My problem is simple my boat (30 Corsa) was painted back in 1993 with the graphics/color of the day and now looks way out of style.
Does anyone know the cost of removing what's there now and just leaving the original gel? Other than the graphics the rest of the boat is all original gel and all I want is to have the graphics removed and keep it all white. Any help is greatly appreciated.

Do the graphics that are on it now have a paint edge? Can you feel the edge of the stripes?

Yes it does.

Do you know if it is like an Imron paint? If you are a master with a block sander, the only way I trust is to sand them off and then polish. Razor blades or scrapers can gouge into the gel coat. It will take a long time but it is worth it in the long run. Not sure how chemical paint removers work, have never tried, it could do alot of damage.

Yes I'm pretty sure it's Imron. I wish I had the time and patience to do it but I don't have either right now. So I don't have a choice but to pay to have it done but I'm trying to get an idea what is "reasonable" for a job like this.

I have always wanted to know if you could use a chemical stripper to do such a job. Not sure on how the gel-coat would react to the chemical stripper. Either way you will be polishing the whole boat when finished.

I would have to see the boat in a nice picture with no obstructions but I could see at-least a few grand ($) to do that.

Pantera 24, It has been my experience in situations like this, that even if you do find someone to color sand & buff off the paint( right), you will probably be wasting your money! Due to normal oxidation there is almost always a color difference (in the white) between the gel-coat that was exposed to the sun and the gel-coat that was painted over! With the paint being on there for 13 years I can almost guarantee it! No amount of buffing will bring them back the same again and it will probably be (very) noticeable! If it were my boat, I would (1) add to the existing graphics (to up-date them) (2) sand them off and plan on spraying it all white (3) save my money and invest it into the next boat. I believe you will be opening a big azz can of worms if you try to just remove them!! As far as paint strippers go, I personally won't use them on fiberglass! There are many that will argue this but with fiberglass being porious & absorbent,(to me) it is not worth the risk of contaminating the gel. This could comprimize the integrety of the gel or the adhesion of the paint! I repaired a Vette (along time ago) that someone had let the stripper sit on too long. It had absorbed enough to make the fiberglass (almost) flexible. It ruined the car! That was an (extreme) case but regardless I would not risk someones major investment (like a boat) to take a short cut!! JMO

Good Luck

Sounds good Customtouch, I do agree with what you said. Chemical Stripper will do that, Wow. Thanx for the input. You can add to the graphics but can't do too much with them. And Yes, you have to think how long you are going to own this boat before getting into something like this.

Always learning something is a good thing!

Its cheaper to have the whole boat re sprayed. The risk of damage by chemical removal is great.