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Joyfultooner

Joyfultooner

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Location
Algonquin, IL
We like to keep our toys in tip top condition.

Any recommendations for keeping the new toons shiny? Has anyone used Sharkhide with good results?

I have a few tips for others.

Mr. Clean magic erasers are the best invention EVER for keeping vinyl sparkling clean and mildew free. They work on gelcoat too. Just wet in plain water.

303 UV Protectant is fantastic. It's not greasy or filmy...and doesn't attract dust. We use it on EVERYTHING possible. Dirt wipes right off. I even use it instead of wax on my 04 Seadoo and it still looks brand new!!

Any other tips??
 
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I ordered some Sharkhide, and am waiting delivery. From what i've read, it looks to be the best product for keeping toons looking new. I'll post more on that once i get it on and use the boat a few times. We have used magic erasers and 303 on boats in the past, and they are excellent products. i never thought to use it on our seadoo's, i'll definetly give that a try. Thanks for the tip!
 
Geoffrey & Brenda said:
I ordered some Sharkhide, and am waiting delivery. From what i've read, it looks to be the best product for keeping toons looking new. I'll post more on that once i get it on and use the boat a few times. We have used magic erasers and 303 on boats in the past, and they are excellent products. i never thought to use it on our seadoo's, i'll definetly give that a try. Thanks for the tip!
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You're welcome! One additional tip with the Seadoo application though. Do a test slide on the seat after using 303 BEFORE taking off from zero to 60. Just sayin'
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Geoffrey & Brenda said:
I ordered some Sharkhide, and am waiting delivery. From what i've read, it looks to be the best product for keeping toons looking new. I'll post more on that once i get it on and use the boat a few times. We have used magic erasers and 303 on boats in the past, and they are excellent products. i never thought to use it on our seadoo's, i'll definetly give that a try. Thanks for the tip!
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I am interested to hear on how the Sharkhide application goes. I have been thinking about coating my TOONS with this as well.

GL and keep us posted

TOONS UP
 
TOONS UP, Team Bennington, and anyone else who already has their new boat:

Do the pontoons come extra shiny....so we can blind all the annoying "Go Fast" boats on our river....or will we have to work on that before using Sharkhide on them? It's been so long since I've seen them...I can't remember!!

Does the boat come with any protective coatings...especially the seats, bimini, cover and carpeting?? If so, should we wait to put on more protectant??

Thanks for any advice. We want to be prepared with all prep materials when we bring our new baby home!!
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Hi Joyfultooner, the pontoons come with a 'mill finish', that is how the raw material looks after being ran through a rolling mill to obtain the desired thickness. According to the sharkhide website, if you apply sharkhide to a mirror polished finish, it will dull or haze the finish. if applied to the mill finish, it does not dull or haze. I guess thats because the mill finish has a texture, kind of like brushed stainless steel. I saw an article about Airstream camper owners who mirror polish their campers and did not like the look after applying sharkhide. Can you imagine getting behind a polished Airsteam on a sunny day? That'll blind ya! I'll leave it to Team Bennington to respond about the seats etc. With daylight savings time upon us, it won't be long before we can all get out and have some fun! And thanks for 0-60 tip, i'll be sure to hang on tight!
 
Received my 303 Protectant and Spot Remover today. It's suppose to be warm this weekend so I'll apply it then. I haven't decided if I'm gonna use Sharkhide yet or not. Has anyone had a chance to use it yet?
 
skeptic said:
Received my 303 Protectant and Spot Remover today. It's suppose to be warm this weekend so I'll apply it then. I haven't decided if I'm gonna use Sharkhide yet or not. Has anyone had a chance to use it yet?
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Skeptic,

I have heard lots of great things about 303 protectant. I plan on purchasing some very soon. I am still undecided about the Sharkhide application. I trailer my TOON so I don't have a big issue with "tea stains" from the lake as the boat does not sit in the water 24x7.
 
We are now looking into just waxing or using 303 protectant on our toons instead of using Sharkhide this year. More and more research is telling us that Sharkhide is a real pain to redo in a few years. Since we have agreed that blinding the "go fasts" with mirror finish toons would be bad form.....we are hoping that using our new lift, that was installed yesterday,
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will keep most of the slime and zebra mussels off. We can always clean them and use Sharkhide or Toonbrite down the road.
 
Joyfultooner said:
We are now looking into just waxing or using 303 protectant on our toons instead of using Sharkhide this year. More and more research is telling us that Sharkhide is a real pain to redo in a few years. Since we have agreed that blinding the "go fasts" with mirror finish toons would be bad form.....we are hoping that using our new lift, that was installed yesterday,
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will keep most of the slime and zebra mussels off. We can always clean them and use Sharkhide or Toonbrite down the road.
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Joyfultooner,

I agree. I am not convinced that Sharkhide is the way to go. I think keeping the pontoons clean is the best one can do.

The alternative is to polish the toons yikes!. By the time I got one toon polished, I would have arms like Popeye! :D

So I don't think I am going to even tackle polishing them. And I also heard sharkhide can be a PIA to remove and redo.
 
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I agree, I think I'll pass on the sharkhide this first season. I'm trailering anyway so the boat won't stay in the water. I did attempt to use 303 Protectant yesterday. I applied it on a few seats but then wondered if it would hurt the stitching on the seats. I was careful not to wipe the stitching just in case. Is this weird thinking? Applying the protectant didn't seem to make the seats look or feel any different. Anyway I stopped using it and decided to just check out everything else on the boat in better detail that I hadn't gotten a chance to do before. It was hot and sunny so I just sat in the captains chair reclined it back and enjoyed the day.
 
skeptic said:
I agree, I think I'll pass on the sharkhide this first season. I'm trailering anyway so the boat won't stay in the water. I did attempt to use 303 Protectant yesterday. I applied it on a few seats but then wondered if it would hurt the stitching on the seats. I was careful not to wipe the stitching just in case. Is this weird thinking? Applying the protectant didn't seem to make the seats look or feel any different. Anyway I stopped using it and decided to just check out everything else on the boat in better detail that I hadn't gotten a chance to do before. It was hot and sunny so I just sat in the captains chair reclined it back and enjoyed the day.
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Good Morning Skeptic!

