As my MK Indy is my first experience with GRP panels, I'm just wondering whether there is any special advice or any products to avoid when
cleaning?
There are quite a few swirl marks in the gel coat. Is it ok to buff these out as you would a painted finish, or am I going to rub through the gel
coat?
Thanks!
Never done it myself but have seen people Polish them up as you say,same as a painted car
My GRP bodied MK Indy a few years back was simply washed with a good car shampoo and a soft mit type thing. I then used a chamois to dry it and
turtle wax to polish it. It came up looking nice and shiny and I never had any issues with the gel coat.
Yellow body panels with black wings.
GRP is immensely hard, much harder than paint, it's only real faults are that it can chip & star.
You can rub it over with much coarser compounds than you would paint with no chance of rubbing thro' (unless the gel is already so thin it would
be transparent in the first place), the downside is that because it's much harder it takes a lot more buffing to get it up to a real deep gloss
shine than paint does, I always use a power mop on it for that reason
I'm one of the drive it brigade , not a polisher
So I just jetwash , shampoo, jetwash drive it round the block to dry it and then a quick rub over with the spray polish if its a special occasion
What are swirl marks 
No reason not to buff and wax like any other
Mine tends to stay mucky.
I just rub mine with a cloth where I poured some petrol. Takes rubber and bugs off pretty well. Whatever didn't come off and the scratches is
just "character".
Don't use thinners...
Don't go crazy as gel coated is uneven and sometimes quite thin, break through it and you hit the weave. Gel coat cos it's hand applied
often has bubbles which you may uncover but these can be filled with matching wax crayon and buffed. Once done protect it from UV with a good polish
as gel coat oxidises usually worse than paint. No matter what you do it's never going to match a paint job though so don't expect too much.
G3 compound works well use with water.
Can be applied by hand or electric mop.
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quote:
Originally posted by ragindave
G3 compound works well use with water.
Can be applied by hand or electric mop.