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Boat waxing and buffing.


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I have been waxing my boats by hand ever since i have been boating.Was thinking about buying a electric buffer,was wondering what type buffer to get and any tips/advise would be appreciated. I use 3M boat wax,Thanks Steven

Edited by wake1923
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So do you guys polish your boats then wax them every time? Which pads to polish,and which to wax?I just have always hand waxed and then buffed off by hand this polishing and power buffing is new to me lol.

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I use a wool pad for compound, a foam pad for polishing and I wax by hand. I have a little craftsman "buffer" that I used to wax a few times that had some micro fiber pads for removing wax.

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I use a wool pad for compound, a foam pad for polishing and I wax by hand. I have a little craftsman "buffer" that I used to wax a few times that had some micro fiber pads for removing wax.

Ok thanks you guys have helped a bunch thats the reason this site and its members are great. :werule:

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I wax by hand and remove with a wool pad behind a dewalt DWP849X variable speed polisher. I compound with a dewalt variable speed D/A with a orange 3M PAD and remove with white 3m pad.

CB

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Checked the write up,very informative.Lot of information i never knew.

The best part of the article. Most people seem to think "Waxing" is Polishing.

Polished vs. Shiny

To most people, there is no difference between polished an shiny. This seemingly insignificant triviality is the reason many boats revert to their degraded state two months after being “detailed”.

Polishing is the procedure of mechanically altering the smoothness of a surface. This is done by abrading the surface with successively finer grits of sandpapers and compounds until it becomes a glass-smooth, highly-reflective surface without any further coatings. Shiny is often the result of adding a glossy coating to a surface that fills in surface imperfections and simulates polish. But a few weeks or months later, that coating will eventually evaporate or wear away, leaving only the original unpolished surface exposed and unprotected. What's even worse is that many of these glossy coatings actually increase the rate of UV absorption, in fact accelerating the rate of gelcoat deterioration.

When a new boat comes out of the factory, it's mirror-like reflection is not the result of wax or another coating. It is the result of mechanically polishing the mold prior to the boat's lay up. It is a perfectly smooth surface.

The aim of this chapter is to restore that perfectly smooth factory surface to your fifty year old classic boat and, along the way, dispel many of the myths about what polishing is or isn't.

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Porter Cable 7424 dual action polisher. Start with 3M Finesse it. Finish with Collinite's 885 Fleetwax.

I use the same DA polisher. I also use 3M Finesse It as my second stage. First stage I have used various polishes (incluiding Menzerna) but will be switching to 3M compounds next year, such as this one:

http://www.bakesonline.com/detail.aspx?ID=2032

I've also used a few different waxes with varying success but will be switching to 3M wax next year as well, and will probably try this: http://www.bakesonline.com/detail.aspx?ID=2052

I use Griots polishing pads for the two stages of polishing and I wax by hand. The pads are designed to be used on more delicate automotive finishes, so I'm guessing I'm not getting as much cut as I could otherwise. I will probably be looking for another option there if anyone has suggestions.

One thing nobody has mentioned is surface prep. What do you all do to prepare the surface for polishing? With automotive detailing/polishing, it is a cardinal sin to polish without first clay-barring the paint. Does gelcoat need to be clayed before polishing, or is there an alternative? (claying a boat would SUCK and I honestly haven't attempted it...) I've just done a meticulous hand wash and then went over the entire hull with quick detailer and microfibers to remove as much surface dirt or contamination from the gelcoat before polishing.

The worst part is taping-off the rub rails and other bits that should be protected from the pad and polishes...Ugh!!

IMG_20130601_131627_055.jpg

Edited by rennis
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^^^ what rennis said. I use the porter cable DA with pads from griots as well. I've never clay bar'd a boat or taped off rub rails and haven't had any issues yet. I also use the DA for waxing with a differet pad. After reading this I might switch to 3m products, I still haven't found a wax I've been completely happy with.

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^^^ what rennis said. I use the porter cable DA with pads from griots as well. I've never clay bar'd a boat or taped off rub rails and haven't had any issues yet. I also use the DA for waxing with a differet pad. After reading this I might switch to 3m products, I still haven't found a wax I've been completely happy with.

Good stuff. I probably don't need to tape the rub rail if I am honest. If it was stainless, however, I absolutely would every time. Most pads leave a small edge of the Velcro layer exposed. When those edges are rotating and make contact with stainless at right angles, it scratches the hell out of it. Made that mistake on automotive trim before. :banghead:

I am very careful to tape the billet emblems and other spots on the boat, but might not bother with the black rail going forward...it seems to be impervious to the pads.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

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Let me ask you professionals a really dumb question. I have a 2 year old MXZ that is black and red. I have never waxed it but used rubbing compound to take out scratches, etc. Am I doing my boat a disservice? It looks great and I get lots compliments on it. There are no hard water spots on it. Can I make it look better and where would I start?

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Try some Collinites insulator wax. Apply with a foam applicator pad and use a microfiber towel when it dries to a haze. I can get the whole thing done in less than 45 minutes. Shines amazing!

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Let me ask you professionals a really dumb question. I have a 2 year old MXZ that is black and red. I have never waxed it but used rubbing compound to take out scratches, etc. Am I doing my boat a disservice? It looks great and I get lots compliments on it. There are no hard water spots on it. Can I make it look better and where would I start?

Read the link provided above. Good information there.

I, too, use 3M Finesse-It II, but I apply it with the Porter Cable DA polisher. I also use Starbrite Premium Marine Polish with PTEF, applied by hand (easy to find, relatively inexpensive, easy to apply, and seems to last a good while) to "seal" the gelcoat (and protect it from oxidation and UV radiation).

Up until now, I have left it at that, but, after reading the above article, it sounds as if I may need to put a good coat of wax on top of the Starbrite.

FWIW, my boat has lived on a lift at a marina 24/7/365 since May of 2006, so it pretty much gets exposed to UV every day, and with just the Starbrite, applied twice a year, and an occasional spritzing with Babe's Boat Bright (maybe once a month during the boating season), my boat's gelcoat still looks great.

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Let me ask you professionals a really dumb question. I have a 2 year old MXZ that is black and red. I have never waxed it but used rubbing compound to take out scratches, etc. Am I doing my boat a disservice? It looks great and I get lots compliments on it. There are no hard water spots on it. Can I make it look better and where would I start?

You are doing the opposite of most people. You are exposing the true surface and that looks good. The only disservice you are doing is you are not protecting your surface with a sealer and wax.

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