Time to start all over again, I hate this.

R

RJJ

New member
Finally mastered the art of applying the Klasse twins on our cars with incredible results and now I find myself a rank novice again with a new rv (only 240 payments left!:help: ) ; gel coated glass body and crackled fiberglass roof. A search helped somewhat but I remain confused, so here are the questions:

Is clay ok?

Do the foam pads, micro pads and towels work as well on fiberglass as they do on metal?

Some posts suggest that a ro may not work and state that a rotary is best, I am presuming that on a brand new rv the random will be ok??



And, while I have never topped sg with anything, how about on fiberglass?



Tnks in advance to anyone who can help an 'old' newbie out.



By the way, just what is gelcoat???
 
I am also interested to hear some answers to this as I just got a new boat and am not sure where to start either..the outside is gelcoat and topdeck your typical fiberglass. I'm all ears!
 
Umm yea..... OK time for a little education.. Here's what I know



No Foam pads and RO's will not work on Gelcoats. You need a good rotary and a pure wool pad. You also can't use normal automotive wax and cleaners on gelcoats. You have to go and get stuff made specifically for gelcoats. Meguiars make a very good over the counter line. Google "RV and Boat care" and you will learn just a ton of solid information on proper care of Gelcoats. They are a complete and total pain in the back end though if you ask me. If there's anything more specific ask away and I'll let you know what I can.
 
I think I remember reading a while ago that gel coat paint is applied in the mold so when they fabricate the hull the paint is bonded to it automatically. Don't know if my memory or interpretation of what I read is accurate though.
 
Puckman, you are indeed correct; I just learned the same from a boat building website, tnks.



Jakerooni, would you venture a guess as to what would happen if one used foam and a ro, swirls?

The Klasse bottles AIO/SG state the products can be used on fiberglass would your concern be gel coated fiberglass as opposed to painted fiberglass?
 
Gel coats are vicious... they are much tougher and thicker than BC/CC paints. A RO and foam pads can be used for waxing, but you will achieve zero correction... even HTEC on wool has a hard time to remove gelcoat swirls and oxidation.



If you keep up at it from brand new, you can get away with using a PC, orange pad, and cleaner wax (I like Collinite's). If it dulls, fades or spots deeply, a rotary, wool, and gelcoat specific polishes will be necessary. When I detailed aircraft, we used to use M66 on the new planes and it worked fine - it just didn't remove anything beyond surface grime.
 
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