2001v-drive

8122pbrainard wrote: BTW, no machine tools out in the back in your graveyard? Just horns?

No those were just a one time find Pete. I missed out on a nice parts washer once. I did talk to our mechanic and since then he always asks me first before getting rid of something.

I have no idea how thick the gell is but I shot a gallon and a half on the lower section of the boat.I would say five good coats.I didn't use the wax till the last coat.It came with no instructions or recomendations.

This is my first time working with gell but I will offer my two cents.
First,gellcoat is not something that should be attempted unless you have bodyshop experience and or a serious drive to get the job done.As an example I have over a hundred hours in wetsanding.You will also need a handfull of expensive tools.
Second,its not very healthy and care should be taken not to poison yourself as best you can.

I found that a standard sanding block doesn't work well on the straight sides of a boat and remebered a old trick from my bodyshop days.This will also work if your sanding you existing gellcoat.
Go to your local parts store and buy a roll of campertop foam seal then cut a wood block the length of sanding paper\width of seal.apply a piece of foam to one side and you have a rigid sanding block thats easy to hold onto without sanding your fingers off.Split a piece of paper in half then fold it and your ready to go.
I also use a rubber sqweegee to clear water away and inspect.Dish soap in the sanding water also helps a bit.



When sanding place the block at a slight angle and make long clean strokes making sure to stay off the edges.



When you are satisfied with a area use the sqweegee to mark your stopping point.



I started with 400 grit and then on to 1000 but everyone has a different system.Do what works best for you just remember whatever you start with you have to sand out later.Keep in mind too the longer you let it dry the harder the gell will get so start sanding as soon as possible.



I used about thirty sheets of 400 and twenty on 1000.

As an admitted tool junkie I'm surprised there's not a hutchins in your hand. Step it up and get a D.A. with the 3M interface pad. Hook-it disc's. Mmmmm. With serious orange peel and a beginners eye you could also guide coat before hand. Keep on kickin ass. You are doin a great job of makin me feel like a giant slug. : )

form&function wrote: This is my first time working with gell but I will offer my two cents. First,gellcoat is not something that should be attempted unless you have bodyshop experience and or a serious drive to get the job done.

Ryan,
Sorry, but I happen to disagree with this statement. What is most important, is a understanding of proper fluid/air tip selection on the equipment by having a understanding of viscosities using a Zahn or Ford cup for measurement.

You must have missed or didn't do a re gel search on site for any information. Michelle (sanity) re gelled her hull and had never picked up a spray gun in her life. However, she was very thorough in her research.

Looks like you were able to keep the orange peel to a minimum. How far did you reduce the gel and what did you use to reduce it?

Looking great! Keep the pictures comming!

My goal is never to have to re-gel an entire hull!

If anybody has any info on the coat shadowing I would love to hear it.

eric lavine wrote: no comments from me

seriously....... you know you wanna

I gave up on my DA simply because I don't have the air CFM needed to run one in my present shop/garage. A 5 HP (true actual HP) is needed and even then you need to watch the duty cycle of the compressor. In the meantime, I use my electric RO and a squirt bottle of water! No GFI - all the hand tools have been double insulated for better than 20 years!!! You don't need that much water anyway.

I do have experience with the bug. But I still got wet. There is DA paper available at least up to 2000. Less mess, and I don't have running water available to me all the time.

As for the flaws... put some graphics on it. Outta sight, outta mind.

Ryan,
Yes, sorry to hear about the results.

If you take on spraying more gel, There are a couple things to keep in mind.

You have stated that you did reduce the gel with styrene. Thats good because it is the proper solvent. You also said you reduced per the instructions but was that by volume or did you check the viscosity with the Ford cup? What temperature was the gel? I mentioned that it looked like you didn't get much orange peel and my very first thought was you really must have thinned it way out. My fear is you over reduced it to get the gel through the gun? Siphon feed? Did you size the fluid/air tip correctly for the viscosity? Reduced too much and you will not get it to cure properly and it will be dull. What gun did you use?

You have been flying through this project at a very fast speed. Maybe it's time to slow down some!!

Looks great to me, can't wait to see the finished product!

F and F, would you consider this one of those projects you do once and will never do it again?

cover the world in Sherwin Williams lol