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Greetings to all and thankyou Meguiar's for providing this forum. I have a 23' boat at the end of a very long dock. I'm about 200' from an outlet so voltage drop probably negates the use of my Porter Cable. It also concerns me to be using electrical products while standing around so much water.http://meguiarsonline.com/forums/ima...es/nervous.gif Has anyone found a solution for this dilemma? I've finished a mild polish and wax on the bottom of the boat so at least I'll be out of the water but my arms are about to fall off. Have any of the cordless products come far enough to be considered a viable way to get the haze off the gel coat? Any help or suggestions would be most appreciated.
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Re: Machine polishing from the dock
Hi Bill, and welcome to MOL.
The manual for this tool shows that a 14 gauge extension cord is suitable for distances up to 150' so you're definitely out of range there. Since doing a full buffing job a 23' boat is a sizeable project, what are the odds of you pulling it out of the water for a few days to accomplish the task? We're assuming you can trailer this boat? Or is it a sailboat that makes pulling out of the water a real hassle?
What we're thinking here is to pull it out of the water to do a serious overall correction, which will require the use of a power tool, and then pick up a cordless buffer for routine wax applications. We don't know of a cordless buffer available today that will have the outright power to correct defects in gel coat, let alone have enough battery life to get you anywhere near all the way around the boat! But even something halfway decent, with a couple of batteries, should be sufficient for routine waxing.Michael Stoops
Senior Global Product & Training Specialist | Meguiar's Inc.
Remember, this hobby is supposed to be your therapy, not the reason you need therapy.
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Re: Machine polishing from the dock
Thanks for the reply Michael. It's a 23' SeaRay and I don't have a trailer for it nor a vehicle to pull it with. I may be able to work out some kind of arrangement with the Marina it winters at but would prefer to work on it here. I see (via search) that you offered a cordless product a few years ago. The current generation seems to have quite a bit more power available so I was hoping they had improved. Applying the finish coat is easy enough to do by hand but that dang polishing...Originally posted by Michael Stoops View Post
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Re: Machine polishing from the dock
Look into getting a shore power cord (does the marina have 30 amp connections?) Most of the longer ones are available in 10 ga, but they wont be cheap. I used 50 feet of normal 14 ga at the end of 150 shore power cord this spring while doing a 40 foot Tollycraft, no problems at all. I did from a foot above water line (lower had been done in the dry dock while painting bottom) all the way to the top. No problems with voltage drop on DA or rotary.
And I didn't even drop anything in the water.
GlennKeep your mast up and your rudder wet !!Comment
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Re: Machine polishing from the dock
Bill,
There are heavier extension cords available. I have a 100' 12AWG, and I've seen 10AWG also. These puppies ain't cheap!
Take a look at Menards, Lowes, Home Depot, Northern Tools, etc, OR if you don't need that big sucker all the time, how about a rental place?
Good luck!
BillComment
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Re: Machine polishing from the dock
Would a small generator or an inverter/battery set up work for you? Either would also give you emergency backup power in case of a power outtage.BarryComment
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