Reapply gel coat or straight to primer?

Anything goes in the world of fiberglass and plastic



Settled In
Posts: 30
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:25 pm

Country:
USA
PostPosted: Wed Nov 13, 2019 11:13 am
Should i add thin layer of gel coat or go straight to primer/sealer on the camper shell? I ain’t gonna paint my truck anytime soon, so plan on keeping on primer for maybe a year. As you can see on some spots i sanded too much that I exposed the fiberglass.
Attachments
4B3515E5-5C6A-49DA-ABA4-66DD09822E7E.jpeg
36F8BFFB-96D5-4441-8A19-ACB0641BAB0E.jpeg

User avatar

Board Moderator
Posts: 6672
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:00 pm
Location: central Ohio
Country:
USA
PostPosted: Wed Nov 13, 2019 12:51 pm
If it is going to be a year or so....it's like this..."regular" primers can absorb/swell with moisture so that's out, well, unless you just plan on sanding it all off, epoxy primer would be better but sunlight does start affecting/killing most of those after 6 months or so. A gel coat properly mixed for open air application would probably hold up the best for that time period. Although sunlight does start affecting them as well, we are talking years of exposure. Gel coat would also ties all those sand through areas together and give you a nice surface to start with when the time comes for paint.
Metal, wood, fiberglass, we work it all... www.furniturephysicians.com We can restore the irreplaceable!



Settled In
Posts: 30
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 7:25 pm

Country:
USA
PostPosted: Sat Nov 16, 2019 3:33 am
Thanks for the reply. Would sanding with 220 grit be good when new gel coat is cured to give a smooth look since im gonna roll on the gel coat?

User avatar

Board Moderator
Posts: 6672
Joined: Tue Feb 24, 2004 7:00 pm
Location: central Ohio
Country:
USA
PostPosted: Sat Nov 16, 2019 9:22 am
You can take cured gel coat to just about any finish level you want..... If rolling, it will indeed probably take 220 to hit down the peaks. If you do it that way consider first taking a nice hard block of wood with the paper wrapped (you can get psa style paper in rolls, too) around it. Once you've established a level profile you can move on to 320/400 stop there or even move up to 600. Those grits could be done on a sander. Going to 600 makes the surface shed water/debris easier. Also, when you do eventually paint you don't have much prep. to do.....
Metal, wood, fiberglass, we work it all... www.furniturephysicians.com We can restore the irreplaceable!

Return to Fiberglass and Plastic

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 49 guests