Restoring the gloss on a re-gelcoated hull

I recently had my hobie 18 re gelcoated. I was instructed to use acetone on the hull before adhering a Hobie Sticker. I read that acetone will not damage gelcoat, but when I lightly wiped the surface, some of the (white) gel came off on the rag. The surface is of course dull and in one area orange peeled. It is my asumption that the orange peel is due to the prep of the surface? Regardless, I tried paste wax, fine rubbing compound and then paste wax, but the surface never returned to glossy. Any thoughts and suggestions?

Sounds like the surface is not cured properly. Gel Coat doesn't like oxygen when curing and will remain soft. Usually requires wax in the gel or a spray on cover (Polyvinyl acetate / PVA) after spraying the gel coat.

_________________
Matt Miller
Former - Director of Parts and Accessory Sales
Warranty and Technical Support
Hobie Cat USA
(Retired 11/7/2022)

Thanks for the response. It is waxed gelcoat. And as it turned out, I realized that there are some areas on the boat that may have not been originally buffed, or as the guy described, that the surface has some highs and lows making it hard to sand without removing gelcoat. He also said that waxed gelcoat takes 30 days to fully cured-but did say acetone shouldn't hurt it.

I will settle with a few blemishes.

Thanks again!