Is it paint or gelcoat?

[bhartley]

I'm in the process of restoring a miserably neglected Typhoon. Up until today, I thought the topsides were original gelcoat. They are pretty evenly dull and chalky but with no signs of a bad paintjob like the deck has. However... after removing the rubrail and cleaning up all of the caulk residue, it sure looks like the topsides were painted (with the rubrail off). The line of "paint" appears to be uneven under the rubrail with gelcoat above.

All this said, is there a simple way to tell if it's paint or really tired gelcoat like you can with oil & latex?

[CharlieJ]

in a very inconspicuous place apply a dab of a Methelyene Chloride stripper. If the surface bubbles it's probably paint. if it just goes dull and a little soft, it's probably gel coat. Be warned - a Meth Clor stripper WILL soften gel coat, so don't do it in a place where it'll show.