# Extreme Boat Detailing - Gelcoat Correction and Ceramic Coating - Two 23' Black Sport



## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

*Extreme Boat Detailing - Gelcoat Correction and Ceramic Coating - Two 23' Black Sportsman Center Consoles
*

*Extreme Boat Detailing - Gelcoat Correction & Ceramic Coatings*

When I teach boat detailing classes here's what I do, I bring in the WORST condition dark colored boats I can obtain.

Why?

Because with a boat in HORRIBLE condition I can teach every aspect of gelcoat correction. Then when the students go back to the real world they will have the skills and knowledge to tackle not only the worst condition boats but any condition boat.

If I were to bring in new boats or boats in good condition I could not teach all the skills and techniques because these types of boats would not warrant the extreme correction techniques like machine sanding. This means each person when they leave the class will be able to inspect a boat and choose what level or correction will be needed to restore the gelcoat to factory new or better condition.

Make sense?

*Two Black 23' Sportsman Center Consoles*

This was a very unique class because I was able to get Kissing Cousin Boats. What I mean by this is I met two boat owners that both had the same make and model boat, these are 23' Sportsman Center Consoles. And both boats were black and with such horrible, deep oxidation - the black gelcoat had turned white!

Normally I have two boats in super bad condition but they are not identical makes and models. So this was truly a unique class and a GREAT learning experience for those that took the class.

Here's the first boat. Again, this is a BLACK 23' Sportsman Center Console boat with severe oxidation. Here's a few pictures of it outside in full sun at the owner's house.
































































*Moved into the 3D Garage*

*Starboard Side*
Here she is after moving her into the 3D Garage.



















*Port Side*
This is what DEEP oxidation looks like.










*Caveman Technique - the wrong technique*
Buffing with a compound and a wool pad on a rotary buffer is what 99% of the boat detailing industry would do to TRY to fix this boat. This is also what I call the CAVEMAN style of boat detailing. It may make the gelcoat look good for a few weeks and even a month or two - but in a short amount of time the gelcoat will return to what you see below.










*HUGE SHOP*
I included the below shot to show you at our new 3D Training Academy - there's plenty of room for boats and people and our shop is air-conditioned so you're going to be comfortable even when you're working hard.










*Reality Check*
Boats get banged up pretty good when they're used. Some defects like you see below cannot be completely removed but they can be dramatically improved. At our boat detailing classes you will learn what can be fixxed and what cannot be fixed and this is important because when you leave the class and go back into your world you're going to have this knowledge and you're going to be able to educate your customers and this is important.










*The SECOND 23' Black Sportsman Center Console*

I met the owner while my friends and I were at the Stuart Sandbar. Here she is on the water.




























Robert was kind enough to bring his boat to the 3D Garage before the class so I could do a Test Spot to make sure this would be a great training boat for the February Class. Below is the boat in Robert's driveway and you can see the results of the Test Spot I did.










Here she is before I did the Test Spot in the 3D Garage.

*DEEP OXIDATION!*




























*Looks can be deceiving without proper lighting. Let's put some light on the side of the hull.*




























*Here's both boat deep inside the new 3D Garage ready for class.*



















*Strong Recommendation*
If you're interested in learning the art and craft of professional boat detailing, I strongly recommend that BEFORE you plunk down your hard-earned money for any boat detailing class... do this first...

_*Look and see if the company putting on the class shows you the boat you'll be training on?*_

Why sign up for any class, car or boat detailing, if the company putting on the class cannot show you the cars and boats you'll be working on?

Me? I ALWAYS show the cars and boats you'll be working on BEFORE the class. Always.


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued...

*3D Waterless Wash*
Before starting the class gets the boat clean using *3D Waterless Wash.*










*Tape-off and Cover-up*
Next we tape-off any trim or components that need to be protected during the sanding and buffing steps. The owners of both boats gave us permission to remove the boat registration lettering



















*Doing a Boat Test Spot*

Next up we're going to do a Boat Test Spot or more accurately, a Gelcoat Test Spot. The idea and goal is to dial-in the least aggressive process to remove 100% of the oxidation, swirls, scratches and other defects and then restore a better-than-new finish.










For the Test Spot, I pick what looks to be the worst condition area on the side of the hull.










