Touch up paint...what next?
 

Hello to all!

First time posting on the detailing thread but I think I've read every post so far.

I've got a 1997 British Racing Green XK8 convertable with a few dings and scratches in the paint. I ordered primer, paint, and clearcoat pens from automotivetouchup.com and have tested the products on a small inconspicuous area.
I filled in the chip with 2-3 coats of paint and then very lightly wet sanded with 2000 grit in a back and forth direction until smooth. There is a slight haziness around the area due to the wet sanding. I assume that all the touched up areas will have this same haziness after wet sanding.
What do I do and which products do I use to eliminate this hazy area and bring out the shine? I would like to repair all the scratches and chips and then detail/restore the paint.

Should I start working on the hazy touch up areas with regular rubbing compound first, Maguire's ultimate compound the whole car after washing, then clay bar...?

Thanks in advance!
Nick

Anyone...?:icon_denk:

Nick,

I have done this myself through the years and Meguiar's Ultimate Polish will work just fine to bring back the gloss. You may need to go over it a few times if doing by hand. With a machine one good pass should bring back the gloss. It is very safe to use and works well. After polishing the hazed over areas just apply a coat of wax. For the past year or so I have not been wet sanding touched up areas but simply using a paint leveling fluid to make the touched up area as seamless as possible. Any mild product like Goof Off will work well and then polish and wax. I feel that using the fluid eliminates the risks of wet sanding and removing clear coat. Good luck.

Ed

In my experience it takes off all the touch-up. But by all means try it. You have nothing to lose. Its gutsy sanding on the car if you cant use a rotary polisher. Or if your not really experienced. However admirable! Good luck.

Thanks Ed and Paintxpert for the response and advise.

I did use a rotary with Maguire's Ultimate and it came out nicely. The area was in a very non-noticeable area at first to try my hand at the job (never did it before). Unfortunately, it's been freezing here in Virginia so I haven't done any other chips yet. I'll wait till it warms a bit.

The Goof Off sugestion is interesting and and I think I'll try it in a very inconspicuous area at first. Wet sanding a 16 year old paint job is a little nerve wracking for me, but as I said, it came out great the first time around.

Again, Thanks for the suggestions!

Nick

I know this is an old post but, I'll chime in. After sanding down the touch up with wet 2000 paper just use Wolfgangs swirl remover with an orange pad. Will look pretty much perfect even before final polish. It is a little nerve racking sanding your paint the first couple of times. However, I have done it many times with extremely good results.

BTW I have never felt the need to use the clear coat when doing these corrections.

I go down in increments to wet 7000 before using a swirl remover.

What is so good about Wofgangs swirl remover? I use Meguiar's Mirror Glaze.

Also for the final rub I use Turtle Wax Jet Black Spray Detailer on my black paint which I find amazing.

I also find that clear coat is easy to "melt" with an orbital device even at low speed. But maybe I am just a clutz.

Years ago I repainted an entire Jaguar XJS converting to white from brown. I learned a lot the hard way doing that.

Hi John

Whats good about Wolgangs? It works. Having not used Meguiar's Mirror Glaze before I cannot compare the two as which one is better or worse. I just find that I get extremely good results from Wolfgangs so why go elsewhere. If you look at the amount of products on the market people obviously make choices be it price points, availability recommendations, or prior experience. So I guess there is no best product kinda like what's the best pizza.

Have been a car enthusiast since I was a teenager and have owned many cars over the years and tried a lot of (not all) products over the years. Currently these are my go to favorites:

Swirl remover/finishing glaze: Wolfgangs

Wax: Meguiars Ultimate Paste (Have used many many over the years and some at ridiculous prices. At $20 it's pretty tough to beat).

Detailer: Meguiars, Gold Class, Premium Quick Detailer

Protectant, Top Cleaner, Fabric Guard, Leather cleaner/conditioner: 303

Wheel Cleaner: Mothers, Wheel & Tire Cleaner

These are just my picks and what I use. Not claiming they are the best but, they all do what I want them to do very well. Like they say, that's why they have menus in restaurants.

Cheers!

Andrew

Have just corrected a few old(and a few new ones..) stone chips repairs(that was really not all that good done) on my -98 XKR, BRG=HGD paint, i used the method as described from this Audi forum(https://www.audiworld.com/forums/aut...r-kit-2240415/), worked quite well, only thing to add that helped me a bit is to grind slightly at edges of chip with say 2000/3000 grit wet before topping it up with the paint, let it dry for 12h then onto the job with method as described in the Audi thread, have not got around to polish the car though, but confident that result will be much better than it once was,

Cheers!
k.