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09 rxpx255 getting rid of stress cracks and paint.

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ricardo1

ricardo1

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Got this ski last year for a killer deal because the outside was in rough shape, stress cracks with no damage to the fiberglass,torn seat and cluster needed to be programmed so this last week I said let’s get it fixed painted and have it ready for summer. Re covered the seat, got the gauges programmed, and last Saturday started this( i do body work for a living and use fiberglass often), first step was to dig out the cracked gel coat and make groves to fill them with kitty hair/fiberglass.IMG_5487.JPGIMG_3658.JPGIMG_3662.JPGIMG_3663.JPG
 
My taping skills suck really bad so forgive that but got it primered with polyester primer, 3 coats so the kitty hair and body filler don’t suck up the paint.IMG_3723.JPGIMG_3726.JPGIMG_3725.JPGIMG_3727.JPGIMG_3728.JPGIMG_3731.JPGIMG_3721.JPG
 
Really nice job and thanks for documenting the process with some excellent pics. I now know that this is something I’d never attempt on my own. I see your profile shows you are in Georgia but the ski has a New Jersey registration. Where will you be riding it?
 
Is not as bad as it looks just time consuming, i have about 10 hrs on that, I bought the ski from a friend in New Jersey and got it shipped to GA which is where I live, but I ride in Allatoona, West Point, Lanier.
 
Nice step by step. I thought you are never supposed to use bondo on watercraft since it absorbs water? And on an unrelated note gets to work on that chevelle!
 
mikidymac said:
Nice step by step. I thought you are never supposed to use bondo on watercraft since it absorbs water? And on an unrelated note gets to work on that chevelle!
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The thing with bondo is that if it’s not sealed it absorbs everything but once it’s primered, base coated and actual paint it won’t absorb anything, i used the best primer possible just to be on the safe side, it looks like it has a lot of bondo but it’s actually almost nothing on there, most of it is kitty hair,
 
So, don't want to be too critical but I've seen quite a few fixed similar to this and they look really good for awhile but then start to have issues over time. Bondo will absorb moisture and will bubble over time even though in theory it is sealed. Paint and primer, in general, is a no-no on seadoos especially in areas that can and will get dinged up. Sure, it works and looks good at first but will have issues in time. The correct way to fix is to use gel coat and the factory color gel coat can easily be purchased from the same company that seadoo bought it from. Epoxy works much better than any fiberglass resin, it just grabs and holds on better and is much stronger. You can watch West Systems epoxy videos to see how it works.

 
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The primer is apoxy based, how long did it last them because i helped a buddy do his cigar boat and in the last 4 years it has not shown absolutely no type of wear, cracks or blisters( used the same method as on his boat).
 
The ones I've seen typically start to have issues within a couple years but It really depends on how much use it gets. Boats are a little more forgiving and don't get the abuse that PWCs tend to see. I'm sure if you are very careful it will probably look good for many years but since you put so much time into it and it is very clear that you have nice attention to detail, why not use gel coat and epoxy? I've done both methods and gel coat is only slightly more difficult to work with in my opinion. The issue of color matching is really no issue at all since you can buy from Gel Koat Intl and have never had any matching issues even on heavily faded gel coat but does require extra sanding and buffing.

Again, I think it looks great and I don't like being critical. I understand there is always a debate over paint and gel coat but in the PWC world gel coat is definitely the norm due to the durability and longevity factors.
 
ski-d00 said:
The ones I've seen typically start to have issues within a couple years but It really depends on how much use it gets. Boats are a little more forgiving and don't get the abuse that PWCs tend to see. I'm sure if you are very careful it will probably look good for many years but since you put so much time into it and it is very clear that you have nice attention to detail, why not use gel coat and epoxy? I've done both methods and gel coat is only slightly more difficult to work with in my opinion. The issue of color matching is really no issue at all since you can buy from Gel Koat Intl and have never had any matching issues even on heavily faded gel coat but does require extra sanding and buffing.

Again, I think it looks great and I don't like being critical. I understand there is always a debate over paint and gel coat but in the PWC world gel coat is definitely the norm due to the durability and longevity factors.
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That’s for the great info, i will definitely keep that in mind for the future since I’m sure this won’t be the first nor last time of me doing some kind of repair to a pwc, i was going to change the color to the silver to match the hood of the ski instead of the heavy metallic that was on the ski previously.
 
ricardo1 said:
I did the injectors cleaned, added a inline fuel filter, sent the charger to get rebuild and recover the seat, oh and got a nice hauler for the ski.View attachment 34246View attachment 34247View attachment 34245
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Dude you have a dream garage, and the work you're doing looks awesome! May I ask what kind of body work you do for a living? I gotta say I'm impressed. I worked in an automotive body shop for only about a year when I was 17, and I learned so much from it, I want to paint one of my skis, but I'm too afraid of messing up
 
It looks great. I do agree with ski-d00 though about painting skis. I've painted one a few years back, and it looked amazing for a few years. But with time, the paint got a ton of little nicks and dings, much more so than my other ski which was gelcoat and used the same amount. Maybe I didn't prep right, but the paint did start to peel in a couple places, like on the bottom around the ride plate that I didn't remove and other parts that I just taped off. It looks like you removed everything, so you shouldn't have any peeling, but be careful with it.
I am planning to change the colors on my upcoming X4 project, and I'm going to use gelcoat on it.
 
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Cheflen said:
ricardo1 said:
I did the injectors cleaned, added a inline fuel filter, sent the charger to get rebuild and recover the seat, oh and got a nice hauler for the ski.View attachment 34246View attachment 34247View attachment 34245
Click to expand...
Dude you have a dream garage, and the work you're doing looks awesome! May I ask what kind of body work you do for a living? I gotta say I'm impressed. I worked in an automotive body shop for only about a year when I was 17, and I learned so much from it, I want to paint one of my skis, but I'm too afraid of messing up
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Mostly insurance work but anything from dings and dents to quarter panels, only thing I don’t mess with is frame work.IMG_3320.JPGIMG_3350.JPG
 
mikidymac said:
You mean factory finish? Have you seen the orange peel crap coming out of the OEM factories lately? It’s pathetic.
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Absolutely, having done my share of painting, I can't help but notice it now as I stroll the parking lots. Amazing that they let them go to the dealers like that.
 
You both know that it’s almost the norm now, it does look bad but hey, i only fix the damage not paint it lol. Ps, the car was different colors on each corner .
 
Ha, yea I know how that goes. My car is like that. I had to paint the hood, front bumper and one fender. They all came out well, but in dim light, you can tell that the old paint job is a touch lighter than the new. They can never mix it quite right at the paint shops. Later, I had to repaint the hood as it started flaking for some reason. Now it's a different color than the other two sets, but again, you have to get in just the right light to see it. Average person would never know.
 
Man, I love the look of a new metallic paint job! Looks fantastic!! Just don't wax it for a month or so.
 
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