*Tape adhesive and presentation quality*
Normally I place 2 tape-lines on the side of the hull to mark the area to be sanded and buffed. The problem with using tape is that when you go to use a panel wipe to chemically strip the gelcoat before installing the gelcoat ceramic coating, the panel wipe will pull some of the tape adhesive into your testing area and make it smeary. This really takes away from the appearance of the results. So for this test spot I'm only going to use one strip of tape.

*Machine Sanding*
When a boat has deep oxidation the way you work smarter instead of harder is to machine sand the gelcoat. The caveman approach is to try to remove all the oxidation by simply buffing with a wool pad, and aggressive compound and a rotary polisher. The problem with this approach and why it doesn't work is taught in the class.




























Here I'm demonstrating how to use a simple Porter Cable 8mm free spinning random orbital polisher to machine sand. These types of tools will work but in the same way that ANYTIME you use ANY BRAND of FREE SPINNING random orbital polisher you're going to expend a lot of,


Time
Physical energy
Mental energy

to get the job done. All brands of free spinning random orbital polishers suffer from what is called,

*Pad Stalling*

Pad stalling is when you're buffing something out, a car, boat, motorhome, motorcycle, aircraft etc., and because of the shape of the panel being buffed, or in this example the hull being sanded, the tool stalls out. This means the pad or sanding disc stops rotating and stops oscillating and for the most part just jiggles or vibrates against the surface.

*This is called wasting time.*

Pad stalling not only wastes time but it also wastes your physical energy in that you have to constantly be holding the tool perfectly in order to maintain pad rotatation and pad ocillation but it also wastes your brain energy becaue the entire time you're sanding or buffing you must mark your backing plate and then use your eyes and brain to monitor pad rotation. And... you have to do this the entire time you're using one of these types of tools. Doesn't matter if it's 8mm, 10mm, 12mm, 15mm or 21mm - ALL free spinning random orbital polishers suffer from this type of design.

*In the picture below I'm showing the downside of using a free spinning random orbital polisher.*










*FLEX family of BEAST Tools*

FLEX Power tools currently offers their 8mm *GEAR-DRIVEN *orbital polishers in 3 configurations.

The original *BEAST* - Part Number = XC 3401 VRG
The *CBEAST* - Cordless Beast - Part Number = XCE 10-8 125
The *Supa BEAST* - Part Number = XCE 8-125 18.0

All of these tools are gear-driven, 8mm orbital polishers. Note I typed ORBITAL polisher not RANDOM ORBITAL polisher? There is nothing random about the FLEX BEAST gear-driven polishers.

There is also ZERO PAD STALLING or in this example, ZERO SANDING DISC STALLING

The fastest way to machine sand a boat is to use one of the three FLEX BEAST tools. Fact.

You will also avoid the BRAIN DRAIN while you're working because you don't constantly have to look to see if the sanding disc (or buffing pad), is in fact rotating and oscillating. The FLEX family of BEAST tools are as the saying goes,

_All Brawl - ZERO Stall!_

*In the picture below I've attached a #1000 grit sanding disc to an interface pad on the FLEX CBEAST. *










*The correct way to use a rotary buffer*

Anytime you're using a wool pad on a rotary, the correct technique is to *go up on edge*. I know there are other experts and gurus that disagree with me but all you have to do to prove this technique is the right technique is spend a few years buffing with a rotary and then get back to me. 

Here's your truly removing sanding marks out of the gelcoat using the new 3D Marine Hybrid Compound/Polish and the FLEX CORDLESS PE14 Rotary Polisher.










*This is what it looks like when you go up on edge*




























*Vertically aligned Manufacturer*
Most people don't know this so I'm happy to share it here, 3D makes their own abrasive technology from raw materials. This is what separates 3D from any other brand of compound, polish or all-in-one.










*Test Spot Results*

Here's the results from our Test Spot. This is after,


Sanding
Compounding
Polishing
Chemically stripping
Installing the 3D Gelcoat Ceramic Coating




























_*Hands-on Time!*_

Now it's time to turn the class loose on these two 23' Sportsman Center Console and let them duplicate the process just demonstrated and we'll see how well of a job they do.


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued...

It's always fun watching the class work as a team. By the time the class is over on Friday everyone starts to gel. By the time we get to Saturday and now Sunday, friendships have been forged that will last a lifetime. And... everyone is working hard but also having a LOT of FUN!

