Ghost lettering...boat name change.

Moving along with my projects next is the removal name and installation of her new name. i have the old vinyl and sticky goo off but there is BIG time ghost lettering. I have tried to deal with it in a few ways...first i used some rubbing compound. That made it nice, smooth and clean (gives me hope for the rest of the boat). Next i tried some 1000 grit tehn i went for the big guns...500 grit. Yet the ghost is still haunting me.

this is not a case of having clean, non-oxidized gelcoat under the stickers... the area under the old vinyl is yellowed. So what are my options?

I am not sure if i want to sand anymore...i think it would make a bigger mess???

how about getting a sheet of white vehicle wrap installed on the stern? anyone done this?

any other ideas???

I just removed the big vinyl from the FB and Stern of the boat. It covered up ghost of the past. I removed those, sanded until smooth, after sanding the FB needed new gel coat to bring her back. I had this applied professionally. Cost new gel coat it might be just a bit more than a big wrap. The wrap may not look as good either. That's why I removed it to start over when making a name change. You could try to get a gel coat match and roll it on several layers knowing your going to sanding down to a flat surface. You wouldn't be out much other than time.

The sun caused the damage and the sun will fix it - stick your new name where you want it and be patient.

You have done all you can. In about 6 years, after 2 Bombay's and tonic it won't matter.......

Renaming Your Boat - BoatSafe.com
Maybe, you never know.

You can paint. It's cheap, easy and if done correctly it will look like new.

I had a similar problem with the old boat many years ago. Sun has a way of changing gel coat. Paint is the answer. If you paint the entire transom and the color is fairly close you will never see the difference. Painting with a roller and tipping with a brush can produce sprayed results that can not be distinguished with a couple of feet of distance. Cost is insignificant.

Xsbank said:

The sun caused the damage and the sun will fix it - stick your new name where you want it and be patient.

Click to expand...

This is the best advice. I had the same issue. I had it professionally cleaned up...ie wet sanded and compounded. That is pretty much all you can do unless you paint it.