I have a 1984 Glastron 17' "walk-thru" windshield runabout, light grey w/blue jagged stripe down the sides. The clear-coat(I assume) is getting kind of milky colored.

What's the best procedure to clean up/polish the paint on a 22 year old boat?

I'd like to get a few more years out of the old boat...transom still in good condition and the motor should last a few more years if I can figure out why it's not charging the battery.

Thanks,

Dave

You need to compound the boat with 3M marine compound.......and then finish up with a good wax...........if not to bad then use 3M cleaner wax to remove the oxydation. Lots of elbow grease is required. Or use a buffer if you are careful with it.

Can you get this 3M Marine Compound at BPS??

I have the same situation on my 90 Cajun. The prev owner let her sit in the sun for years with no cover!

I love the meter. It could sure fit alot of topics.

If the shine won't come back enough with wax, you might consider Vert-glass. It is avail at West Marine and is very much like mop & glow for kitchen floors. (mop & glow might work, never tried it) Looks like 2% milk in the bottle and goes on with a special chamois type foam brush. This allows you to put many overlapping coats on and after 4 or 5 thin coats you can't tell any brush marks. Really makes an old boat look good again. I use it on my '85 Catamaran and it shines like a diamond up a goat's a-s!

I had an older boat, that I tried everthing under the sun to make it shine. Nothing worked, and I was not about to spend big bucks on the old boat. Try this, rub baby oil on it. If it shines like a new one, then sand it down with 400 grit paper. Clean it well and spray it with clear coat made for a car. It worked for me and lasted 3 years before I sold the boat. Its going to look really bad after you get through sanding it. Dont worry about that, the clear coat will bring it back.

OXIDATION
dead paint
i have somethin here that i found years ago
i had a f150 that had bad oxidation and this stuff
worked wonderfully
it removed dead paint thats what make your clear coat look not so clear/milky... and oxidation
runnin low on this stuff
its non toxic and as long as water safe it will not
ruin it
call me 972 236 1733 ricky
will do your boat then may do every one else once
i get good feedback from you
no sanding, just spray on buff then rinse
Im in north dallas, Carrollton, t.x. close to
vista ridge mall

..HUH?

Look at these:

https://www.minicraft.com/retail/buffingbars.htm

I bought the white bar, and my 24 year old Skeeter looks as good as a new one. I guarantee it will work for you too. All you need is a buffer with a fluffy pad, apply bar to pad at low speed, buff your boat. It really is that easy. One bar will do about 25 boats. Best $7.00 I ever spent on a boat.

Can you expound on how you are using this/these? Am I understanding the website correctly in that your just "rubbing" the boat with the bare bar then buffing?
Thanks a bunch!

Actually, after re-reading your post, please explain this....
I'm serious with this question.......how are you applying the bar to pad at low speed? I'm not able to picture what exactly your doing here.
Thanks again!

I hold the buffer with one hand, and apply it to the pad with the other hand. Make sure you have a good grip on the bar, or you will send it flying. Be careful doing it this way. I have seen people lay the bar on the ground, and step on it to apply it to the buffer pad.

3M also makes a restorer & wax for boats in one bottle. I have used it on a couple of old boats with excellent results. You do need to use some elbow grease though.

After reading all the suggestions, I got a bottle of the 3M restorer & wax, it is part rubbing compound, part wax, and it worked great! I guess it looked worse than it was, because I did more than half the boat in about an hour last night, will finish the rest this evening. The cover stays on it when not in use, so I guess it was just age, more than exposure that milked up the shine. Now all I have to do is get the charging system working, and trace out the short in the trailer lights, and it will be like having a newer boat again!

Thanks to all that replied.

Dave

Did you use a buffer with the 3m. I used it on my boat (hand application) and it helped, but I can still see some chalky areas. My boat is black with red/silver flakes. I keep it covered and waxed but still fight oxidation.

I just used a couple of old cotton undershirts/rags, one to rub in the 3M restorer/wax, a little dab rubbed on a hand-sized area at a time, rub until it's smooth, then rub a few times with the clean shirt to clear off the wax dust.