Painting the deck

[jhatch]

I have searched the archives and found some references to painting the deck but no follow-ups after the job was completed. I'm worried.

I have bought a 1984 CP19 that is stained from being in the windshadow of a steel mill. The gelcoat is fine and the boat is in great shape overall but the entire top from rubrail to mast plate is about the color of orange sherbet. If it was even I would wax it and leave it but it is alas a little swirly. Oddly the hull sides are unaffected.

So rather than mess with chemicals trying to clean it I am just going to give it a good paint job but I want to avoid future peeling problems.

Any input or references would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Jim

[edbuchanan]

Hi Jim,

Have you tried using a rubbing compound?  Last year some boatyard guys were watching me try (pathetically) to wax my heavily oxidized boat, and one of them offered to teach me how to make it shiny again.  First, my little automotive waxer was not up to the task.  He let me borrow a very heavy duty Makita waxing machine, and gave me a bottle of 3M Restorer and Wax.  I think that machine could strip paint off a car in a hurry.  After I got used to a bit of punishment from the waxer, I was able to work dirt off the boat quite rapidly.  When the heavy treatment was done, he instructed me to apply Trewax by hand.  The boat felt like glass.  Original color in the hull was restored.

You could try a some abrasive wax by hand and see if it will remove the stain.  If you want to keep the experiment cheap, use non-bleach Soft Scrub.

Ernie (Molly 23/II 1984)

[JustStartin]

Hi Jim,

Have you tried using a rubbing compound?  Last year some boatyard guys were watching me try (pathetically) to wax my heavily oxidized boat, and one of them offered to teach me how to make it shiny again.  First, my little automotive waxer was not up to the task.  He let me borrow a very heavy duty Makita waxing machine, and gave me a bottle of 3M Restorer and Wax.  I think that machine could strip paint off a car in a hurry.  After I got used to a bit of punishment from the waxer, I was able to work dirt off the boat quite rapidly.  When the heavy treatment was done, he instructed me to apply Trewax by hand.  The boat felt like glass.  Original color in the hull was restored.

You could try a some abrasive wax by hand and see if it will remove the stain.  If you want to keep the experiment cheap, use non-bleach Soft Scrub.

Ernie (Molly 23/II 1984)

Ernie, how good is the shine on the hull?  I recently tried to wash, deoxidize, polish, and wax my boat all by hand.  I used Maguire's products and although it looks better, I was unimpressed with the lack of shine.  I'm leary of using a buffing wheel because of the horror stories I've heard of them damaging the gel coat.

[edbuchanan]

Hi Jim,

The finished shine was excellent.  Maybe not up to power boat standards, but water sparkled on it, and I could clearly see my reflection.  More applications of the Trewax would have brought it up, but I was so happy with the results that I thought the extra effort ridiculous.

The supplied buffing wheel was pure wool, and it was quite large and thick.  About 10" diameter by 5" thick(?).  The yard also let me borrow a strange looking buffing wheel cutter, which cut solidified wax out of the buffer.  This was used after each compound application.  The machine seems to be the only way to do what you attempted by hand.

With an expert instructor at hand I was able to get the hang of it pretty quickly.  In about 30 minutes all oxidation was removed and her original light brown color showed up.  Hand waxing the finish coat went quite quickly due to the smooth base to work on.

Ernie (Molly 23/II 1984)

[B.Hart]

Hi Jim, When I got my 16 it was very chalky and stained from years of neglect. I used a buffer and some professional type compound I got from a client who works with fiberglass swimming pools. I buffed the entire boat to remove the crud then hand wax with a quality wax. I don't wax the textures on the deck so they don't become slippery. BTW the hull sides on my boat were in good condition also. If you do paint, make sure you take the time to prep, and use the right paint.   HAPPY RESTORING   BILL