I bought a carbon telescope with a view to restoration. I am thinking of buffing down and recoating with XCR Epoxy. The telescope was obviously left outdoors at some point, some of the bolts are rusty and the Aluminium end caps are bubbling under the paint (powder coat?). I have attached pictures of the carbon, and was wondering if anyone could say what the white marks are? It must be some kind of water damage i think, and thought it might be best to get a second opinion of what, if anything, can be done about them before actually doing anything. I think I will re-coat anyway as there are loads of pinholes.

Thanks for the replies so far. Yes, sanding back the gelcoat agreed. It doesn't seem very thick though. You can see how the white marks go round the tube in kind of lines following the weave. Do you know what it is that causes it?

Heh heh mediocre hand layup. Yes, it probably is mediocre, but how can you tell?

Regards, and stay safe.