Oxidation Revisited

farwellbooth

Member
Sep 16, 2014
69
Seattle, WA
Boat Info
2010 Sundeck 220
Engines
Merc 350 w/ Bravo 3
I've read the majority of oxidation solutions here, watched YouTube videos, researched etc. and decided to buy a Porter Cable orbital, Hexlogic pads and used Starbrite premium cleaner wax with the orange cutting pad. This hardly phased the topside oxidation you see in the picture. I made multiple passes, medium pressure, 4-5 on the RPMs. Per all the threads here I think I need a rotary buffer with wool. Although my compound, which isn't really a compound probably isn't aggressive enough either. Would you say the oxidation in the pic is aggressive and agree that I move forward with a rotary and wool pad? I was trying to be least aggressive to get the job done. But I'm tired of buying stuff and falling short. Also regarding compounds, most of the manufacturers having varying degrees of cutting compounds. Would Presta's Super Cut be appropriate or too agressive? There's also heavy and medium, 3M, Meguires etc. also have different cutting levels.

The top side is worst on the boat with some areas not that bad. Should I use rotary and wool on the whole boat or use orbital on some sections?

I've also attached a pic of the textured floor. What's best for this? I was thinking wool with Super Cut may cut off the texture.

Lastly I have curved decals I don't want to take off with rotary. What's the best tape I can put over curved decals? Blue paint tape doesn't do curves all that well.

Thank you!
SeaRay oxidation.jpg
Searay floor.jpg
SeaRay decals.jpg
 
You can do the job with the porter cable but you’ll want to use a wool cutting pad. I’ve had great luck with buff magic compound and the wool pad. It’s a lot of work with a 5” pad and a DA polisher but it’s doable. I bought a makita rotary to handle the compounding and polishing and use the DA for wax and tight areas but only after I did my entire hull with the porter cable DA.
 
Hard to say just looking at the pix. I've been using a rotary with wool pad on my boats for going on 40 plus years. It is somewhat of an acquired skill. Having said that, setting rpms to 1500 makes it somewhat difficult to burn the gel coat even with moderate pressure. Just don't stay too long in one place.
My first step on that nasty looking non skid would be to scrub the heck out of it with Soft n Scrub with bleach. When it is white again, I would try a medium compound with the rotary buffer and wool to see what kind of finish you get. Follow that with a polish to see what shine develops. Do this in a small area and experiment until you get it right. Flagship Wax the finished effort and you should be good.
Don't tape off your decals. That will be an exercise in frustration. You can hit them with a buffer carefully. A light touch is key. This is the acquired skill part.
Once you have the shine back, the key to keeping it is to wash the boat with a non wax stripping soap.
A yearly detailing of a boat that is kept in northern climates need only include polishing and waxing. No compounding is needed if you keep things under control. Our boat has never been compounded. We polish it with Finesse It, and wax it with Flagship. I use these because of their ease of use. It still looks like new. It took me a while, but I eventually learned that the soap you use is more important than the wax.
I'll see if I can find a recent pic of the hull after years of service.
 
Last edited:
IMG_1154.JPG
This is a shot taken after 13 years of service. Nothing ever used except Finesse it polish and various waxes. I've settled on Flagship.
 
I’m a 3m guy so I’ll use their products as an example but anything with the same cut will do. Hard to tell from your pic how bad it is but it doesn’t look like you need to wet sand. Firsts clean the hell out of the boat with dawn Dish soap. Second, Use a wool cutting pad with a cutting compound (I use 3m imperial polish). Next, you have to remove the swirls and polish to a shine you’re happy with. Use a foam polishing pad with a polishing product ( I use 3m finesse-it II). Once your finish is where you want it apply a quality wax with little to no silicone fillers by hand. I use colinite, but good quality wax will do

Go slow with the buffer, you can do damage if you’re not careful but gelcoat is pretty resilient.

I’ve tried the DA polishers and other cleaner wax, buff magic, etc. and have not been able to get the same results as a the above 3 step method.
 
If your oxidation is very light, an orbital will get the job done.

However, if your oxidation is medium-heavy, a rotary is the only tool to use. Orbitals mainly vibrate, they don't really grind the compound into the surface when cutting. You'll find that the oxidation comes back faster, you burn through a lot of pads, and it takes so much longer to do the job with an orbital.

If you want your job to last and be done much faster, go get a rotary polisher and some cutting compound and you'll notice a huge difference in the shine and how long it lasts. 3M are the best products to use for cutting, and Finesse-It to clean up and surface.
 
