Sailfish 320 EXP - Gel Coat Repairs and Refinishing

FISHING FOCUSED. FAMILY FRIENDLY.™ | www.SailfishBoats.com
04/24/2019
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Gel Coat
Discoloredareasareveryshallowin
depth,literallyrightonthesurface.The
discolorationmayberemovedbygently
wet-sandingthea󰀨ectedareasonlyby
using600grit,wetordryspeciallytreated
waterproofsandpaper.It’simportantto
alwayssandinonedirection,thisincludes
thecurvestoo.Useplentyofwatertocool
andcleanthesandpaperandcutbackon
dust.Afteryouarenishedsanding,dry
theareasandverifyallthediscoloration
hasbeenremoved.Ifnot,repeatthe
process.
Afterallthediscolorationhasbeen
removed,theareawillneedtobebu󰀨ed.
Usinganelectricalorpneumaticbu󰀨er,
bu󰀨atlowspeed(1750rpm–2250rpm),
thiswillrestorethelustertothesanded
surface.Usingagenerousamountof
rubbingcompound,applyitinacircular
motionwithasoftwoolpad.Whenbu󰀩ng
hasbeencompleted,washo󰀨therubbing
compoundwithcleanwater,anddrythe
surface.
Torestoretheglosstothea󰀨ectedarea,
useahigh-grademarineorautomotive
wax.
Repairs
Duringthelifeofyourboat,somedamage
tothegelcoatsurfaceisunavoidable.
Werecommendrepairsdonebytrained,
experiencedprofessionalsatyourlocal
marinedealer.
Scratches
Ifthescratchisinthegelcoatsurface,
notpenetratingtheberglass,usean
automotivepolishingcompoundandrubit
out.Applythecompoundbyhandusinga
dampragorbyusingapowerbu󰀨er.The
scratchmaynotentirelydisappear,butit
shouldbenoticeablybetter.
Gouges and Chips
Ourrecommendedpatchingprocedureis
torstcleantheareaneedingrepairwith
anacetonesolventtoremovealltraces
ofwaxandoil.Next,thoroughlymixone
tablespoonof“PatchPaste”withtwoor
threedropsofcatalystonascrappieceof
cardboard.
Applythemixturetothepit,chiporgouge
withasingle-edgerazorblade,matching
thesurfaceandcontouroftheareabeing
repaired.Applyslightlymoremixtureto
avoidhavingtollthedamagedsection
asecondtime.Allowthepatchtoharden
thoroughlyforaminimumoftwotothree
hours.
Usinganegrit“wetordry”sandpaperon
asandingblock,wet-sandthepatchuntil
itislevelwiththesurroundingsurface.
Finishwithamarineorautomotiverubbing
compoundusingthesameapproachas
usedforthescratches.
Renishing
Foraseverelyscratchedorweathered
berglassboatthatisnolongerrestorable
byusingthepreviousmethods,itmaythen
benecessarytorenishitwithtwo-pack-
ageortwo-partaliphaticurethaneenamel.
Thiscanbedoneverye󰀨ectively,butitis
recommendedrenishingshouldonlybe
donebyexperiencedprofessionals.