TOPIC: Let the grinding begin!

Cleaned the gunk out of my Banshee and ready to start grinding! I tried with 120 grit and my variable speed 5" and it barely touched it. Should I go down to 80? Seems to be 2 or 3 coats of gel coat. The hull is white but has blue-green gel coat under the white. Any recoo to get it down to where I can fill the dings and undercoat? Sold my Delaney Cat so I need a lake and river boat. Thanks in advance for the suggestions. Mike

Mike, when I did my Powercat I used 80 and was thinking 60. Even with 80 it took too long and it left an uneven surface. Hard materials require rough abrasives....keep at it, you'll get there.

Bernie

Wow- Looks like you've got your work cut out for you

Try the 80- I had to use it on mine in places... Just go slow...

-Andrew

I used a lot of 80 on a 6 in DA. I also notice that the green 3m resin coated worked longed that the yellow, but my stock of sand paper was left over from a drag car I paint over 5 years ago so that could have changed. Just thought it might help out

80 grit it is!! I've got lots of time and not many spiderwebs in the finish so I am lucky. Hope it turns out half as nice as Rons. (picture of Rons boat)

I've used 50 and 60 for some projects. Whatever it takes to get the old stuff.

I sure would use the most aggresive paper you can. It will be faster because it cuts better and the paper does not plug up.
I think the most important part is when you are grinding you move the sander in different directions. Use the sander as if you where doing finish body work. Like in a forty five or cross cut pattern. By doing this you will get a smooth flatter surface. Sand with the course paper until you are close to where you want to be then switch to the eighty.
You may think you have a lot of time for sanding but some of these boats from the fifties can have old gell that is up to a quarter inch thick. Just depends what part of the mold it is and who shot the gell on.
I used an air powered gasket scraper on the hull of a carAgua because the gell was so thick.

Del..what do you use in the place of gel coat? just paint? or some kinda of marine bondo or something else?

Kajun, Thats a topic of much discussion. I think more people use paint because gel is a very HARD material. I've heard it also has a tendency to 'orange peel' because it was designed to be sprayed inside a mold that is perfectly smooth. It takes a lot of finish work to get it smooth when sprayed on the outside.

I use paint (Imron). It is a very durable paint but it is not completely waterproof. If left in the water for too long (more than 48 hours is what I've been told) it will blister. I never leave mine in overnight so it works for me. I understand that Awlgrip makes a bottom paint that will not blister but I have not used it.

Bernie

I have had very good luck with both paint and gell coat. I do like to use gell rather than paint.
There is a new or different product out there that a lot of people do not know about yet for gell. It helps or nearly elminates the orange peel that gell is so famous for. This product is called High Gloss additive. You add it into the last two coats of gell that you spray and it really makes the gell flow out and lay flat. You may still want to wet sand and buff this to get a mirror like finish.
But shoot they have come a long way even with sand paper. They now have foam backed sand paper in grits up to three thousand that fit your sanders. You really do not even have to wet sand you can sand it dry if you like using a plam, DA, or electric sander.
I have done several boats using urthane paint. These boats are users boats and have held up to the test of time. I would never even worry about leaving the boat set in the water. Maybe not weeks at a time. But for normal use go for it.
If you need to know more about gell or any fiberglass product. Fiberglassics just got a new advertiser. EXPRESS COMPOSITS give them a call they are really great about explaning anything you need to know about all the produts to do with glass. They have helped me over the years many many times.

D