Trillium - how to shine??

[RogerDat]

Originally Posted by Rodre

"On all surfaces there is a limit to how many times they can be power buffed, rubbed out or cut polished with rubbing compound."

This is very true, but I figured the first .01mm of gel coat lasted 30 years so now that I have it back to new it should last my life time with the proper care, this is why I store it inside now.

If you store it outside it is probably better to use the treatments, otherwise you will have to cut polish it every so often, if you want to keep it looking new, and you can probably only do this 2-3 times.

Good point on the outside vs inside storage. That would make a big difference.

On mine the roof was the tell tale area, clearly had the deepest pits and appeared to have had the most wear possibly from prior attempts to rub it out, or just weathering. I know previous two owners stored it outside for years and figure roof took the worst weather related wear and tear.

[Carol H]

The roof on mine was great either - suspect in part it gets the most sun damage and as its hard to wax it didnt get taken care of all that well over the years. But once I used the 3M restore and Wax on it with a power puffer all good. Just need to finish it off with a good wax each spring and fall and the compound power buff should not be needed again for many years.

[rabbit]

+4 or is it +5 on the Red Max Pro (or Zep) and Barkeeper's Friend. The #3 is the finish you want in Red Max. Some have used the prep solution also. Personally I think the official Polyglow applicator is worth the money (an 8" wide block and artificial chamois wrap threaded for painter's extension pole and a smaller chamois for detail. Used with a roller pan for getting the right amount (wet but not soppy), this applicator gives a wide swath which levels very nicely. Many report good results with microfiber rag as applicator. Be careful that the rag is colorfast as there are a few reports of yellowing of the finish and yellow is a common color for the rags.

jack