Hi All! I just found the site and hoping to contribute a little and gain a lot. Selfish Pig, yes I know. I bought a 1972 Chimera online earlier this year because it was really cheap (it cost more to get it home than I paid for it) and it looked pretty good. At first I was quite pleased with myself and thought a quick Buff-N-Polish and...EASY MONEY! But what do I know? I've never had a boat that might actually float, much less run.
So the first thing I did was pull the interior out for inspection. It's inside the barn waiting for me to get to it. Right now I'm stuck on trying to decide what to do about the gel-coat. I wet sanded 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000 and 3000 grit 3 times each. Then hit it with Meguiars Oxidation Remover, Polish and Flagship Wax- 3 times each and it still looks like crap. I was told to get different polisher and pads and compound. I'll post the result of that in a few days. Meanwhile- There are cracks EVERYWHERE in the gel-coat. How can I tell if the gel-coat can be saved or if I'm just wasting time? I put some pics up for you restoration guys and would really appreciate some comments. I tried on other forums but all I got was B.S. from people who either didn't read the question or didn't know sh*t from applebutter.