Wet Sanding

I have a Dewalt the same style as Pete is suggesting.    Works good, and I have no complaints, and have done several cars with it. I have not done my boat yet, but it's on the list for next year.     A good buffer will last a long time, and will provide good results if you learn how to use it correctly.    Porter cable is another brand I have seen a little cheaper.    Since you're not a professional boat polisher, you don't necessarily need a new one that will provide you with 8 hrs of service each day for the rest of your life, so I bet you could get a used one if you searched Craigslist or some other classified site

What Pete sez. its all that

You guys are awesome, thanks for all the great feedback and advice! I'm using a 10 year old Porter Cable Model 7424 variable speed random orbital. Its great on cars but do you recommend a better model for gelcoat polishing? I'm willing to buy a new one.

thanks

agreed on the buffer he's using. I might add...on my recent sand and polish job..I did NOT see the mirror like finish until I got into the 3M Perfect it II compound..then results started to amaze me. all the sanding just took out the shadowing, hazing, scratches and swirl marks, but was a fairly DULL finish.

The shine won't come back until you start to polish.

Paul,
What type of buffer have you been using?

prski wrote: yes, I spoke with the experts at autogeek and Mike Phillips does boat restoration and recommends a wool pad, rotary polisher and Marine 31 products. Concerns?

Not sure if many have used the Marine 31 products, `but many of us have had success with:
Meguire's #67 Compound
3M Finesse it polish

Both on high speed buffers, not orbitals.......

You'll have to actually go through the whole process to see how much color and shine will come back. Just sanding really isn't going to measure this. Take an area and go through all the steps, and you'll see exactly how you're doing.

No guarantees on getting "Black" back to factory spec, but I'm sure you'll get color and shine back to where you like it..

Making sure you're not using a cheap random orbital.

2000 seems like a waste of time. I personally find polishing a lot more enjoyable than sanding.

1000, maybe 1200 or 1500 then heavy cut compound, intermediate polish (missing step?) then final polish seems to be the recommended process. I usually do 2 passes before moving on.

just to follow you clearly, are you saying keep sanding with 2000 and eventually I will see the shine return in the black gelcoat?

more shine = more polishing. There is no quick and easy to this. I just went through all of this with my boat and she turned out amazing. after 2000 grit, then you start in with the buffing compounds..and just keep going until it's reflective like a mirror...THEN you do your final polish and wax.

My boat is # 12
You'll lov the way the rainbow metal flake
sparkles on the water at the end of the day.

thanks for the advice and encouragement. I'll post pix of my progress.

None of us can know how thick your current gelcoat is but if original there should be plenty left for a full sand and buff.

As Dave mentioned, don't go remove decals yet, some of those are not available off the shelf. You'll need good pictures and a tracing.

Paul,
Welcome to the site. And congrats on picking up one of the coveted model SN's.
You'll find some very helpful posts on here and many of us have tackled dark hulls with amazing results.
You'll find the gel very forgiving to work with. Start with your compound with a wool pad and see if that gets you to where you want to be. If not, start with a lessor grit paper 1000 or 800 until you get the color coming back and eliminate any of the fine scratches you encounter. If you need to get more aggressive, I've gone to 600 before without a problem. Then come back up at least 1000 grit before compounding and finishing buf passes, Take your time, ask questions and send pics of the progress. We should be able to get you there...
The decals and striping is available, so you'll be able to bring the boat back to factory without a problem.. eh, not sure about the transom decals though. You'll need to inquire about that..

Good luck...

Moj'