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restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Tue Apr 24, 2018 11:54 pm
by baggydew
For a simple way to restore the color and luster of your oxidized fiberglass top, try this.....

Wipe petroleum jelly on the surface using the scrubby side if a household sponge. You will see the oxidation (white) disappear as you sponge on the jelly. Rub off and buff the excess with a towel. You will end up with a smooth surface, free of oxidized powder residue. The result has no swirls and has a uniform glossy finish. To bring out and preserve the shine, wax the surface when done. I used Nu-Finish, the stuff in the orange bottle. Went on easy, lasts for a year. I'm amazed with the result.
This may not as good (shiny) as a professional wet sanding of the gel coat followed by waxing but I'm thrilled with the ease and smooth result I did the top in a couple of hours. No elbow grease. All you'll need is a container of petroleum jelly from Wal-mart for under 2 bucks and some wax to keep it looking good. Easy fix.

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2018 2:36 pm
by lido14co
baggydew wrote:For a simple way to restore the color and luster of your oxidized fiberglass top, try this.....

Wipe petroleum jelly on the surface using the scrubby side if a household sponge. You will see the oxidation (white) disappear as you sponge on the jelly. Rub off and buff the excess with a towel. You will end up with a smooth surface, free of oxidized powder residue. The result has no swirls and has a uniform glossy finish. To bring out and preserve the shine, wax the surface when done. I used Nu-Finish, the stuff in the orange bottle. Went on easy, lasts for a year. I'm amazed with the result.
This may not as good (shiny) as a professional wet sanding of the gel coat followed by waxing but I'm thrilled with the ease and smooth result I did the top in a couple of hours. No elbow grease. All you'll need is a container of petroleum jelly from Wal-mart for under 2 bucks and some wax to keep it looking good. Easy fix.
going to try this. Have been using the nu-finish which protects well but I’m missing the shine.


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Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Wed Apr 25, 2018 7:22 pm
by baggydew
I think you'll be pleased with the result. I've tried everything on the market to get a uniform smooth finish, from Color Back to Mop and Glo and nothing I've tried is as easy as this. It should last with the wax. Smooth as a baby's butt. At least it's protected and looks good. As a side benefit, the jelly gets down in those spider cracks and repels water. Good luck. Let us know what you think.

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2018 11:03 am
by usachris
Hey, how about posting a few “before and after” pics? Thanks!

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2018 12:12 pm
by baggydew
Too late.. never took any pictures before I started.

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Thu Apr 26, 2018 3:41 pm
by mountaindent
This is what I have been looking for to restore the top. There goes my free day tomorrow!

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Thu May 03, 2018 1:01 pm
by 8Track
After spending 3 hours washing and waxing my rig top to bottom, I realized that I didn't hate myself enough just yet and decided to try this petroleum jelly trick. Wow! what a difference! Before, my top had a strong contrast to the body and didn't realize that it was just heavily oxidized..now it's pulled back most of what I feel is the original color and looks great! I can't stop looking at it. Thanks for the tip Baggydew!

Here's a trick I learned to restore the color to the faded & oxidized running boards- mix two parts paint thinner & one part boiled linseed oil- Apply it with a cloth and let it sit for about 10 minutes then just wipe off. Keep applying it til you get the color back and it will last a long time with no oil buildup (I was able to get my color back with just one pass). Prior to applying this, my running boards looked like a faded blue, but realized they are more of a deep grey color after using this method. They really look great now!

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Thu May 03, 2018 1:29 pm
by baggydew
I'm going to try your trick on the running boards. Appreciate your feedback.

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Wed May 30, 2018 8:26 pm
by GJCamper
Did you use the regular or the no-scratch type of scrubby sponge when you applied the petroleum jelly?

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Posted: Wed May 30, 2018 10:55 pm
by baggydew
I just used something I bought at the grocery store Scotch Brite or something. Don't think it matters if it's scratch proof. The idea is to get the petroleum jelly on the surface. The scrubby side just helped to rub away the oxidation a bit. You don't even have to rub hard....just work the jelly into the fiberglass. As soon as the jelly is put on the fiberglass, you'll see a change back to the original color. Then buff the gooey stuff off and wax. The jelly goes down into the pores of the fiberglass and restores the finish. At first, I didn't even wax the surface and water beaded up but it was such a smooth finish after buffing the jelly off, I went ahead and waxed it. You won't believe how easily this works.