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I will be doing some gelcoat work on my 1972 Mk I ( late '72, hull #208 ) and wondering if anyone has done a color match on the gelcoat, and if so do you have the formula for color (dye drops) addition? I know there are some variations, but hopefully I can start off close.
Warren Smith
Serendipity
Galveston Bay, Texas
Your gel coated has fadded to the point that the only way you could even get close to a match is to cut out a piece of you gel coat and have the specialist mix and match for you.Good Luck.
Bob Wilson
The other problem that develops Warren, is that the new gelcoat, even if it closely (or even exactly) matches the old gelcoat, will itself, start to fade over time. And being new, will fade at a different rate than the old finish and eventually will show. I had this happen to a deck repair where a stanchion base had been pulled out in a crossing collision during a race ( luckily, it was on my starboard side). In the first year , one couldn't even find the patch boundaries but two years later it showed distinctly. I later had the whole deck redone with new gelcoat and that got rid of the patch.
Clare Jordan
Hello Warren, et al
Go down to West Marine---get their "gelcoat repair kit"---never mind the instructions---follow the following axioms:
1) Yellow and black are the best "detoners".
2) What you see is not what you get
3 Tinting is all ART----and no SCIENCE.
4) As previously noted---the EXPERT"s idea of a match is inversely proportional to TIME and your LATITUDE.
5) What you get is not what you wanted.
6) If you dont add wax to the mix you"re making a big mistake
7) Rethink the whole thing---put the $10 bucks toward a couple of quarts of AwlGrip or Imron.
Best, DaveDave Tinder
DAWN BREAKER Mk3
Ft Myers
Dave, et al,
Thanks for the sage advice. I realize I won't get a perfect match, and what I intend is to eventually do the whole topsides myself - so I just want to get close enough and make up one batch that I will use on the project. I like my current "faded" color, it's just that 33 years in the high UV tropics had taken it's toll. Everytime I wash the boat I feel like I'm washing away the last of the gelcoat. It is too far gone for buffing and waxing - I have tried.
I helped a neighbor sand and buff his self-inflicted gelcoat job. Doing it will be a lot of work, but my elbow grease is a lot cheaper than paying the yard and professionals! The key seems to be: have a lot of non-skid area. His problem was color match - it was way off.
I may do the hull sides with paint, but my experience is if you paint a deck - anyone 10 feet away can tell it's paint and you will need to re-do it every few years. Certainly there are those who will debate this statement, but the likely exception is one I can not afford.
Has anyone attempted a color match on their own?
Warren Smith
Serendipity
Galveston Bay, Texas
Ok, So it took you 2-3 hours to get the right color match...You then put the hardener in and the color turned out okay but the sheen didn't match. Take some 3m scotch bright and gently buff the area, then wax the daylights out of the whole area...might help with matching the fading...
Pat Wachholz
Ghost
Warren, I'll be interested to see the results. In the past I've taken the paint / treadmaster route with mixed results (it didn't look new but it looked far better than many other boats). Let me know if you need a hand. By the way I tried compounding a spot on my hull this weekend and the results are good enough to make me try to compound the whole boat.
Mike M
SV Pura Vida
#375
Galveston Bay
Mike M
SV Wind Horse
#375
Galveston, Tx
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