05 May 23:
ANNA's gelcoat is very oxidized. Red is one of hardest colors to bring back, but we'll give it a shot. We wet sanded a small spot with 1200 grit and then buffed with 3M Fiberglass Restorer and Wax, using our new DeWALT 20V 7" variable speed rotary polisher and a soft bonnet. The results were fair, the question is can we do the whole deck without sanding through the gelcoat?
29 Apr 2023:
We were procrastinating on the Catfish repairs and wooden Sunfish build, so what better way to get over that than to buy a sunburnt 1964 ALCORT Sunfish off of fb Marketplace? Threw a dolly on the ole picker trailer and off we went to Waverly, VA.
They were asking $700 and had a sad medical story, so we humbly paid $700. They didn't know how to sail and had traded services for the boat, never got around to sailing, so her history is cloaked. All the period correct parts are mostly there, the hull was light, spars semi straight, factory blades with only a little flaking bondo. Sail...yes, there is a factory sail. Loading was easy peasy.
The deck was a dark red/maroon, and other than the burnt gelcoat it is pristine. It will be interesting to see if wet sanding produces an acceptable return to glory. And yes, the hole is supposed to be there in the Serial No. plate, that's the hull vent for early 60s boats. Original hull color visible through the vent hole.
