Since I don’t live near a specialty boat chandlery or discounter, I will probably have to order by mail, if it’s not automotive. Please help, as 303 seems popular someone must be selling it cheaper than others. I’ve also heard bad stuff about long term use of Armor-All on fiberglass/kevlar
Cheap 303…
– Last Updated: Jun-11-06 6:57 AM EST –
Just ask the big yacht builders and the Ferrari dealers where they buy their 303. Now when they stop laughing they will tell you to save the 303 for your Tilley and PFD or for anything that you can’t wax.
Use a high quality wax on a composite boat. If you want efficiency wax the deck and sand the hull with 400/600 grit and clean it with Soft Scrub.
sand the hull???
why? sanding it a dozen times and there goes all your gel coat?
why sand?
steve
What to use on an epoxy finish?
My just completed Tern will have nothing but the epoxy finish on it for the next few weeks, as I take it with me to the East Coast for vacation (pygmy recommends waiting a bit before varnishing). Is 303 a safe protectanct for my epoxied boat? Are there better alternatives?
Sanding
makes the boat lighter. :o)
couple week?
I wouldn’t worry. I guess you could 303 it but… IMO there’s no serious damage that’s going to happen UV-wise in a couple weeks.
steve
RV dealers have the …
lowest prices for 303. I buy all of ours in one quart spray bottles for about the cost of a pint at an outfitters.
Gaylordsr
Sanding…
Something all the top small sailboat racers use to do. Has to do will laminar flow and the boundary layer of water.
You only have to sand it once just to get the gloss off, we used to love to see competitors waxing their hulls.
Back in 1960, we wet-sanded the
surfaces of our rowing shells. Then, just to psyche our competition a little more, before races we would religiously swab a liquid onto the hulls, from a large metal can.
It was actually Kool Aid without sugar.
I don’t know what rowing competitors today think of the laminar flow theory. One factor is that rowing shells actually change speed markedly with each stroke, unlike motorized displacement hulls traveling at a constant speed. eric nyre claims to have coasting evidence that hull waxing has positive benefit. That may be true for coasting down to zero, but I doubt it is true for constant speed in a kayak.
YOu agree with john waters
on this take
Nothing…
– Last Updated: Jun-11-06 12:33 PM EST –
Anything you put on it will have to be completely removed before you varnish.. Why take a chance?
Jeep aftermarket suppliers
I got the best prices at one of the Jeep aftermarket mail-order companies. There are several of them. Paid about $52 for one gallon.
That’ll take care of MANY dashboard etc. jobs.
I don’t use it on kayaks, except on the rubber hatches.
Hardware store
My local hardware store (Ace) sells 303 in the automotive cleaners dept. If you can buy it local it’s cheaper than on-line because of the shipping.
Protect the Gelcoat with…
I have read where “Wax” actually adds drag to Composite hulls, so I never use a wax on mine. I don’t like 303 on Composite hulls, as it makes the gelcoat feel greasy. I like it on other things rubber, plastic, etc.
I have switched to “Star Bright Marine Polish with Teflon” 4 years ago. A polish is supposed to let the water “sheet” on it, and let the boat slide thru the water easier. I just can’t prove that.
But this polish is not an abrasive polish, so it does not grind away the Gelcoat, and it does have “extra” UV protectants in it to protect the gelcoat. The Teflon in it actually makes the kayak easier to wipe off at the end of each paddle, as the grime doen’t stick to it.
I put two applications of it on my kayak in the spring, and one more end of July. This “works for me”. Note this is an item specially designed for Marine use!
Several people have written reviews here on P-Net on this stuff. Read the reviews. I really like it.
sanding
I’ve sanded the hulls of small racing sailboats before but it was years ago. I really doubt that there’s any noticable benefit doing this to a sea kayak though. Didn’t exactly make a night and day difference with the sailboat either, which was a larger wetted surface that moved faster thru the water.
I’d definately check around locally - the couple of dollars saved by mail order won’t offset a $10 shipping charge. Or, buy it from a place like REI the next time you need a couple of things from them.
John Waters the porno director?
…Or, John Winters the naval architect?
Dogmaticus