At 19:54 22 November 2005,
wrote:
I've browsed the old discussions on gelcoat maintenance
to learn what
I can before developing a maintenance routine of my
own, for my
recently acquired V2C. One thing not yet clear to me
is the best way to
use/apply 3M's Finesse-It II, which seems to be the
consensus
cleaner/polisher compound: With a high speed (~3000
rpm) polisher, or
something slower? With random orbit or fixed rotary?
(Does Finesse-It
II require the generation of heat to do its thing?)

There seems to be a broad range of prices (from ~$30
for a Ryobi 10'
orbital polisher at Home Depot, to $190 for a DeWalt
DW849 polisher,
mail order), so this is an investment I want to get
right the first
time.

Advance thanks

~ted/2NO



Orbital machines are for polishing wax. For any buffing
compound (cutting or finishing) you need a buffer made
for the job and the good ones are not cheap. About
1750rpm and a 8 inch foam pad works well. Use two pads,
one for cutting and one for finishing (3M's Finesse-It).