Gun metal flake gel coat repair help

[rivvy]

I just purchased my first nautique recently, a 2010 200 open bow. I'm really looking forward to spring. I'd like to make a few minor repairs and could use some help. There are some relatively deep scratches in the gel coat that I would like to make less obvious. It has been repaired before in some areas. It looks like the previous repairs were done using a grey filler then cleared over. Any suggestions on products and techniques from someone more experienced with repairing metal flake?

Thanks in advance.


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[xlair]

Metal flake is though. Best left to a professional. One of the downfalls of the sparkle boats nowadays..


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[t.franscioni]

Check with spectrumcolor.com they have a lot of correct craft gel colors for a wide range of year models. I believe with metal flake there has to be a clear gel coat shot over the flake otherwise you could feel the grit of the flake on the surface of the gel after sanding and polishing. Depending on how deep the scratch is a little clear gel might be an easy fix assuming that's what your pay has over the flake. Spend a good 45 minutes on YouTube looking up gel coat repairs. Hardest part IMO is color matching but Spectrum takes care of that because they have the correct craft color codes.

[rivvy]

Thanks. Both good advice. I think I will attempt to do something prior to just writing a check. I talked to an outfit in Florida yesterday that sold me a quart of clear to experiment with. He had some good suggestions as well. Keep the advise coming!


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[rivvy]

Some pucs


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[SilentLeader]

Check with spectrumcolor.com they have a lot of correct craft gel colors for a wide range of year models. I believe with metal flake there has to be a clear gel coat shot over the flake otherwise you could feel the grit of the flake on the surface of the gel after sanding and polishing. Depending on how deep the scratch is a little clear gel might be an easy fix assuming that's what your pay has over the flake. Spend a good 45 minutes on YouTube looking up gel coat repairs. Hardest part IMO is color matching but Spectrum takes care of that because they have the correct craft color codes.

Although Spectrum does have gel coat, they don't have the metal flake but they can provide you with the clear gel coat. You will have to get the metal flakes from a Nautique dealer. They are sold by the pound. Metal flake can be pretty tricky. You have to mix the correct amount of clear gel coat with the flakes to get the right match. From the looks, I'd say that you will need Gunmetal color flakes.

[t.franscioni]

Actually from the looks of the pics I'd just try wet sanding and buffing. I thought you were talking gouges but those look like they could just be surface scratches in the clear gel. Wet sand buff polish and see what it does.

[rivvy]

That is what I first thought as well however. I've heard if I wet sand too much then I will expose the metal flake around area and look funky. My plan is to get some clear gel coat, apply some with a toothpick in the valley of the small scratches, then lightly wet sand and buff. Hopefully they will just disappear.


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[t.franscioni]

True. All depends on how deep the scratch is. To get a good bond with the clear gel you might have to sand the scratch out anyway prior to gel coating over it. Gel is pretty thick and unless you thin it heavily it may not actually fill the voids in a scratch that fine. I'd try your method first because it is simpler and if it don't get the results you want then try sanding the scratch completely out and if you find your into the flake then you already have the clear gel and can just spray or paint it on over. Post your results if possible because I'm interested as I'm getting ready to tackle a whole bunch of gel coat repair on my own boat. Good luck.

[Evening Shade]

I think your on the right track. I would try filling the scratches with clear gel before sanding. You will need to use a sharp tipped metal instrument like a dental pick (sold at Harbor Freight) to get wax etc out of the scratches. When doing this you may be able to feel if the scratch extends down into the metal flake. If the valley of the scratch feels smooth when you scrape it with a sharp tipped instrument then you are probably good. If it feels gritty or seems to catch in places then I would suspect you are down in the flake.

One more pice of advice when you sand/buff scratches out. If you are working in a small area on the boat where it would be hard to use a full size buffer, which it looks like you will based on your pics, a headlight restoration kit from the auto parts store works great.

[charlesml3]

So here's how you can tell the difference in a scratch and a gouge:

- Drag your fingernail across the spot "backwards." In other words your palm should be facing up.

If you can feel your fingernail drop into the spot, it's a gouge. If you can barely feel it "tick" past, it's a scratch.

Scratches can be buffed out. Gouges need something to fill in before you do the buffing. From your photos, I do not believe these are deep enough to get into your metal flake. It looks like they're in the clearcoat. I'd sure try to buff those out first unless they're a lot deeper than the photos suggest.

-Charles

[rivvy]

Sounds like a plan. I like the dental pic idea! I bet I am looking at wax in each of the scratches. I do have a couple dings that are definitely through the clear coat. I am going to try to ease into the process by starting with just buffing the real light ones. I have plenty to do so I will also try filling, sanding, and buffing. My clear get coat arrives today so I will do a little experimentation next week. I will let you know how it goes. It's amazing how some people don't take care of their stuff. There are dings and scratches all over. The more I look, the more I find.

[Evening Shade]

It's amazing how some people don't take care of their stuff. There are dings and scratches all over. The more I look, the more I find.

I agree! Especially considering how expensive these boats have become.