Getting Started With Gell Coat

[DavidF]

Yep, that is my boat and I did ALL the work myself in the driveway. Repair took me 9 months. I still have the boat, but it is now for sale as I upgraded to a '99 SS/SAN.

Yes, I suggested the tape for three reasons: 1. Holds the regular gel in place (not necessary if using paste) 2. Seals out the air, and 3. Helps smooth out the gel for easier sanding and eliminate low spots. I tried all the methods discussed in this thread during the repair of the above boat for the small gel chips. The tape method proved to be the easiest and yeilded best results, but most importantly eliminated the need for multiple applications.

If you use paste and it does indeed have wax in it, make sure you wipe the repair down well with acetone before sanding. You do not want to sand that wax into the surface of the repair (in case you need to apply an additional coat).

Just in case, I did not do the damage...I bought the boat damaged (salvage value). Yes, it was totaled by the insurance company. 100% of the underwater running gear was wiped out as well.

[bchesley]

Not to hijack but how is the interior coming DavidF?

[darrel409]

Grant_West
Posted: Feb 25, 2009 - 02:36 PM

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Wow That's quite a repair. I bet they were happy to get their boat back all fixed up.
I can't even think about how bad I would feel if i were to some how dammage my boat like that



Grant, that type of damage occurs very fast. The boat damage and repair are minor compared to the short and long term impact on lives. I only think about what could have happened to the people involved. Sorry for the mini thread jack guys. DavidF does great work and his advice has firsthand experience behind it. Back on track!

[andronikos916]

Great tips guys.

Thank you,
Andron

[mndanielsncsu]

David F - my boat is the same color as your repair. I've been looking for a gel coat patch kit for the Electric Blue and Charcoal colors, but didn't know who had the best color match. I have a 5" scratch that I want to clean up. I used Spectrum for the Silver Cloud, but they don't have the other two colors for my year (93). Who did you go through? Obviously you had to buy alot more than a patch kit, but just curious.

[DavidF]

I purchased the gel coat through my local CC dealer. Minimum purchase is one gallon at about $180/gallon. The match was very close, but not perfect which is to be expected on a 15 year old boat. You have to look close to see the blend lines, so I was very happy with the match. The darker the color, the harder the match...black is black.