Cut polish ?

[scott craven]

Anybody ever cut polish a vehicle ?
The paint on my truck was badly oxidized, and i've put it off for years.
Lot's of elbow grease, but what a difference.

 

[vetteman]

Yup. When I painted my Corvette many moons ago I color sanded the whole car with first 600 grit paper, then 1000 grit and then 2000 grit. I then power sanded the whole car with a commercial grade cut polisher(very low rpm unit) turning a real sheepskin pad. Even at low rpm's you have to be careful not to burn thru the paint on the edges.The result was phenomanal. I have cut polished vehicles by hand before however that was only to raise some of the original lustre. No color sanding involved. Base/Clear paint processes on most newer vehicles have made cut polishing somewhat obsolete now.
By the way, by the time I'd finished polishing my Corvette I had more money tied up in polishes,waxes and glaze than I had into the paint and primer.
Dave

 

[Dave S]

I was thinking I might need to do this to the paint strip and hull on the Arima I picked up. I tried some scratch doctor, and polish but didn't work that well.
What should I use for this? I have an old school 2 speed polisher and some foam and furry pads.

 

[vetteman]

You might want to try doing a very small section first, maybe on the stern by or under the motor which is sort of out of sight. See how the gelcoat responds to polishing. I think you'll find that the results will make you pretty happy but you wouldn't want to screw up a spot right on the side of your boat.
Dave

 

[profisher]

The best cut polish for glass boats is Auto Glym's fine cut. This stuff is awesome and has kept my 20 year old Seasport looking like new. If I had more time during the summer I would get more coats of wax on it so I wouldn't have to polish it. Unfortunately that isn't possible so I cut polish and wax it each spring. The finish stays remarkably good through the summer. I do get extra wax coats on the hull itself each year and usually only cut polish below the waterline each spring. Above the waterline I don't have to polish as it doesn't get the same amount of direct sun as the tops.