There are lots of videos on line and products to restore really faded gelcoat, so no questions there.
Looking at Inua’s hull. I’m wondering whether it was actually painted in a past life, and so I’m not sure how to proceed. I suppose I could start compounding a small area and see whether it comes back to life, or reveals that there is a rather poor paint job and more drastic measures are called for (or instead we just go sailing…)
Your geen hull, I think this is factory paint. It was an option. Otherwise you get a white(ish) hull.
My hull is dark red, also factory. And I think it is Awlgrip because I ordered some Maroon paint from them and it’s an exact match. Get an Awlgrip colour card and see which green matches yours.
I painted one side with a brush, roll and tip, and it looks OK from 6 feet away. Close you can see brush marks. If I did this again I would do two very thinned thin coats and it would be great.
The first side had to be painted because it is always facing the sun in my slip and my polishing finally wore through the paint.
The other side looks scratched and faded but there is still paint there. I use a product called Polyglow. After stripping everything off it looks terrible. 4 easy coats of Polyglow and wait a couple hours till it fully dries and it looks amazing. Lasts 2 or 3 seasons.
Look for a chipped spot. If it’s paint, it’s likely Awlgrip and if it is you will be able to lift it at the edges of the hole. My boat has 25 year old Awlgrip and I can do that (but I try not to).
The crazing in the area under your registration numbers certainly suggests it is paint. Gelcoat would just be dull. Or if ‘cracked’, more like a cracked eggshell.
Tom, I’m also a long time PolyGlow user. Love it but I have a deuce of a time removing it after several years of build up. I’ve not had great luck using their prep solution or other commercial acrylic wax removers. They kinda work but only with a lot of applied elbow grease and use of scotchbrite pads. How do you remove buildup?
Good question. I have been very busy lately. One of the pre launch tasks was to strip off the PolyGlow this year after just adding a layer for the last 5. However it looks like it didn’t work and there is still PolyGlow on the hull. It’s nice and clean now so I left it. Why didn’t the stripper work? I don’t know. It always did in the past. However this year has been very cold and the day I was trying to strip it, April 15th or so, was less than 10 deg C and the water from the hose was painfully cold.
Im going to try it on another boat soon. Much warmer now.
I’ve had similar difficulties where PolyGlow looked fantastic the first couple of times and then got harder to remove and re-do.
Has anyone had experience with KBS Diamond Finish Clear? Practical Sailor wrote it up in 2022, but at least as of yet hasn’t done a follow-up on longevity. Clean and Shine Surprises - Practical Sailor
