years ago, it still looks great.

undefined
Before you decide, put a buffer on the deck and on the side just to see what the surface looks like. If it is faded, single stage polyurethane is my reccomendation. PPG's Concept works well without having to be so exacting in the prep (Awl-Craft is great out of the gun if you finish with #400).
Don't re-gel, too much time and labor for a nightmare.

Art is correct! Awl-Grip and Imron don't like to buff to a shine like PPG 2021. They don't spot repair well, especially dark AND metallic colors. G$