removing paint from gelcoat

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   Hi,

Been spamming you guys lately but I have too many questions :-)

On close inspection of my '76 it appears that at one stage of it's life it had been painted white over the gelcoat.

It's got a bunch of spider cracks etc so in the near future it's looking at a repaint or something of that nature.

My first idea is to see if I can remove the top layer of paint and restore/repair the gelcoat.

If it's too far gone it's 2 pack polyurethane over the whole lot and new decals.

Anyone got any idea if the layer of paint(it's pretty badly oxidised and thin) could be easily removed. I am a**uming it will need to be sanded back but stripping it and uncovering the gelcoat would be my preferred option.

Any ideas on this one appreciated.

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markb Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: December-24-2004 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 76	Post Options Post Reply Quote markb Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: removing paint from gelcoat Posted: November-07-2005 at 2:42pm
	Hi, Been spamming you guys lately but I have too many questions :-) On close inspection of my '76 it appears that at one stage of it's life it had been painted white over the gelcoat. It's got a bunch of spider cracks etc so in the near future it's looking at a repaint or something of that nature. My first idea is to see if I can remove the top layer of paint and restore/repair the gelcoat. If it's too far gone it's 2 pack polyurethane over the whole lot and new decals. Anyone got any idea if the layer of paint(it's pretty badly oxidised and thin) could be easily removed. I am a**uming it will need to be sanded back but stripping it and uncovering the gelcoat would be my preferred option. Any ideas on this one appreciated.

fishyflorida Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: October-10-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 21	Post Options Post Reply Quote fishyflorida Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: November-08-2005 at 7:53am
	If you try sanding it off, you will most likely accidentally damage the gelcoat underneath. (Coarse enough sandpaper to remove the paint without loading up will deeply scratch the gelcoat). On the chance that the gelcoat can be salvaged, try a stripper that is safe for fibergla**, such as "Peel-Away". It's not fun, but with only a thin layer of paint it should come off quickly.

82tique Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Senior Member Joined: June-04-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 339	Post Options Post Reply Quote 82tique Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: November-08-2005 at 8:45am
	two words....oven cleaner

markb Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Groupie Joined: December-24-2004 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 76	Post Options Post Reply Quote markb Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: November-09-2005 at 8:15pm
	This is known to soften gel coat not that this is a drama as it will be primed and polyurethaned afterwards as I assume it was painted for a reason. I was thinking citristrip as well but it may well be an oven cleaner fest.

79nautique Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Grand Poobah Joined: January-27-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 7872	Post Options Post Reply Quote 79nautique Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: November-10-2005 at 11:26am
	you don't have to use coarse sand paper to remove the paint, 1000 grit and a DA will get the job done in no time. Took me all of ten minutes to remove the stern lettering this way. Now if you are doing this by hand then that's another story.

removing paint from gelcoat

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