Does 303 Protectant "restore' Gloss on Fiberglas

[virgil47]

I have a 1999 Montana and the fiberglas sides have oxidized or "powdery" and have loss all of their luster. Anyone have any experience with using 303 protectant to restore the gloss?
How often does it need to be reapplied?

[tollmann]

Have not tried 303 but Nu-Finish seems to do the job.

[sreigle]

Tollmann, how much "effort" does Nu-Finish require to restore, say, a full front cap? In other words, can it restore the shine with an hour's effort, 8 hours, or 15 minutes, in your estimation?
Thanks.

[Montana_1197]

When I wax I use Nu-finish. It's one of those "once-a-year" silicone based waxes. Goes on and comes off easier than a lot of other waxes. I've been using it on my other cars for years and not had any oxidation problems, even on the old loser-crusier. On the sides of the rig it worked great! The wax also removed any trace of the black streaks too. But I'm sorry to say the nose cap is a different story. I let it get away from me and after just waxing it looked great as long as you looked straight at it but from an angle you can still see the oxidation (kinda looks like you missed a lot of spots). I even tried the fiberglass polishing compound, it was better but still not the desired results. If it's the new look you're after, its going to take a boatload of work. You might want to consult a body shop and maybe someone else has a secret. I hope. Good luck.

[sreigle]

On another thread not long ago someone mentioned how well Poliglow worked. I have the details somewhere but have not yet tried it myself. Maybe they'll pop in and enlighten us again.

[Glenn and Lorraine]

303 will not restore the gloss. And any application of 303 is limited to 2 or 3 months.
My suggestion would be to get a good polishing compound, NOT rubbing compound, and a buffer. It will take a little elbow grease but it should remove the oxidation. Be careful when using the buffer around the graphics, if you bare down too hard it could damage them. After the compounding you can use any good wax and the shine should return. After that a yearly application of Nu Finish should be all that's required.

[virgil47]

All,

Appreciate the feedback. Looks like I'm going to try polishing compound and Nu-finish.

[wileecoyote985]

Virgil;

Haven't visited the MOC forum regularly as of late, so this response is a little less than timely.

You may want to try a product called Vertglas. It's specifically for restoring the gloss to fiberglas and gelcoat finshes.

It was originally developed for the boating industry to restore badly oxidized boat hulls.

I just recently used it on a motorhome that I'm sprucing up to sell and it worked fantastic.

According to the reviews I've read, it's necessary to re-apply a coat or two annually, but it goes on quite easily and shouldn't be a real problem.

Here's a link to Boaters World. They have it for about the best price I could find.

http://www.boatersworld.com/webapp/w...atalogId=10051

Gary