I am looking at an old, well used hull tomorrow as a possible (affordable) 2nd kayak for family, friend etc. Any tips or ideas as to how one can best renew a little luster to it's appearance would be appreciated in case they are needed. It has been described to be an older hull with a faded gel coat, with numerous scratches, spider cracks, and a small worn spot repair on stern.
you’ll know when you see it
It may clean up nice with just a good buffing. You may have to wet sand it with 1500-2000 grit,then buff it. If it truly needs a new gelcoat. if thats the case,meh too much work if you ask me.
Just Purchased Same
A tandem that has seen its use. I was surprised how well it polished up with elbow grease and an automobile product by Meguiars called ‘Scratch X.’ It’s a very mild cleaner/scratch remover. There are other more abrasive compounds out there, but I figured ‘What the heck, I have it and will give it a go.’ A friend is lending me his orbital buffer so I may try it with this as well, b eing careful not to ‘burn’ the gelcoat. If it’s a lighter deck color, it should polish out pretty well-mine was gray/white, so the results were quite noticeable.
For your intended purpose, the
previous suggestions are good. I would not even bother fixing the scuff under the stern unless there appears to be a structural crack. A better expenditure of time is to focus on outfitting the boat so your family members are truly well-mated to the boat.
Paint
I local fella here paint kayaks and canoes. Costs are from $50 on up. Typical nice paint job with flames costs $100
Please see my similar request
from about two months ago, but on a gelcoat canoe.
http://www.paddling.net/message/showThread.html?fid=advice&tid=465087
The acetone and marine penetrol worked great on the hull.
See also follow-up with photos:
http://www.paddling.net/message/showThread.html?fid=chat&tid=485048