Restore exterior shine

[azjak]

Appreciate recommendations of products found useful to restore the shine to the sides of a coach. Mine is a 2019 Thor Class C purchased in Oct 2018 and has (I assume) fiberglass side walls. I have been using Meguirs as was recommended by a fellow RV'er as it worked well for him, but recently the sides have gotten very dull Thanks Jack

[l1v3fr33ord1]

Jack-

I have used Finish Kare 2180 Ultra Polymer Sealant (link here) for several years on painted fiberglass and metal RVs and painted metal cars. Goes on like wax, but lasts much longer.

[rffowler55]

We have used poli-glow for years and it leaves a great lasting shine.

[Brad2018]

I'll second Poli-glow. Recently applied it to my class C. Before it had zero shine. It now looks new again.

https://www.amazon.com/Poli-Glow-Del...4946980&sr=8-3

[Mark D]

What I would do is polish the exterior. If you are up for the effort get a Griots Garage random orbital polisher. Then I would use a meguiar's polish followed up with their M27 hybrid wax.

The wax is amazing. It's self leveling and still beads after a year. I do hit certain spots with spray on sio2 wax, like the roof and sides where water runs down more than others.

[Winemaker2]

Originally Posted by Mark D

What I would do is polish the exterior. If you are up for the effort get a Griots Garage random orbital polisher. Then I would use a meguiar's polish followed up with their M27 hybrid wax.

The wax is amazing. It's self leveling and still beads after a year. I do hit certain spots with spray on sio2 wax, like the roof and sides where water runs down more than others.

Agree
If it is dull it is because the gel coat and/ or paint is oxidized. You may even get some white chalk on a finger or dark co,ored rag rubbed over the dull surface.. Just applying a coating will improve the look but only temporarily and not nearly as much as if the underlying surface is shiney.
It will take some experimenting but best to use the least aggressive compound / polish that brings back the shine w a DA polisher in a reasonable time.
Lots of how to videos online if you are new to surface correction.
I like to use a very mild polish prior to recoating w wax or polymer (haven't tried ceramic coatings yet). It doesn't take nearly much time when done as a repeat vs the original surface correction. The benefit, in addition to keeping that nice shine is it really cleans the surface for the wax / polymer coating to do its job.

Sent from my SM-T387V using iRV2 - RV Forum mobile app

[PABO05]

Originally Posted by Mark D

What I would do is polish the exterior. If you are up for the effort get a Griots Garage random orbital polisher. Then I would use a meguiar's polish followed up with their M27 hybrid wax.

The wax is amazing. It's self leveling and still beads after a year. I do hit certain spots with spray on sio2 wax, like the roof and sides where water runs down more than others.

X2 on meguiars

[Brad2018]

I'm sure polishers work great for certain types of RVs. My before pic above is from three years of using a polisher and Maguire products. The results were never great. It's obvious that all RVs are not created equal. I use a polisher and Maguire products on all of my other vehicles and they all look great when I am done. The paint on the Thor Class C is just bad from the start. Mine lost most of its shine within the first two years. It took almost four years of trying different methods and products before discovering Poli-glow. Not really sure why I hadn't seen it before. It has been around for quite some time.

The kit is more than just a coating. You have to use Poli-prep beforehand to remove all stains and oxidation. Poli-Ox can be used to remove really tough oxidation. Those two products alone did more for my RV's appearance than anything I had previously tried. Scrub the entire surface. Rinse with water and let it dry. Then apply at least four coats of Poli-Glow. All you do is wipe the entire surface.

[Triangle Drifter]

You don't say which Meguires product that you have used however I will assume it is the Flagship polish.

Flagship does not contain any restorative properties. It is a pure sealant to protect whatever exists, which it does very well. It does not remove chalking, bugs or stains. The life of the finish varies with the climate.

I had over 25 years of saltwater inwater kept boats before I got into RVing. I have used many products over the years. Some good. Some trash. You generally get what you pay for. The common thread is that they all require about the same amount of effort.

My 5er is a late 2007 build. Can't say it looks like new but it looks very good considering the 1900 plus nights use & many tens of thousands of miles it has done.

Keeping it in this condition has taken work, though seven months a year indoor storage helps a great deal. The method is Meguires Flagship once a year on the sides, twice on the front cap. Every two years it gets 3M marine cleaner wax first to remove chalking then Flagship right behind for the high gloss & protection.

The Meguires cleaner wax has been tried. Not fussy about that product. It is not as aggressive as the 3M product.

Not an easy job. It takes the DW & I a couple of days to get around it twice even with the strong Makita polisher.

[BOOZE TRAVEL]

I found this by accident about 25yrs ago. It is the fastest and easiest compound for gelcoat I have ever seen. It will take a chalky boat to shiny as new in 1 pass. Same for rv's.
Use a wool pad and a high speed buffer, it needs to bud some heat. I use a Kawasaki these days. 1 gallon is the only way I have been able to get it. That will do a 40' unit several times. I did my boat about once every 5 years and let everyone else on the dock use it in between.
You will have to wax afterwards, it is just a compound.
I would not try it on paint, if someone does, let me know if it was a good idea or not!
This is not available from parts stores.

[153stars]

3M makes marine all in one compound ,swirl remover and wax in different amount of grit. I haven't used it but gets great reviews. Proper speed is important with new compounds as they break down to less aggressive and polish after first cut. I used lots of 3M products never been disappointed and prices are fair for what you get . I did body work for several years still ues tapes, sealers and such at work now.

[PoliGlow]

Brad, so glad you found Poli Glow. Really the most difficult part of cleaning the RV is removing the oxidation. Poli Prep does a good job removing mild oxidation, as you experienced. If you are ever dealing with more severe oxidation, usually associated with darker colors, we recommend using a 3M ultra-fine sanding pad. Once the oxidation is removed, Poli Glow is the easy part. Like you said, just wipe it on. We have found that reapplying a few maintenance coats every 8-10 months really prolongs the longevity of Poli Glow.

[Crasher]

I polish our coach once a year with whatever gelcoat product is available when I purchase it. I apply with an orbital and wipe off with soft towels. The Bus looks just like it did when I took delivery 9 years ago. Nothing special about the products as all of them will do the job if done correctly..

[PoliGlow]

Originally Posted by azjak

Appreciate recommendations of products found useful to restore the shine to the sides of a coach. Mine is a 2019 Thor Class C purchased in Oct 2018 and has (I assume) fiberglass side walls. I have been using Meguirs as was recommended by a fellow RV'er as it worked well for him, but recently the sides have gotten very dull Thanks Jack

Jack,
Fiberglass becomes very porous as it ages and with that, the sun can cause the fiberglass to oxidize (this is the white chalky coating you see on your hands). The most important step in restoring fiberglass, whether using Poli Glow or any other product, is removing that layer of oxidation. Whatever you decide to put on your coach must be able to adhere to the fiberglass without the oxidation getting in the way. With lighter colors, this is not usually a difficult process but darker colors may need to be wet sanded.