My XJS was painted two years ago. Back, when the car had just been painted it looked great, but as time went by, I noticed a slight loss of gloss that up close looked like micro-orange peel, which unfortunately kept slowly getting worse. This fellow who I see at car shows and who owns a showcar paint business assured me that this is not unusual at all and that in many cases the paint will be color sanded considerably later because, for various reasons (some the painter’s fault), some paint jobs take time to settle and that could well be the case with my car, but that two years should be more than enough time for the paint to be ready for the final touch, i.e. color/wet sanding.

I have limited knowledge about car paint and some knowledge about how color sanding works, but I have never done it myself. I do know that the hood (which was stripped down to the metal) received a bunch of clear coats, but not necessarily the rest of the car, so I felt shy of practicing on it myself and decided to let the pros take over, but not the guy who painted it. Although I’ve seen some pretty good jobs he’s done, I still blame this on him, so whether I’m right or wrong, I won’t go back to him.

The picture of a painted area means very little if there’s no object reflection to assess the resolution, or detail, but there’s one rule that I use, both, when looking at the actual car, or when looking at pictures. I use as reference the edge of things that reflect off the paint, such as the edge of a roof, electrical poles and wires, trees, branches and leaves, or yourself. The sharper the reflection (i.e. detail, resolution) that you capture from the edges of the reflections the better, including how moving yourself to see reflection from adjacent areas keeps the detail intact (uniform). This is not about how “polished” or “shiny” the paint looks, but rather about how uniform and detailed the shine is…. and continues to be as you move.

The car was color sanded a couple of weeks ago and I’m finally very happy with the results. The reflections are near perfect and I no longer wish that my car’s paint was like those nice finishes you see at car shows. The only thing I regret is not being able to say “I did it, that’s my job”. Oh well.

I’m attaching a couple of pictures for reference, showing the exact features noted above: the leaves and tree branches edges in dark vs. the sky.

Cheers,

Reinaldo

 

Looks great, I would be very happy with that. Good job you left it to the pros, I can tell you from recent experience that wet sanding and buffing is a painstaking job. My arms still ache.

Get it wrong and the paint job is ruined.

 

Thank you!
Yes, I know it is hard -and long- work, but I wouldn't mind it if I knew that I wasn't taking any chances with the clear coat in light of my lack of experience.

Cheers,

Reinaldo

 

Thank you for this. My Jag needs to a new paint job. Are there any recommendations to look for when I go shopping to find someone to do it? Do I need to ask for glossy coat, etc...?

thanks

 

The only thing I would insist on is the paint is done in 2 pack. This will last longer and have a better shine than Acrylic.

This is mine after a wet sand and initial buff, it still needs final buffing to remove some of the swirl marks. This is Signal red with 4 coats of Clear all done in 2 pack.

 

thanks, what exactly is a 2 pack? Is that 2 coats of paint or a different type of paint?

 

It is a paint that has 2 parts, part one is the colour (paint) and part two is the hardener. Once cured it is very hard and durable, all new cars these days are painted in 2 pack.

There is also 2 stage this is where you have a base coat (Colour) and clear over the top. This can be both Acrylic (single pack ie no hardener) or 2 pack.

 

Thanks for the info!

 

When it comes to paint jobs it is a really wide open scenario. From cheap to decent, to good, to really good and to show quality; and so are the prices.
From an excellent body work to generous clear coats and then some fine sanding and polishing, all will all impact the final price.

I asked the guy who did the wet sanding how much he would've charged me to paint and to finish wet sand my XJS to look the same and he responded "somewhere between $7k and $8k". Considering what I paid myself (and from asking around) it is a fair price for what you get (if you hammer it to lower $$) His work is "phenomenal".

That was for my car, which he knows had a fairly straight body to begin with. The body work is very important and very time consuming so, if the car is not too straight, the price will go up. It will depend a lot on that. The great thing about show car paint is that it is the quality finish, itself, what advertises for their business, so they try their very best that your car will attract customers and the main winner is you and your ride. This wouldn't be the case from your average neighborhood body shop, who collects mostly from insurance companies.

I am not sure how much lesser of a paint job would still have the potential for a great wet-sand finish, but I do know that the more clear coat, the better for that purpose. Maybe somebody will do the paint for $3k-$4k. You can always discuss in what form would the paint be affected if he did it for, say, $3k and if you're ok with the compromise, whatever that may be. But, again, keep in mind that the good body work is a must; if the body was left only so-so, the wet-sand shine will be wasted, as it will only enhance the flaws even more.

It is good that you talk to knowledgeable, professional people and ask the right questions. Some may be even be more willing to compromise. Very, very important is to see some of their work in person. And, of course, they will also need to see your car first before committing to a price. Are you in SoCal? I can give you this guy's info by private email if you're interested. Maybe some other SoCal forum subscribers know more places in the area.

The XJS is a car that shows enhancements better than most other cars.
Good luck.

Reinaldo

 

Man, great finish! I thought I saw a bird eating a worm on one of those branches reflections...LOL. Once you have that much detail the reflection starts to look "deep".

Over here is mostly a primer, base-color and various clear coats, depending. Like my hood, which was stripped down to metal, got several extra coats of clear to allow for more possible future surface work. I will inquire about that "2-pack" for future consideration, maybe the wife's Z3.

Cheers,

Reinaldo

 

The whole car went back to bare metal in my garage.

Here is a link to my blog

Jaguar XJS Restoration : Painting the XJS

 

Nice job, all out commitment. A job like that will fetch $20K at the least over here. That's equivalent to purchasing 2 ea. XJS cars in fairly good condition...
Great when the owner is able to do it himself.
Cheers,

Reinaldo

 

That's why I did it myself with lots of research. There was no way I could afford to pay someone to the type of job I was wanting. It did take me a year to do the body work and get the paint applied though.

 

So, you're saying that this "2-parts" paint is, really, a single paint that contains both, the color base and a hardener, all mixed together (as in "epoxy paint" by any chance?), so the finished job will not include a clear coat? So when you wet sand this paint you're sanding on the base color rather than a clear coat, do I have this right? Sounds like the older lacker paint jobs that didn't have clear coats applied but still needed intense rubbing on after a few days.

Then, the "2 stage" that you describe is like the current standard over here, meaning the base color and then the clear coat(s).

Cheers!

 

No - the 2 part (2 Pack also known as 2K) paint has 2 parts that need to be mixed. Once you put the 2 parts together they have a chemical reaction and will harden even if you seal them in a tin.

This is where it might get confusing. 2k paint can be single stage (No clear coat) or clear over base colour (known as COB).

No - this is a single stage paint. This can be single pack where no hardener is required and the paint drys in contact with air (like the old Enamel paints or Acrylic), or a 2K where a separate hardener is added to the paint so it cures.

Yes this is correct.

 

Got it, thank you.