Vela Grey gelcoat in a bottle

Paraic

Member
Hi,

has anyone used the vela grey gel coat repair bottles? Just wondering how good a match is it? I've just bought a 175 and some gob****e tied it up to a wall and let it hop off it for a few minutes.

The left gunnel is all scraped and chipped, thankfully it has no fibreglass damage and the rest of the boat is spotless.

Anyway, any feedback or opinions welcome!
 
Sorry for not replying earlier but I've only just spotted this posting - I purchased some Vela Grey Gelcoat from Laser performance at the end of last year. I was lead to believe that my boat was a Vela grey hull (Built 2005 Sail No.183199) but the repairs are definitely visible as the colour is very definitely paler than the grey of the hull. A bit disapointing really, I'd previously done some minor gelcoat repairs on my old RS Vareo and the gelcoat supplied by RS was a perfect match,

Nigel :mad:
 
Agreed, not a good match, even tried the sailboat one in the tin & that was a shade lighter, & before anyone says did you use the correct one, Dawn grey prior 1999, Vella grey since 1999.
 
I take it they didn't fade in either then? thats annoying, you'd think they would be able to supply you with a perfert matching hull repair at this stage.

Thanks so much for the replays
 
My experience of gellcoat repairs is very different....i have touched up chips around my mast step and bow many times and have always been amazed at how good the colour match is.
 
Its not gonna break the bank to get the vela grey stuff over the one in my local marine supply store so im gonna get it anyway, will pop up a few pics of the before and after.
 
I think if I was to do it again I would buy some black & white pigment & experiment a little more, I wouldn't say the genuine one was a million miles out, you would walk past the boat & not notice, but I could see the repairs, it was good enough but far from a perfect colour match.
 
I don't know if it is the boat or the gelcoat pots which have changed, but several people have said about a slight change in gelcoat.

All the bottles of gelcoat that Laser sell are from the US now any way. The website says it is 500ml but they are 1/2 pint. Bit of short changing!
 
At least here in Europe most gelcoat manufactors use RAL colour codes for identifying the different colours of gelcoat. As there are hundreds of different RAL codes one of these has to be equal to or very close to the Vela Grey used for 1999--> Lasers. Does anyone know the RAL code for this Vela Grey colour, so that I could get the correct colour of gelcoat for my hull? Or perhaps one of you who purchased the Vela Grey bottles could check if there is a RAL code printed on these?
 
At least here in Europe most gelcoat manufactors use RAL colour codes for identifying the different colours of gelcoat. As there are hundreds of different RAL codes one of these has to be equal to or very close to the Vela Grey used for 1999--> Lasers. Does anyone know the RAL code for this Vela Grey colour, so that I could get the correct colour of gelcoat for my hull? Or perhaps one of you who purchased the Vela Grey bottles could check if there is a RAL code printed on these?

Hi.
I got the "vella grey"-gelcoat of my next Lasershop at Duisburg/GER. I just have been downstairs, to look at that can. I recognized, it is original sold by Roostersailing. (item/product code, that is mentioned at the can: "Gelvg 125". Also "BATCH 305" is mentioned under this code on the can). The gelcoat inside is very liquid. The correct catalyst you need is called: "MEKP"-Catalyst (weight-ratio for Gelcoat:MEKP-Catalyst = 100:2)

The color of this gelcoat in the can, I own, is slightly lighter, than the actual colour of my in August 2000 built PSE-Laser. If gelcoat of the hull oldens (f.e.: by the sun), it gets slightly a bit dark, than it has originally left the mould at PSEs Shipyard. Only in the sunshine one really recognizes this difference. Perhaps you may ask/phone Roostersailing/UK to get the related RAL Code (The RAL Code No. is not mentioned on the can of Roostersailing I own. I have looked at it outside everywhere). Take care, your Laser not is much more old than end of the 90ties . If I remember correct, the first grey-colored Laserhulls, produced by PSE, did have the color "Dawn Grey" (definitely "dawn grey" is not the same like "vella-grey"). This probably has been in the beginning of the 90ties, I am not sure in this.

Ciao
LooserLu

Addition:
I just visited the Roostersailing-"UK"-websites. I found exact that 75 ml can, that I also have. The actual product code is: "3854"
 
Thanks for checking it up, LooserLu. Yeah I figure I will need to try Rooster, or just buy the closest grey I can find and perhaps mix my own colour if needed. It would just be so easy if I knew the RAL code, then I could just go down to the local gelcoat store and get the correct colour immediately.

If anyone is interested, RAL code charts can be found on the web, eg. http://www.e-paint.co.uk/RAL_Colourchart.asp
 
The problem is: The gelcoat of the boat alters/ages. In result of this, it is nearly impossible to hit the correct actually color of the hull, just by taking gelcoat of the original RAL number, if the hull isn't quite new or not often sailed in sun etc..

Therefore, one is able to pruchase "color powder" for the gelcoat. If I am correct, the gelcoat gets slight more dark, if it ages AND also during the process of hardening of the new gelcoat.

From this both aspects, I would say: you better ask the gelcoat shop, to give you additional gelcoat color powder, that slightly makes the gelcoat a bit more dark (this advise is related to "vella grey" and isn't correct for other colors, f.e.: "Magnolia" color of very old Laser hulls).

It is really a difficult art, to catch the correct color for the gelcoat you plan to put onto the hull.

You better test it on an area where it is not to be seen to much ( f.e. under the gunwale somewhere?).

Here is a gelcoat repair I have done in 2006. (At one of that photos there you recognize the gelcoat can of Roostersailing, I mentioned above)

http://www.laserforum.org/showthread.php?t=4239

At the same area, I did additionally repair with exact the same can of gelcoat in May 2009 -> view photos in attachment

good success
LooserLu
 

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