Fixin her up!

[Jimmy]

Just picked up a 1988 11 Meter Express. And stumbled upon this site. Impressive.... I am going to give this boat a once over. Needs a good polising, and some minor repairs, but next year the transformation will begin, but for now just the start. 454's got 1450 hrs, and mostly fished, so I will do compression test and decide if my winter project is a dual rebuild. For the most part given its age, it is not in bad shape, minor moisture found during inspection, but needs some new seal work.

Few questions for the experts:

How do I remove the old name? (Painted on).. Daughter wants a new name.

Can the non skid deck be waxed (potential dumb question)

Previous owner used the slip posts a lot (brail docking) so the rub rails are pretty banged up. Where can I get replacement metal?

Anxious to splash her, but need some love. It is a boat after all right? Any other suggestions about this boat are welcome!

Thanks in advance

[bjanakos]

For painted on names, you can try a heat gun and a plastic scraper. It might gel it up enough to get it off. Paint thinner might also work, but be careful about your speed as it WILL react with the gel coat. There is a paint thinner called "Peel Away" that I have used in the past with some success on gel coats. With either method, you will probably end up doing some wet sanding to level the surface.

[Jimmy]

Thanks for the info, yea, thought about paint remover, but a little nervous about the gel. Did not think of the heat gun, used carefully, good info, thanks!

Plan E is a BIG new sticker for a name,,,, lol.

[Flyboy]

I have never done this, but I have seen others use Oven Cleaner, then rinse off.

[todd brinkerhoff]

Congrats on your boat. 11 Meters are great boats. I've used oven cleaner with success. It left the gelcoat a little yellowed though. I would try some of the sticker removal formulas first.

Your non-skid can be cleaned up with starbrite non-skid cleaner and eraser pads. You can use woody wax (expensive) for non skid waxing.

[comodave]

The previous owner had the name in metalflake tape. I removed the tape, but the gel was burned brown very deep and it would not even sand out with 400 grit. I ended up painting the transom.

[Jimmy]

Great ideas and suggestions, ill start with the soft approach and work my way towards the oven cleaner.

[BarryL]

The Oven cleaner works very well.

And just in case you were not aware. We love pictures on this site. Without pictures it never happened.

Congrats on the new Meter boat. I would love to move to an 11 meter from my 10 but width would require a total re-work of my dock and it would make all of the other boaters in my area green with envy.

Barry

[jordan]

Congratulations on buying a Trojan! Welcome to the site.

Oven cleaner works great, that's what I used.

Jim

[Jimmy]

Pictures of a boat still on the sticks just is not right. Ill post some as soon as she is wet. But this will do for now

[K4282]

That oven cleaner trick is the best from what ive read and seen, apply heat if necessary, congratulations and best of luck

[P-Dogg]

You might try plastic "razor blades" from west marine. I used them on a boot strip sticker with great success. Won't damage gelcoat, probably best used with gentle heat -- hair dryer, not torch. Non toxic to boot.

And welcome.

[Jimmy]

Ok, she is in the water, now comes the first initial cleaning.... Kids cannot wait . Is there a source for new metal rub rail? There are some pretty scuffed up and dented sections I would like to replace.

Oh, And, updated the pic!

[prowlersfish]

Most any marine supply place like west should have the rub rail

[larryeddington]

Check with Bob at Beacon he does stock some of the various rails. Then another place is Rubrails.com.