I sanded with a 220 on a RO sander with hepa shopvac filter. Finished with a 320. I did a substrate adhesion check to be sure what whatever I applied would actually stick.

I then marked all scratches, gouges, and anything that needed filling. I found a good LED flashlight along the hull usually showed them up pretty well. I wiped everything down, whether for fairing or painting/priming with a recommended solvent wash to remove contaminates before applying anything.

I am not sure how technical you want to get...just ask.

Scott

Siren,

I see that you did an incredible job painting the topcoat of your boat. I am about to start on the same project for my 33' sailboat and wanted to talk to you about prep because I am having an extremely hard time finding information on this step. With such a great finished product I imagine that you have spent quite a bit of time on the prepwork. I am preparing to sand the entire topcoat, but would love information on how deep I should sand, what grit should I use, and other general prep information. Any advice you could give me would be extremely helpful.