R22 Discussion Group

Brad,

Brad,
The only part of this I would disagree on is his using wax on the final  
coat. I've never seen nor heard of this being done. Any boats I've seen with the  
penetrol have used it as the finish coat.

Rummy

In a message dated 12/16/2008 9:34:27 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
flybrad at gmail.com writes:

Found  this with a net search.  Scotchbrite pads are wonderful, that's
what I  use on bare aluminum on da plane.  Brad

----------------

I  wrote this article a while back - not specifically for Whalers but I
am  sure parts will apply. As it gets older fiberglass dries out - wax
can only  penetrate so deep, then you need to break out the secret
weapon. Here is  the article...

After a lot of research I found out you can save old  faded fiberglass
hulls. I've learned that even the most faded rough feeling  ugly sun
burned hull can nearly always be saved - as long as the colors are  in
the glass and not painted. The same restoration stuff (almost) that  is
sold by dealers for a hundred bucks can be formulated at home  for
under $20 (including scrub pads etc).
The Secret "They" Don't want  you to know: A paint additive Penetrol
(about $8.00 a pint) is designed to  soak into surfaces and "reliquify"
old dried out subsurfaces to make new  paint soak in and adhere better.
It's also nearly the same "rust magic"  stuff we used to pay a fortune
for a while back! It soaks right in starved  fiberglass - taking years
off right before your eyes.
First you have to  scrub the hull - really scrub not just wash. You
want all the old wax,  mildew, stains, paint rubs, etc, etc, off. Those
cheap green pot scrubbing  pads (Scotchbrite)in the kitchenware
department will do the trick. I also  used some of that automotive
purple stuff cleaner (really strong) that runs  about $5.00 a gallon in
auto stores (Walmart?) to get the mildew and years  of grunge off the
hull. Then scrub again to be sure (you don't want to seal  in stains!)
with plain ole Borax moistened with white vinegar paying  close
attention to rub rails, marks, and stains. White surfaces can then  be
brightened and cleaned with plain old bleach and water (3 or  4
tablespoons to a quart of water, wear gloves, don't wear  good
clothes). Old numbers and stickers you don't want can be removed  with
a heat gun on low or a hair dryer on high, remove remaining  adhesive
with WD-40!
Once she is clean, real clean, eating off clean,  then apply the
Penetrol to a cloth and wipe it on. Let the the first coat  soak in
like you would Armour-All on tires (don't wipe it off. She might  take
two or three passes to finally fully saturate dry fiberglass if she  is
an oldie, be patient you are fixing years of abuse.
Once that is done  you have to scrub again. You don't want the Penetrol
on the outside to  remain as a dirt magnet, you are only interested in
keeping the Penetrol  that has actually soaked into the fiberglass!
Once the excess Penetrol has  been removed, it's time to put on a
couple of coats of high quality marine  wax - a buffer will really save
your back and shoulders for  fishing.
Now, if you were doing a high dollar bassboat or other expensive  boat
with exposed metal flake on the top surfaces you would sand it  smooth
with super fine grit (400-1000)sand paper then rub it out with  waxless
rubbing compound and apply the Penetrol like above. Once she is  clean
again finish up topside with an Emron clear coat (sprayed on)  and
after it is fully cured, wax.
I cringe at the fine boats I have not  bought for peanuts because I did
not know this. Even with Emron you are  looking at less than $250 to
bring back a worthy boat. So there you have  it, the secret is out!

The Rhodes 22 Discussion Group

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Penetrol