Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

[Jeepster04]

Weve got some parts of our boat that are throughly oxidized. There is zero shine and if you run your hand over it your hand will have, what I guess is, white oxidation all over it.

I plan on getting a cheap rotary buffer from Harbor Freight since Ill probably end up dropping it in the lake like I do with everything else around that boat(VERY ANNOYING). I also do not plan on using it on my Jeep or any other car and if I did, it would be to remove swirls or scratches that my PC cant, which wont happen often if any at all, so quality isnt a huge issue. Just cant pay $190 for a buffer that Ill only use a couple times on our boats.

Anyway, what products and pads should I use for this? From what I read, Power-Cut Compound(M91) has the highest cut but it says its can remove 1000-1200 grit so idk if I need something with that much cut or not. I was thinking that #67 would suit my needs, if I had the money I would just buy them all but at $23 a bottle I wouldnt mind if I can just buy one bottle and go from there.

On to pads. I know I need a wool pad since the oxidation is so bad but can I finish with a wool pad? Would I need to step it down to a 7006 or 8006 pad? If so, do I also need to step down to a lighter product or can I finish with #67 then move on to a pure polish and wax?? Will the wool pad fill up with oxidation fairly fast? Ill be working on a fairly big area. Wish I had some good pictures but I currently do not.

Tons of questions but Ive never worked on fiber glass!

Thanks for any advice..

Cliff notes:

-Bad oxidation on white fiber glass, oxidation rubs off on hand
-Would #67 have enough cut using a wool pad to remove oxidation this bad or will I need #91?
-How quick will a wool pad fill up with oxidation? Can I just use a spur to clean it or should I get a few wool pads? (area is big)
-Can I finish with a wool pad with #67 or #91 and move on to a pure polish and wax or do I need to step down to a 7006 or 8006 pad/ a product with a lighter cut.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

From Mike Pennington, (Taken from here How much cut? #49 vs #67 vs #91 which is a Sticky in this forum)

M49 Oxidation Remover is the least aggressive of these 3...

M67 One Step Compound is next in line and was designed more for hand application but can be used by machine for 2000 grit or finer

M91 Power Cut Compound is the most aggressive...It was designed to remove up to 1000 - 1200 grit on gel coat by rotary machine but can also be used by hand.

While M49 is the least aggressive of these three it's still pretty aggressive. Using a wool cutting pad with a rotary buffer provides a lot of oxidation chopping power too...

Have you tried anything on a test section yet?

How about a picture of the boat in it's current condition?

[Jeepster04]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

The boat is kept on the lake year around and I wont be going out there for a few weeks so I cant get a good picture just yet. I will be working on it while its in the water but the part Ill be working on is not close to the water. Its actually the helm which holds the steering wheel and such, but its big. Its also part of a piece called the 'Fly Bridge.'

Ive not gotten the buffer or any products yet so I cannot do a test section. Ill be buying the products soon so I may try to do a test section with #91 since Ive read it can be used by hand, then go from there.

Just not sure what to expect since I have zero experience with fiber glass.

Thanks for the info as always Mike.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

With the right products, a little passion and some terry cloth you'll be amazed at what you can do by hand. DA Polishers work best when the surface is flat and the pad is held flat against the surface, any variation to the surface in which there's any kind of high point like an edge and when your pad is moved over the concentrated pressure caused by the high point tends to stop the pad from rotating and this decreases cleaning or abrading ability.

So for any flat surfaces for sure try to machine clean them but when you get around small/tight areas you'll probably want to do these by hand.

For this reason might as well get the M91 plus some M45 to polish afterwards and then whatever you like for an LSP

Something modern like Flagship would be a good choice or M16 which we sold in all our Marine catalogs for years.

Sounds like a hard but fun project.

[hot rod]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I have used #67 with great results then I follow it up with a good sealant. I had to use a rotary with a poly wool pad.

[Jeepster04]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

With the right products, a little passion and some terry cloth you'll be amazed at what you can do by hand. DA Polishers work best when the surface is flat and the pad is held flat against the surface, any variation to the surface in which there's any kind of high point like an edge and when your pad is moved over the concentrated pressure caused by the high point tends to stop the pad from rotating and this decreases cleaning or abrading ability.

So are you saying that it would be possible to do this with a PC and not a rotary w/wool pad?

Here is some pics I found just to give you an idea what what Ill be working on.

There is only a small portion of fiber glass in this picture. The 1foot section is fiber glass and the rest is just vinyl stripes. Its been cleaned since then so the black is gone which left a VERY dull finish.



All of what you see around the wheel, be side the seats, all of that. There is also some fiber glass on the sides but most of it is covered in vinyl.



Sides:

[Jonesey]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I've had great results with the 67 on a wool pad, both on very faded white gel and green as well. I have 91 on order, and neighbors with a faded red 94 malibu ski boat, can't wait to see how it performs.
The best thing about the 67 was the way it left the surface ready for wax. (Flagship on one boat, #26 on the other.)

Glenn

[Jeepster04]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

Thanks Jonesey. Ill probably start with #67 and go from there.

Ive asked for the HF rotary buffer for Christmas along with a $75 gift certificate to ADS. Ill probably get two wool pads, a 5/8in backing plate, #67, and maybe the marine polish & cleaner wax(for the jet ski). Collinite 476s will probably be my wax of choice for both the boat and the jet ski.

[Jeepster04]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

With Christmas just around the corner Ill be ordering my supplies soon.

Should I get just the regular 8" wool pad or a choice of the solo wool pads? Maybe one Heavy cutting and one light cutting?

[Jonesey]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I haven't used the Solo pads, so I can't help you there, sorry.

Glenn

[Daniel Kinder]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I think you can do a amazing job with just the meguiars products we have around our area and what I still have left and I will be more then happy to help you!

Remeber this?

http://www.noswirls.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1119

Hope it's alright to post this link if not then delet it, the same post on here went to red X's

[Justin Murphy]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I've found that when I do boat, the G110 and a smaller 5.5 inch low profile pad cuts better on fiberglass. I like to use #95 since I'm outdoors and in the sun while doing boats. I've had some problems with #105 being hard to remove.

I've tried using a rotary but the contours of a boat can be tough. Plus, I go underneath it so a smaller DA is less stress.

[Jeepster04]

Re: Help with heavily oxidized fiberglass.

I've found that when I do boat, the G110 and a smaller 5.5 inch low profile pad cuts better on fiberglass. I like to use #95 since I'm outdoors and in the sun while doing boats. I've had some problems with #105 being hard to remove.

I've tried using a rotary but the contours of a boat can be tough. Plus, I go underneath it so a smaller DA is less stress.

So youre telling me I dont need a rotary and wool pad to work on fiber glass? From what I been reading everyone seems to think fiber glass is too hard for a PC with a regular pad(7006 I assume?) to do any good. Ive already bought the dang rotary!

Here is the wool pad I was thinking about getting. Its the cut N shine:

http://www.autodetailingsolutions.com/Meguiar%27s%20Professional%20Pads%20&%20Bonnets.htm

So youre saying I can use #95 and it should cut just as good as #67? It sure is cheaper so that would be great if I could get it as apposed to #67. Ive not read about #95 at all. I assume its ok to use with either a rotary or PC?? This opens up a whole other possibility! I thought I had everything figured out that I was going to buy.

I think you can do a amazing job with just the meguiars products we have around our area and what I still have left and I will be more then happy to help you!

Remeber this?

http://www.noswirls.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1119

Hope it's alright to post this link if not then delet it, the same post on here went to red X's

My gosh! That turned out pretty dang good! That gives me some hope for this boat since its just as bad if not worse than that.