And... *NO CHAIRS* and no sitting. Our classes are 100% on your feet and hands-on. These are the real-deal. These are the classes you want to attend.









































































Sanding is a LOT of hard work - even when you're using the best tools in the world. Asking people to run a gear-driven FLEX BEAST tool on the side of a boat hull is very strenuous work. Me? I like to lead by example so I walk around and check everyone's technique and progress and then jump in and help out.










_*All the way from the U.K.!*_

Simon came all the way from the U.K. to participate in this class and he was a huge asset. Here he is tackling the transom on one of the 23' Sportsman Center Consoles. He'll turn the back of this boat into a BLACK MIRROR!



















*3D products ROCK!*










*The art of using a Rotary Polisher with 3D Marine Hybrid Compound/Polish*

After the sides of the hull were machine sanding using a 3-step process, next the class needs to remove 100% of the sanding marks. Like machine sanding, using a rotary polisher is a very physical buffing procedure. You will use all the muscles in your body including hands, arms, shoulders, back, torso, legs and feet. Not to mention your eyes and your brain. Detailing boats is not for couch potatoes.

The best thing you can do when buffing out a boat with a rotary polisher is LEARN to work with the rotary polisher, not against it. And this means going up on edge.


























































































































































*Machine Polishing - Removing the holograms*

ANYTIME you're using a fiber pad on a rotary - the individual fibers are putting their own CUT into the surface. These millions of tiny cuts form a pattern in the surface that mimic or copies the direction the rotary polisher was moved of the surface. This pattern of cuts is called,

*Holograms*

The next step is to use foam pads on orbital polishers and remove the holograms by polishing the surface to level it and thus remove the holograms while at the same time maximizing the flatness or smoothness of the surface and thus restoring gloss and clarity.




























*Chemically Stripping the Gelcoat*
I"m not sure why, but I rarely see or hear or watch anyone in the detailing industry call this next step by it's technical name and that is,

_*Chemically stripping the finish*_

To do this you need what's called a PANEL WIPE. A panel wipe is a category of products, which is some form of solvent that when wiped over the surface will dissolve and emulsify any residual polishing oils and remove them to leave behind a completely clean surface. This is one of the most important steps to installing a ceramic coating because the ceramic coating needs a clean surface in order to form a proper bond.

Sorry - no pictures that I can find of this step.


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued...

*Installing the 3D Gelcoat Ceramic Coating*

After the hull has been prepared for the coating, the next step is for the class to install or in simpler words, apply the ceramic coating.


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

Continued...

Here's the final results...

Looks like Cameron's giving the hull one last final wipe...










*BOOM!*

Here's the boat deep inside the garage




























*Here's the boat that was upfront...*



















*Freaking Amazing Before and After!*

The students in this class must have been tired after 2 full days of paint correction, sanding, buffing and all the other techniques we went over on Friday and Saturday but they caught their second-wind and turned out pro quality results!

Nice work everyone! I can't wait to see the owner's faces when they pick up their boats!


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

More pictures from this class....

*Here's the first boat leaving the 3D Garage and Training Academy!*



















*Looks like new - NO - Looks BETTER THAN NEW!*










I love guys like Cameron that are OCD - they make great *Quality Control Experts!* Thanks Cameron! 



















*And here comes the second boat... it looks amazing too!*










*Next up is the Certificate Award Ceremony and then we'll wrap-up this class. *

In the 30+ years I've been teaching detailing as an art and a craft - this is the BEST class I've ever been fortunate to be a part of. I know each and every person that took this class is dead-beat tired. But I also know they have 3-days of knowledge, skills, and experience they can rely on to enable them to tackle any car or boat detailing project moving into the future.

*Congratulations everyone!*

And thank you for trusting in the 3D brand and the 3D staff that helped with this class and also behind the scenes.

I would also like to thank Tunch Goren the owner and head chemist at 3D for his trust in Yancy and myself to the degree that he had this brand new 3D Training Academy build to hold these amazing classes.

Thank you.


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## Mike Phillips (Jan 26, 2007)

More....

If you're ever planning a trip to the U.S.A. and want to have a ton of fun plus learn a lot in a real hands-on detailing class, include one of my classes in your trip.


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