are all boats this hard?

**gocubbies** · 05-08-2008, 06:45 PM

i am sorry i dont have any pics but i was not expecting to be doing my bosses boat today so i didnt have my camera at work. anyways he said it has been about 3 years since the boat been buffed or waxed. it was loaded with oxidation. i was using 3M extra cut compound Dewalt 849 rotary and the BLACK Edge wool pad. well i started off at 1400 rpm and more pressure than i normally use on a car. well it barely touched it. so i did a 2nd pass but bump speed upto 1800rpm. it did a little better. boss was getting crabby cause it wasnt getting done so i decided to really lay on the buffer. i used enough pressure that at 1800rpm i was bogging the Dewalt down. the oxidation disappeared. do you always have to use that much pressure on boats? i have never had to bog down a rotary for it to remove oxidation. dang my shoulders and arms are killing me

**CharlesW** · 05-08-2008, 07:12 PM

They are much more difficult to polish than a car.
The gel-coat is much harder and I have read that it doesn`t have UV inhibitors and is more prone to oxidation because of that.

Maybe you wouldn`t have had to spend so much time and effort if your crabby boss took better care of his boat.

I polish and wax/seal mine each year and going into it`s 15th season, it still looks pretty good with just a PC and Poli-Seal for the cleanup.

**GearHead_1** · 05-08-2008, 09:00 PM

I haven`t done a ton of boats but I`ve done a couple with oxidation and they were very difficult to cut through.

**Jngrbrdman** · 05-08-2008, 10:13 PM

The type of muck that boats get is different too. Salt water and brine is a beeech to clean up. And if the boat is stored outside without a cover then it just gets filled with dirt. Boats are a lot of work, but I charge around $12 more per hour to work on them, so I don`t mind the labor.

**gocubbies** · 05-09-2008, 06:52 AM

Originally Posted by CharlesW

They are much more difficult to polish than a car.
The gel-coat is much harder and I have read that it doesn`t have UV inhibitors and is more prone to oxidation because of that.

Maybe you wouldn`t have had to spend so much time and effort if your crabby boss took better care of his boat.

I polish and wax/seal mine each year and going into it`s 15th season, it still looks pretty good with just a PC and Poli-Seal for the cleanup.

the bad part of the whole thing is i work at a body shop. so i would think my boss would know he needs to take care of it

Originally Posted by GearHead_1

I haven`t done a ton of boats but I`ve done a couple with oxidation and they were very difficult to cut through.

next time i go out to work on the boat i am gonna take my bottle of hi-temp magnum357. it is suposse to do 800grit marks. maybe that will make it easier

Originally Posted by Jngrbrdman

The type of muck that boats get is different too. Salt water and brine is a beeech to clean up. And if the boat is stored outside without a cover then it just gets filled with dirt. Boats are a lot of work, but I charge around $12 more per hour to work on them, so I don`t mind the labor.

with the pain i am having with this boat i should be charging $25-$30 per hour minimum

**Aaron@IAP** · 05-09-2008, 10:26 AM

Originally Posted by gocubbies

i am sorry i dont have any pics but i was not expecting to be doing my bosses boat today so i didnt have my camera at work. anyways he said it has been about 3 years since the boat been buffed or waxed. it was loaded with oxidation. i was using 3M extra cut compound Dewalt 849 rotary and the BLACK Edge wool pad. well i started off at 1400 rpm and more pressure than i normally use on a car. well it barely touched it. so i did a 2nd pass but bump speed upto 1800rpm. it did a little better. boss was getting crabby cause it wasnt getting done so i decided to really lay on the buffer. i used enough pressure that at 1800rpm i was bogging the Dewalt down. the oxidation disappeared. do you always have to use that much pressure on boats? i have never had to bog down a rotary for it to remove oxidation. dang my shoulders and arms are killing me

Gel coats are very hard, you need about 2200 rpm and I would actually recommend our White 100% wool pad over the black because of the heat you need and the pressure black could leave black fibers stuck in the gel coat. I would also make sure you are using the new industrial adapter because with the pressure, speed and angles you are exceeding the limits on our standard edge adapter. We actually developed the industrial adapter for Mariine, Aviation,and Solid Surface industries.

**dr_detail** · 05-09-2008, 07:48 PM

When they get that bad, it`s sometimes easier to just colorsand then buff. However, here is another tip/trick that has worked for me on neglected fiberglass.... grab that liquid metal polish (something like Mark-V Metal Brite) and a 9" white wool cutting pad (not synthintic) mounted on a 7" rubberized backing plate (the kind that needs a buffer nut) and go to town with your rotary set at about 1750rpm. Use medium to hard pressure working steadily it until its gone, spurring the pad often (it might take two passes). The chemical cleanser base, combined with the abrasives makes for a fast finish. It`s also not a bad idea to use a diffrent pad on the white areas as the colored, for sometimes the colors will leave behind in the whites. Follow it up with a fiberglass polish using a, preferably 9", 100% lambs wool polishing pad (once again utilizing the rubberized backing plate and buffernut). Top it off with a sealant and presto -- it`ll be 60-90 day nice. For what it`s worth, I have yet to have good results on heavily oxidized gels using foam pads.

**harry444** · 05-10-2008, 07:13 PM

You think that was bad think about this when we had my boat it was wood .....and the barnacles just loved wood boats

in the spring it was scrape scrape scrape

sand sand sand

then paint paint paint

then up deck

scrape scrape scrape

sand sand sand

...varnish sand varnish sand varnish

I think you get it .... it was a 2 week job getting the boat ready for a big 3 months of fun

**dr_detail** · 05-11-2008, 10:53 AM

Originally Posted by harry444

You think that was bad think about this when boat(s) was wood .....and the barnacles just loved wood boats...it was scrape scrape scrape... sand sand sand...

AMEN!! That`s exactly where I got my start using a rotary

Yep, sanding hulls of boats down at the marina. Talk about work... try sanding wooden planked boats with a 7" 80 grit disk without gouging... really teaches one how to find the sweet spot on a pad without leaving behind swirlls

**Jngrbrdman** · 05-11-2008, 05:41 PM

Originally Posted by gocubbies

with the pain i am having with this boat i should be charging $25-$30 per hour minimum

I don`t get out of bed for those kinds of wages when it comes to work this hard. When I say I charge $12 more per hour, that is on top of the $40 an hour I charge for automobiles. I charge between $60 and $65 an hour for boats. They are definitely a lot of work, but that is the market average around here. I checked around a couple of the local boat storage facilities to find out what they charge so I could be competitive. I charge a little bit more than the average since I really don`t want to do boats that bad and hopefully the price will scare them away. lol I still wind up with a couple boats a year though, so maybe I`m not high enough. I want to show that I offer the service, but I`m really not looking to becoming a marine detailing specialist.