Phil Torrens wrote: >So it looks like I may have to re-gelcoat my venerable old kayak <<snip>> >1.Grind/dust/buff off the old gelcoat with a drill attachment and sanding disks. Check one of your local paint stores or rental shops to see if they have any random-orbital sanders for rent. It would be well worth $10 or 15 to use one of these babies to sand off your old gelcoat. They really do a nice, smooth job, while still sanding qretty aggressively. >2. Prep the surface with a wipe down of MEK (methyl ethyl ketone). If you don't want to use Nasty Stuff like MEK, you could wash it down with a hose and an old rag to get all the sanding dust off. With a thoroughly sanded hull, you shouldn't have any bonding problems. Make sure your work area is warm enough to allow the gelcoat to cure. It's also slightly stinky, so make sure it's relatively well-ventilated, or that you can get out of the area while it's curing. >A couple of questions: I read suggestions that putting a layer of Saran Wrap >over the gelcoat will keep it from curing too quickly, and make it more >durable. Saran wrap is a good cover for a repair, but it will, like you said, leave whorls and wrinkles if you use it all over the boat. If it's warm enough, an overnight cure would be long enough to mask off a lower gelcoat area and move to the upper area. As for "factory smoothness" you can put on an adequate layer of gelcoat with the brush, and then use 200-grit and progressively finer sandpapers to get to a really smooth finish. You could even buff after the final sanding. Shawn -- Shawn W. Baker 0 46°53'N © 1999 ____©/______ 114°06'W ~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\ ,/ /~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^ baker_at_montana.com 0 http://www.missoulaconcrete.com/shawn/ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 1/4/00 4:08:50 PM, skerries_at_hotmail.com writes: << A couple of questions: I read suggestions that putting a layer of Saran Wrap over the gelcoat will keep it from curing too quickly, and make it more durable.I'm not sure how to do this without molding ripples and whorls into the gelcoat. Do I need to bother with this if I'm mixing according to the maker's suggestions? Does the Saran Wrap peel off easily? Does the ambient temperature matter? >> Phil, I bought a used rental boat that has a few chips I need to fix. I found some mylar, of the kind used by artists that will not make the ripple-effect that plastic wrap will leave you with. If you are near a university bookstore that sells art supplies, check them out. I have a nice big square left from another project and I understand it is reusable. I can peel it off one spot and stick it on another if I have the patience to outlast the timing of 15 minutes per mix of gelcoat repair mix. Let me now if you find out anything more than this. Happy New Year, Joan *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
In a message dated 1/5/00 2:27:03 AM, JSpinner_at_aol.com writes: << I found some mylar, . . . . I can peel it off one spot and stick it on another if I have the patience to outlast the timing of 15 minutes per mix of gelcoat repair mix. >> I've always used plain old wax paper. Dirt cheap and since it's translucent I can see the form of the patch beneath and manipulate the form as needed. You'll need to use a little tape to keep the wax paper where you want it. You can't beat the price! And no swirls. You'll need a Form Release Agent to do large areas I think. Good luck. Jed *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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Hey all, I am working on a webpage with step-by-step instructions on gel coat repair. I am not an expert, but have done it enough times that at least think I know what I am doing. I'll have it together in a week or so. I seem to have misplaced my stack of documentation photos... Naturally, I'll post the URL as soon as I have something to show! -Patrick *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
At 08:28 AM 1/5/00 -0700, Shawn W. Baker wrote: >Phil Torrens wrote: >>So it looks like I may have to re-gelcoat my venerable old kayak ><<snip>> >>1.Grind/dust/buff off the old gelcoat with a drill attachment and sanding >disks. > >Check one of your local paint stores or rental shops to see if they have >any random-orbital sanders for rent. It would be well worth $10 or 15 >to use one of these babies to sand off your old gelcoat. They really do >a nice, smooth job, while still sanding qretty aggressively. I splurged on a Porter random-orbital sander when I started building my Northbay. I think I paid just over $70 for it. I haven't used it a lot so far but it seems to do a really good job. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Shawn W. Baker wrote: > >Check one of your local paint stores or rental shops to see if they have > >any random-orbital sanders for rent. It would be well worth $10 or 15 > >to use one of these babies to sand off your old gelcoat. They really do > >a nice, smooth job, while still sanding qretty aggressively. John Fereira wrote: > I splurged on a Porter random-orbital sander when I started building my > Northbay. I think I paid just over $70 for it. I haven't used it a lot so far > but it seems to do a really good job. If you need one once, they're worth renting. If you might need one again, they're definitely worth owning. I bought the palm-type Porter Cable RO for $60 before I started building my Guillemot. It has the self-adhesive discs rather than the more expensive velcro-backed discs. However, the velcro backed disc sanders usually have dust collection, and you can change discs and then put the old one back on and it will still stick. Shawn -- Shawn W. Baker 0 46°53'N © 1999 ____©/______ 114°06'W ~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\ ,/ /~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^ baker_at_montana.com 0 http://www.missoulaconcrete.com/shawn/ *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
Any comments on the velcro vs the adhesive disks. I got a random orbital sander for Christmas that uses the adhesive disks along with a large supply of velcro sanding disks. I need to take one or the other back. The sander I received has the dust collection built in so it is available on the adhesive units. -----Original Message----- From: Shawn W. Baker <baker_at_montana.com> To: John Fereira <jaf30_at_cornell.edu> Cc: Paddlewise <PaddleWise_at_lists.intelenet.net>; Philip Torrens_at_ <skerries_at_hotmail.com> Date: Wednesday, January 05, 2000 11:49 AM Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Random orbital sanders for repairs (was: coat of many colours?) >If you need one once, they're worth renting. If you might need one >again, they're definitely worth owning. > >I bought the palm-type Porter Cable RO for $60 before I started building >my Guillemot. It has the self-adhesive discs rather than the more >expensive velcro-backed discs. However, the velcro backed disc sanders >usually have dust collection, and you can change discs and then put the >old one back on and it will still stick. > >Shawn > >-- >Shawn W. Baker 0 46°53'N >© 1999 ____©/______ 114°06'W >~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^\ ,/ /~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^ >baker_at_montana.com 0 http://www.missoulaconcrete.com/shawn/ >*************************************************************************** >PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not >to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission >Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net >Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net >Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ >*************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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