Hello all, can anyone suggest a polish to help me remove scratches, and to give a professional final polish on a gel coat body, unsure what compounds to use and what's available out there.

Farecla G3 and a foam polishing mop

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Originally posted by Mark Allanson
Farecla G3 and a foam polishing mop

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A cheaper version is fine wet + dry followed by autosol on a cloth. Did the job for me anyway.

I have used with good results with tcut, or the cheaper "tescos" version

Steve

Done the G3 and various waxes/protectors over and over as mine lives outside
I had a persistant issue with the gel coat going white and chalky and appeared as if I had some fungal disease trapped between the gel coat and glass

I'd wash, G3 then wax...it would return a few weeks later
Tried various waxes to keep it at bay all seemed to do the same and "fail" after seemingly no time at all

Worried that theres only a finite ammount of times you can take a layer off before going through the gel coat I resigned the G3 to the back of the cupboard this time

Most recent combination that seems to have actually worked for more than a few days (so far)

Clay bar (medium - lubed with diluted shampoo) - it did pick up some stuff from seemigly clean panels

Meguires scratch x
(I think its a bit less coarse than G3, or perhaps it breaks down into a finer polish quicker??)
G3 I found best to work with a polishing disk on a drill or deictaed buffer....and gave swilrls/holograms despite being careful
Could be my technique rather than the substance though

The Megs I did by hand (fearful as to how much gel coat is left on my car) which didn't take too long and it didn't stain the polishing pad despite using lots of pressure on the worst affected bits (suggesting it possibly has some fillers rather than just a cutting compound)...I left no swirls or other polishing marks - oxide layer has gone and left the bodywork silky slick - I do have some pock marks from stonechips but they are never going to cut out without removing more than just gel coat

I then used some Chemical Guys Jetseal 109, as a decent sealent (thanks Chippy for putting me onto this stuff!)

Followed 24 hours later by a couple of coats of Collinite 476s Wax
If you have never used this stuff before - you have to give it a bash! seriously good stuff and not expensive

Read abut it online and there are some pretty impressive claims as far as longevity and water repellancy are concerned

Can verify that it goes on and buffs up drama free - did the black BMW as well- a good test as to how easy it goes on /buffs up

managed to get some on black textured plastic (light surrounds and trim on the BM) ...no white overshoot!! (unlike all the others I tried)

the beads of water have to be seen to be believed - bodywork seems to have a forcefield around it that is very water repellant - if it lasts the claimed 1 year protection I reckon I'll have enough in the tin to last me a lifetime!

Maybe its the fact I clayed and polished and used the jetseal underneath on both cars ....dunno - but VERY impressed with it

If this combo will do the trick for more than a few weeks and keep the diseased look away I'll be well happy - if it lasts a year I'll be gobsmacked

Just my 2p's worth

Regards
Rob

I detailed my car last year over a week in the evening so totaling about 20 hours. I used Tcut and Mers polish with great results, just takes alot of time and effort especially with deep scratches.

However i have found light scratches apear quickly on black gelcoat and require a quick Tcut and polish every now and then but after the above detailing its a 5 minute job.

Also be very carefull with bird plop, one day this summer a nice load was planted on the bonnet which was left in the sun for a few hours and when i washed it off it had eaten into the gelcoat. Trusty tcut sorted that out but i now carry a rag in the boot to remove the plop ASAP to avoid damage.

PS use proper polishing cloth not a clean but old Tshirt. This scratches it even more

[Edited on 7/12/11 by Moorron]

Morning Guys,
Very interesting thread, I have just ordered the Collinite polish!

Can anyone advise me though will this remove the white residue (old regular polish) in the gelcoat crazing/fine scrathes??
I am wary about putting a good polish on top and sealing these marks underneath it as opposed to removing it!!
Should I T-cut first, was concerned that would leave more white residue behind?

My car is Black which seems to exagerate any residue/marks in the gelcoat!

Look forward to any advice please...

Regards, Jason

If its the wax you got then nope it will just seal/add a decent barrier layer

If its a polish them maybe

You will need to remove all imperfections/blemishes till your happy (using a polish or cutting compound) ...then add the wax seal to hopefully keep it that way...till the sacrificial protective layer wears off

Both cars are still looking OK...though the beading has become slightly less dramatic
The MK bodywork has had some bird poop on it- and the subsequent rain (showers) has pretty much just washed it straight off again

I think the collinite wax I got is the bees knees- and I will rewax both after a quick rinse in the next few weeks as I want to try and retain that level of waterproofness/protection (hoping its as good at keeping off the UV or whatever it is that makes my bodywork go chalky)

Regards
Rob

Rob,
Thanks for the swift response.
Would you recommend
A: Black T-Cut (for black cars) in the first instance then top coat of wax?
or
B: T-Cut then the Jetseal followed finally by Wax?
Sorry to sound like a numb nuts but this is my first Gelcoat car! I tried regular polish and it just left white residue in all the gelcoat imperfections, so I need to get this out first I guess before sealing the marks in?
Many thanks
Cheers, Jason

Dunno
- after you tried using the polishes you have you are washing and rinsing the car?
If you are leaving white marks behind after this stage- theres something else needs doing I'd say

I clayed mine (which did get out a fair ammount of stuff despite what I would consider a thorough clean...never noticed the was quite a few patches of what looked like black overspray?) then followed with a wash, followed by using Meaguires swirlX (by hand in a random ish fasion with fairly hard pressure) to get rid of the chalky layer, followed by a wash and rinse and dry, then the jetseal and buff...I then used the collinite wax as a final protective sacrificial layer to keep the water/air/UV? out

If its spider web stype cracks that are holding either the polish paste or old wax - they will need cleaning out and filling properly...otherwise you are going to just seal them in...and will compromise any surface protectant you apply

I /think/ the newer "coloured T-cuts" you mention have fillers built in (rather than just being an agressive cutting agent)...hence the colour suitability on their newer stuff

Not sure how effective or durable they are TBH but probably worth a go?

