MacGregorSailors.com

For years I have been chasing the oxidation ghost. I believe I have found a product that at least checks oxidation for the season.
That said I have been researching polishes that would last the season without oxidation of the stripes. I am pleased to report Glidecoat made it thru the season with only a slight dulling but no degrading of the surface from oxidation. My primary goal was to stop the oxidation, preserve the gelcoat color and reduce the annual application of polishing compounds which over time eroded what little color coat was applied by Macgregor during manufacture.
My season lasts 6mos in Northern IL essentially from May to early Nov. The boat sat in the marina with the bow due east. There was essentially no significant difference between the starboard and port strips with regard to degradation with the starboard side receiving more direct sun than the port. Since I store inside in my warehouse during the off-season I plan to clean and polish the existing Glidecoat and reapply two additional coats. I used this same method on a variety of marined polishes but by the end of the season, the stripes were dull and oxidized. Glidecoat clearly outlasted the season. The surface is in significantly better condition than any of the marine waxes were at end of season. I spoke with the mfg. prior to purchase last spring. Since the surface is not damaged due to oxidation I should be able to polish it back to a reasonable shine and reapply Glidecoat. I am hoping I can build up the coating somewhat to improve the level of protection. Overall preserving the surface shine and minimizing oxidation should require less maintenance time with more sailing time!

FYI I am an end user and have not financial or business relationship with Glidecoat.

I will report again Nov. '22/

Great report.

Which of their products did you use and how did you apply them?

Wonderful news!

I'm also eager to k Arn what specific products and process you used. The timing could not be better as I'm just about to do the stripes on mine that has been sitting out in the weather for at least a decade with no "love".

Had good results (but not perfect) with a test patch using a 3M product, but will go get some Glidecoat if that's the one. Mine will stay garaged and trailered when not sailing, but still would like to not have to redo the cutting compound routinely, for all the reasons you mentioned.

Gee, I wish I had this problem. After 47 years in Florida, the gelcoat is a distant memory. I just try to keep semi-decent paint on her.

Chip V.
S/V Sand Dollar

Are you kidding me. Over $1000.00 for a kit. It's Amazon.Canada mind you...but still. I'm sure their are a lot of facsimile automotive type Ceramic coatings that will give the same same results for a lot less $.

https://www.amazon.ca/Glidecoat-Complet ... =8-10&th=1

I discovered Drakes Detailing youtube channel. He's a professional boat detailer.

So this year I tried the product he suggested. Jescar Powerlock. It's a polymer.
This is the first year the hull looked really good at the end of the season. Drake claims the product sheets water instead of leaving drops that dry as mineral spots. It does seem to sheet seawater off the blue hull.

So far I'm sold. Used the stuff on my car also.

I invested in a dual action polisher. Found a cheap one on Amazon. This really makes the job easier and I assume pushes the product into the gelcoat.

https://drakesmarinedetailsupply.com/pr ... 1839521968
$32/bottle and I used it on the boat, clear panels on the dodger and on the car. I have half a bottle left.

Drake's youtube channel

I also tired the Jescar Powerlock but did not like the result on my very oxidized hull. Think it may have worked just fine as a follow up to a cutting compound.

The 3M product but needed up using has cutting compound and wax, allowing me to do a decent job in 1 pass, but I don't think I can apply the Jescar Powerlock over the wax.

I've said this before: I got tired of the waxing bit. I repainted the stripes with Benjamin Moore Impervex Latex High Gloss Enamel.

It's been a few years, but I think it may be time to do it again.

Piddle and Futz wrote: ↑Tue Nov 30, 2021 6:11 pm I also tired the Jescar Powerlock but did not like the result on my very oxidized hull. Think it may have worked just fine as a follow up to a cutting compound.

Yes. The Jescar Powerlock needs to be a finishing product. I used another product to de-oxidize the hull.
I don't know if this is the case with other boats, but the dark gelcoat takes a beating in the weather/sun.

Ray, painting the black raccoon stripes makes a lot of sense. They get intense sun and always fade. We blue hull owners have that also in addition to the side of the hull becoming oxidized. The blue hull looks great when shined up. But I think every one I've seen gets oxidized and looks dull after a while. In retrospect, would have bought a white hull.

In retrospect, would have bought a white hull.

Even if that means you loose some of your super fast speed

I'm not sure what is with my account. I entered and lengthy and detailed explanation of how I polished and prepared the surface prior to applying Glidecoat. Unfortunately once again I hit the Submit button which then displayed the post. Once again the post is either deleted or failed to update. I have experienced this with previous posts as well. Normally I do a select all and copy just in case the post fails. Unfortunately this time I did not.

NiceAft wrote: ↑Wed Dec 01, 2021 9:05 am

In retrospect, would have bought a white hull.

Even if that means you loose some of your super fast speed

Yea, I'd give up the .00000000001 knot advantage to not have to deal with the dulling gelcoat. I don't know if this is a Mac thing or is all gelcoat like this.

Also, the blue DOES get hotter in the sun.

I have to admit, vanity isn't worth it.

1st Sail wrote: ↑Thu Dec 02, 2021 2:31 pm I'm not sure what is with my account. I entered and lengthy and detailed explanation of how I polished and prepared the surface prior to applying Glidecoat. Unfortunately once again I hit the Submit button which then displayed the post. Once again the post is either deleted or failed to update. I have experienced this with previous posts as well. Normally I do a select all and copy just in case the post fails. Unfortunately this time I did not.

That's strange. I've never had that happen.

What browser are you using?
Can you clear the browsing cache? Clearing cookies?
I cleared the site cache.

So just so I understand, you hit submit and it goes away and nothing posts?

If you hit your browser back button??

Hi Russ,
Thanks for following up. I use either Edge or Chrome. IIRC I was using Edge this time. I ran the gamut of cache reset/clear via an F5, clicking the back cirular arrow on the menu url bar, right click inspect / right click the back arrow Empty cache and hard refresh to no avail. This has happened many time over the years. Years ago my account was hacked IIRC with others. I have never been able to reset my email to the proper address since. Usually I just do a select all/copy in the event the post fails on clicking Submit. Hope this helps.

Russ said:

Also, the blue DOES get hotter in the sun.

That’s why in 2004, at the Annapolis boat show, when asked by my dealer (Millennium Boats) what color hull I wanted, I told him white.

Remember old Ben Franklin and his experiment with swatches of colored fabric on the snow.