Sounds like you had a great day!! I'm jealous!! If you go to 303products.com they have great tech brochures on their products. We use 303 on just about everything we own that is exposed to the sun. Bimini, Seats (including stiching), convertible top on my car, whole Seadoo in lieu of wax (keeps gel coat in perfect condition) It protects from UV damage and resists dirt and dust that cause mildew without the greasyness of Armor All type products. Cannot recommend it highly enough.

Happy Boating Season!!
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I just went back to the 303 website and the protectant is recommended for anodized aluminum. Our pontoons are a milled finish...not anodized, correct?? Does anyone know if that makes a difference?? I would love to use 303 on them. I guess we need to order several gallons!!
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Interesting comments about Sharkhide. I have not heard that Sharkhide would be difficult to remove. Not trying to start a argument just wondering where you guys found this info. I too had concerns regarding Sharkhide so I asked some questions on another forum and recieved positive comments. I the spoke with Clint at Sharkhide. Nice guy. He highly recommended that if I was going to use there protectant to apply before my new boat is put in the water. He stated that even being in the water once would cause some slight discoloration that would be very difficut to remove. Unless I hear from someone who has had problems with his products I am leaning towards apply a couple of coats before I put the boat in the water.

These new Bennys are quite an investment and I like to keep my boats looking nice for as long as possible

Steve
 
You're not starting an argument at all Steve. I think we are all looking for a definitive answer to the Sharkhide question! Do you have a link to that forum?? I must have missed it!!

My first hesitation came when I read a response from Team Bennington Admin to Skeptic on the "Don't Be Shy" thread.

"Now, on to Sharkhide. Sharkhide will not hurt aluminum. It does a nice job of keeping the tube looking clean for several years, at least where fenders and trailers do not rub hard on the tubes. If you leave the boat in the lake year-round, the initial application may not last as long. Touch-up and maintenance to Sharkhide years later can be quite involved and we do not have experience with this. Sharkhide is toxic in the liquid form and can be difficult to apply evenly. Please contact the manufacturer directly for more information."

I spend WAY too much time researching on the internet...so I can't give you an exact link...but several forums said it was a real pain to remove and redo. Lots of laquer thinner and elbow grease and scraping as I recall. I found more hesitation than affirmation of the product...which is why we are waiting for others personal experience. I keep hoping that someone with an older Bennington that has used Sharkhide will help us make a decision. Or maybe Team Bennington can butt in a bit here for us??? Please???
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On yet another rabbit trail I came across Pontoonforums.com (sorry to plug another site!) Search Sharkhide and there are LOTS of experiences and opinions. Most seem to be pretty positive and the owner, Clint, is a member of the site. What to do? What to do?? LOL!
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Hi Joyful

Pontoonforums.com is the forum where I was seeing the positive reponses. Clint told me that Sharkhide does not need to be removed. Can be touched up and a new coat added when needed. He recommended recoating every year or two depending on the amount of time in the water. If there are any blemishes or stains on the aluminum prior to coating with Sharkhide they will still be there after application. Since I will be trailering my boat I think I am going to go ahead and use Sharkhide. If I was keeping my boat in a slip not so sure. Give Clint at Sharkhide a call. Nice to be able to speak with the owner when you contact a company with questions.

Steve
 
Boomers dad said:
Hi Joyful

Pontoonforums.com is the forum where I was seeing the positive reponses. Clint told me that Sharkhide does not need to be removed. Can be touched up and a new coat added when needed. He recommended recoating every year or two depending on the amount of time in the water. If there are any blemishes or stains on the aluminum prior to coating with Sharkhide they will still be there after application. Since I will be trailering my boat I think I am going to go ahead and use Sharkhide. If I was keeping my boat in a slip not so sure. Give Clint at Sharkhide a call. Nice to be able to speak with the owner when you contact a company with questions.

Steve
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Hi Steve!

After reading the posts on that site we started leaning toward using it...especially since the boat will be on a lift and not in the water like our last boat. (People were saying that it lasts many years on trailered/lifted boats) Then our Dealer called us on Saturday and told us that our baby will be ready to go by this weekend!!
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He also said that if it was his boat, he would use Sharkhide. We ordered it Saturday night online!!

Thanks for all your advice and help. I am feeling much more confident that this is a great idea!
 
Joyfultooner said:
Hi Steve!

After reading the posts on that site we started leaning toward using it...especially since the boat will be on a lift and not in the water like our last boat. (People were saying that it lasts many years on trailered/lifted boats) Then our Dealer called us on Saturday and told us that our baby will be ready to go by this weekend!!
biggrin.gif
He also said that if it was his boat, he would use Sharkhide. We ordered it Saturday night online!!

Thanks for all your advice and help. I am feeling much more confident that this is a great idea!
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Be sure to let us know the details of the application once you get finished. Thank you.

Oh! Almost forgot....I finished applying the 303 Protectant one the interior of the boat. Here are some pics:
 
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Hey Guys

I'm officially jealous. I still have to wait 4 weeks for my boat :(

Be sure and watch the application video on the Sharkhide web site or call Clint. You want to make sure you apply it right.

Please post and let us know how it goes.

Steve
 
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