[tcmariah]

We have a maroon 2000Z & the paint is pretty faded. We have tried a ton of products, & it makes it better for a little while, but thew fading comes right back. Even with several coats of a marine wax, all our hard work quickly fades. I have been told that a clear coat is the only way to correct the issue. Are there some other less expensive options?

[mikeyt]

It's gel coat that's oxidizing rather than paint fade but other than having it professionally buffed out and then re-waxed i'm not sure what else you can do. You do need to use marine fibreglass cleaners & protectorant rather than normal household cleaners. I do know that UV rays do most of the damage so covering the boat while its out of the water will help.

[rajjneef]

NO!!! Dont put clearcoat on your gelcoat! That crap is just going to peel and look even worse. If its really really bad then have it wet sanded and waxed. If its not extreme then get something like...
Overton's® > 3M Marine Color/Gloss Restorer - Boating & Marine > Maintenance > Cleaners & Wax : Boat Maintenance Products, Marine Supplies, Repair Kits, Accessories
Apply a few coats of a GOOD quality wax. You MUST keep the boat covered and waxed.

[tcmariah]

I will give the 3M product a try. I will let you know how we make out. We have tried the Meguiar's ultimate compound for cars & it does do a pretty good job, but the finish is never "bright" and it fades rather quickly.

[darkcalling]

Go to a body shop supply pace you are going to want to either wet sand it with like 2500 grit or use a cut polish to dig into the gel coat abit. My old boat was wine, grey and white the white needed next to no polishing I found the grey about the same the wine color required a good cut polish once a year given she was an '89 but she would shine the whole season.

It will most likely require either a two or three step process (aka alot of elbow grease) to knock it down and then shine it back up and protect it.

[tcmariah]

Thanks for the info!! I have tried a polishing compound, but the boat didn't really shine up. I think I will try the wet sanding in a small area. I will let you know how I make out.

[sanukc]

If the fading on your gelcoat is not bad, then you can use GEL COAT CLEAN: COLOR RESTORER: Meguiar's Marine/RV. I got great results from this.

If it is worse then you could either try the one-step compound (GEL COAT CLEAN: ONE STEP COMPOUND: Meguiar's Marine/RV) or try the oxidation remover and then wax.

Sanu

[tcmariah]

Its pretty bad, especially in the lower rear of the boat. Up high where the cover is & where I can wax it while it is in the water its not too bad.

[darkcalling]

If you have a body shop supply place near by meguiars has some better cutting compounds to take it down abit quicker if really bad you may have to wet sand with 2500 then like 3or5k then polish it up.

[lanierz260]

I agree.. don't put a clear coat on. I made the mistake a few years back trying a new detailer and he did this. My boat looked great for a few months and after that it looked worse than before he cleaned it. I took it back to my prior detailer and he had to wet sand all that crap back off.