Faded gel coat help

[jgrassano]

Good evening. New member here. I have a 2013 Montana high country and I just recently had it buffed and it still doesn’t look as good as I was expecting. Is there anything I can do other than painting to get it looking nice again.

[Veebyes]

Not enough info. Was it simply buffed with a cleaner wax or was it done in two stages by compounding to get the chalkiness off then sealed with a high quality wax or sealant?

Due to cost & weight of gelcoat I can't say that I have ever seen a good gelcoat on RVs as can be found on upper end boats.

[bshgto1]

jgrassano wrote:
Good evening. New member here. I have a 2013 Montana high country and I just recently had it buffed and it still doesn’t look as good as I was expecting. Is there anything I can do other than painting to get it looking nice again.

If your color is the gray finish they had back then you can forget ever cleaning it up. I had that finish and wax and buffed the unit till I was blue in the face and the oxidation came back in 3 weeks time. Finally sold the High Country cause I was just tried of dealing with it.

[B_O__Plenty]

Gel coat just doesn't hold up. In time it all fades. Try a big truck repair shop. They will usually have a large enough paint booth to do the work. I've had two of my fivers painted. Front cap should cost under $2,000. anything more is a rip off.

B.O.

[Tom_Barb]

jgrassano wrote:
Good evening. New member here. I have a 2013 Montana high country and I just recently had it buffed and it still doesn’t look as good as I was expecting. Is there anything I can do other than painting to get it looking nice again.

Many times when an old paint systems are buffed they will remove the clear coat. it can be replaced. 600 wet and dry sanding to prep the surface and reapply.

If you have a real gel-coat finish and it doesn't look as good as it should, have some who knows how to refinish gel-coat re-do it.

[valhalla360]

Paint...key item with paint: It's all about the prep work. Get all the wax off and fix any dings or it will show up after you paint.

Check with body shops or boat yards if you want to farm it out.

You can DIY, we did our boat several years back used Interlux Brightsides. 3yrs later when we sold, it was still shiny with no waxing or buffing. There are more durable paints (awlgrip is the most popular) but they aren't very DIY friendly. Interlux had the advantage that it was really easy to touch up if we did get a scratch.