IMHO: A random orbital is not going to get the job done on a boat.
Detailing cars is a hobby of mine for many years. I’ve got a PC 7424 and a Flex 3601 that I use on cars. Both do a great job on cars, but are marginal performers on a boats gelcoat.
I use a Makita 9227 with wool pads on the boats.
If you are just going to be doing your own boat once or twice a year you probably don’t need to spend the money on a Makita or similarly priced rotary.
I’ve read in here and on other boating forums that occasional users have had good luck with the cheapo rotary that Harbor Freight sells. I’ve never used one myself, but it may be worth a shot for you.
Get yourself a medium bristle carpet brush to use with you PC 7424 on your nonskid. Use whatever cleaner you prefer and do a small area at a time. It will really deep clean that nonskid for you. Once clean, I’ve been using Woody Wax on my non skid, but there are several products out there that are specifically for nonskid you can try.
 
I do only my boat and the HF rotary works very well with a wool pad. Followed by the orbital for polish and wax.

Bennett
 
I'll add in my $0.02!! I've used a Harbor Freight rotary for years with an 8" wool pad. I've had good results with Meguiars 67 which is a one step compound and polish, followed up with Starbrite Teflon polish. I am going to try the product Frank W mentioned in another thread this year, Extreme Cut followed by their sealant. Should be a fun project. The boat has gone 2-3 seasons with out a good compound and polish so trying to turn back time a little this year. If the snow every stops that is!!!
 
I have the Shurhold RA and a Makita orbital and I tried a lot of different products, including Presta Supracut, on the badly oxidized top deck of my 1985 Cobalt. The gel coat color is beige and I really wanted it to shine and I just couldn't get it the way I wanted. I finally quit screwing around and took it to a boat detailer and he had to wet sand it to get the shine back. It cost a few bucks but sometimes it's best left to the pros.
Shawn
 
I use their vinyl cleaner and plastic cleaner. I’m impressed.
 
Anyone have any experience with Marine 31 products?


I like the Marine 31 stuff too. They had a 20% sale recently so I bought a few of their Combo deals that include the gallon plus a 20 oz. spray bottle. The Mildew Remover is great so I also got the Fabric and Vinyl Cleaner, Vinyl Protectant and Gel Coat Wash & Wax with Carnuba. Trying to keep on top of a boat to maintain the vinyl/fabrics and a shine in the tropics is a career in itself!

You cover it and they mold, you don't cover it and they dry out and fade!
 
My Sea Ray is the artic white color with teal graphics, not gel coat. Would I use a Starbrite liquid color restorer or a product like Finesse II to bring it back to life? I'm afraid trying a compound on it will destroy the decal not restore it.
 
What do you use for soap? I also use the Finesse It. It's great on the white hull. I may try the flagship wax.

Woody Wax Ultra Pine boat soap. As for as Flagship Wax, there may be better, more durable products. I actually prefer Collinite wax, but FW is soooo much easier to apply and remove. I smear on a 3x5 foot area of product on the hull with a clean white towel and then work it around, up and down until it thins out using a fresh wool pad and a rotary buffer set to 1500 RPMs. The 3x5 area expands to about 6x10 with the wool pad. Then I add another glob of product next to where I placed the previous product and thin that out. This assures good overlap. Then all you do it wipe the haze off and you are done. After discovering Woody Wax, I switched to Flag Ship for the whole boat as it now holds up. I used to use it on the hull and Collinite for the decks. This is also a great product, but more work.
 
Woody Wax Ultra Pine boat soap. As for as Flagship Wax, there may be better, more durable products. I actually prefer Collinite wax, but FW is soooo much easier to apply and remove. I smear on a 3x5 foot area of product on the hull with a clean white towel and then work it around, up and down until it thins out using a fresh wool pad and a rotary buffer set to 1500 RPMs. The 3x5 area expands to about 6x10 with the wool pad. Then I add another glob of product next to where I placed the previous product and thin that out. This assures good overlap. Then all you do it wipe the haze off and you are done. After discovering Woody Wax, I switched to Flag Ship for the whole boat as it now holds up. I used to use it on the hull and Collinite for the decks. This is also a great product, but more work.

thanks for the reply. I've used collinite in the past on 88 230. The hull was a tan color. First step was 3m Imperial compound then the collinite. With the White hull on the 300 I use finesse it and then 3M Scotch gard Marine Liquid Wax. The scoth gard hold ups well. I'm always open to trying something new.
 
I used the 3M Scotchgard a couple of days ago for the first time. I am freakin impressed! To be fair I applied it after a buff and polish. I like the wet look of the scotchgard. I hope it holds up as well as others. I have heard of the Finesse. Does it have a significant improvement when used with the Scotchgard?
 

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