I am certainly no expert in this area - mine does have a couple of spider web type cracks and a few splits from where a muppet drove into the side of my car and drove off (witnesses ran into the shop where I was to tell me "that noise" was my car getting reversed into - but no one got any details or reg numbers so what can you do?)

They do fill with crap, wax, and other stuff that gets smeared onto the car
Would love to have the skills to "excavate" round the areas of cracks with a dremel to clean them up, fill with gelcoat/flowcoat and then try and smooth the areas off and polish/buff them smooth

This relies on the fact you can get a really good colour match and good at this sort of thing

The reality is that this will never happen in my case and they are just battlescars that give the car character
Mine must have faded a good few shades since I owned it and any patching I attempt will probably make it look even worse
(prime example that has made me shy away - trying to patch vent holes that didn't on my bonnet....epic fail that even hand painted matt black cannot hide)

A patchup and full body respray in more capable hands than mine is the more likely route for my car eventually TBH

Took some pics of the spider web and the cracks and will upload them

Out of curiosity I've just done a vid showing how hydrophobic the wing is after 1 month and am about to upload it to youtube if it comes out OK

Regards
Rob

http://youtu.be/y0XflHftUWc

Regards
Rob

Rob,
Thanks sooo much for the input!!
Its gonna be Black T-Cut follwed by Jetseal then Collinite for me then....
Very impressive water repulsion after a full month!!
Just ordering Jetseal now.
Much appreciated, Jason

A former work colleague cleaned my car for me in return for me fixing his car. I only found out the other night what he had used as it always looks so shiny.

He had used Britemax Extreme Elements - I think it is very similar to Collinite

I have since purchased some of the stuff he used.

Once he had done the car he gave me some Britemax Spray and Shine to use after I had washed the car. Basically all I do is wash it now and rinse it off. Spray the Britemax on the still wet bodywork and rub it in with a microfibre cloth. Once it has dried I just buff it off with a fresh microfibre.

Comes up looking like this



After talking to him the other night I think the spray and shine must top up the sealant he put on. Bear in mind he cleaned it two years ago!!

If you want to get really anal get yourself over to

http://www.detailingworld.co.uk/

I am still reading up on there as there is loads to take in and its easy to spend quite a bit of money

I got the bits I needed from i4detailing on there. If you use the code DMX on their site you get 7% off (I have no affiliation with this company etc)

I will be over the moon if it still does that in 6 months let alone 12 months :-)
(should make touchless non contact cleaning and drying it a possibility)

Ordinarily the water would have remained on there as a sheet that "clung" and would remain wet even if wiped - especially on the very top surface where the oxide layer seemed to appear and migrate from

With both producs a little does go a long way
I was applying both with some foam "makeup" type applicators and could only just see where I had done

Jetseal was applied all over, had a brew and fag and then buffed it off by hand with hardly any pressure with a new clean microfiber towel

The collinite was done pannel at a time using another foam makeup applicator (slightly damped) and buffed off with microfiber shortly after (again didn't take any real effort)

Can't say for sure what bit made the most difference, but as a whole it seems to be working
Will report back if my chalky stuff re-appears anytime soon

Regards
Rob

Thanks for that Robocog. I had the exact same problem on my rear wings, and nosecone, that were white, but turned chalky. I vinyled the rear wings (which didn't turn out too great either, mind), and resprayed the nosecone black. Black is great for touch ups. Yes I could fine sand and polish, but it gets chips anyhow, and as a race/road car, it shouldn't be too spiffy should it?

Takes a lot to keep it up, which is a great advantage to either a decent paint job, or vinyl.

Britemax Extreme Elements sounds like interesting stuff for sure
Sounds more like the Jetseal 109 that I used than the Collinite 476s (which is just a wax)

Have added some pics in my photo's of the battle scars and how they have filled with wax/sealers potions and crud over the years

It inspired me /deluded me after taking the spiderweb pics that it may be worth having a go at one as a test....and I attacked the worst one (that looked like it was lifting at the center)
I have chipped the lifting part out and gouged the radiating cracks out a bit ...and basically put some almost matching paint over it
I managed to build up a few layers of paint and will keep going till it is beyond proud and will see what It looks like if I flat it down and polish it up/use some more sealer - worst case I'll have to put a sticker over it if my handywork is more offensive than the crack was

The crunch pics - Not sure if these can be tackled in a similar way (gouge out the crud and fill with paint and flat)
Again its the sort of area that a sticker wouldn't look completey out of place if it all goes belly up and I make matters worse

It's not a show car and unlikely to be under my ownership but I wouldn't mind trying to keep it as good as poss under the circumstances


The one I have started to try and address (before pic!) - more of the damage in the same folder

[img]
Description [/img]


Regards
Rob

Ah thanks robocog said I was new to it all getting the products confused . There are far too many abbreviations on Detailing World it blows my mind every time I look on there.

I have some Souveran carnuba wax to go over the car shortly. I have been cleaning it on and off for two days now lol