Will polishing remove orange peel?

[SaiyanZ]

My car has slight orange peel on the side panels. It is very slight as the reflection is almost perfect like a mirror though it would be perfect if the little orange peel is gone. The horizontal surfaces like the hood and roof are flat and reflect like mirrors. Can basically read a page reflected on the hood. I was just curious whether polishing would remove the orange peel from the side panels over time.

[greg0303]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

Removing orange peel from factory paint is pretty hard. Additionally there's a risk of complete clear coat removal or some sectional burn-through.

Orange peel removal involves sanding. Clear coat thickness (on healthy paint) is about 2.0 mils, of which about 1.3-1.5 is necessary to provide enough protection for the base coat (like against UV rays). Factory clear coats are thin and they are hard due to its baking-in process at the manufacters' production lines.

After initial sanding it's recommended to refine it with higher grit sanding. Then aggressive compound would be used to remove sanding marks and after that polish or cleaner polish to restore gloss.

If it's something, which really bothers you on your vehicle, you could attempt to correct it but I really want you to know the risks and possibility of re-spraying the clear coat.

Does your car have its original/ factory paint?

[dc2_]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

i did it on my factory paint job ..

i used 1000 grit followed by 2000 grit

followed by rotary and compound ect.

came out flawless

[bmrfan]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

+1 on greg0303's post on removing orange peel.

Sanding with a "hard" backing plate is generally required to remove orange peel - polishing pads tend to be too soft to "cut" the high points of the orange peel.

Also agree that sanding of factory paint will likely shorten the life of the clear coat.

[mb911]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

Honestly, what is the point.

Cars that cost 100k+ have orange peel. Obviously, the manufacturers do not see orange peel as a poor paint job. Of course, I know crazy exotics may be very flat, but a mass production car is going to have orange peel.

As long as other models of your car also have the orange peel, I say it's normal, and it's no reason to worry.

[dc2_]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

i hate orange peel lol i found all the work worth it

[mb911]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

i hate orange peel lol i found all the work worth it

I just feel the manufacturer probably piles it on for a reason.

[SaiyanZ]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

My car has factory paint/clear coat. The orange peel is hardly noticeable from a meter away so I'm not really looking to correct it. Was just curious.

I inspected the paint closely under lights the other day as well. Hardly any swirls at all. Just a few fine isolated scratches which probably came about from poor wash technique by the previous owner. Was thinking of using Ultimate Compound on it but realized that it would not really do much to improve the paint. Will just stick to finishing polishes like Ultimate Polish.

[TOGWT]

Re: Will polishing remove orange peel?

Once you’ve checked the clear coat thickness with a PTG and there is sufficient paint that abrading the surface will not compromise the paint system then orange peel can be removed.

Block wet- sanding (finishing paper and a sanding block) is considered the most efficient form of paint correction, by ensuring a consistent pressure over the entire surface contact area and using a long stroke; this is the most effective tool for paint defect removal because of its linear process you abrade the paint surface flat until the defects are removed and a perfectly ‘flat’ levelled surface is obtained. This provides an optimum surface light reflection / refraction (in simple terms the light reflectance from a mirror)

I am never too keen to colour sand factory paint, but any aftermarket paint is a great candidate. Don't start with less than 1500 grit finishing paper unless you have lots of material to work with or some serious imperfections. Block wet sanding (finishing paper and a sanding block) is the most effective tool for paint defect removal only because you can sand the paint surface flat until the defects are removed. Non- diminishing abrasives and a flat foam pad are similar in application.

This kind of work should only be undertaken by an professional or hobbyist detailer ; who is experienced in colour-sanding (wet-sanding) / paint renovation, more so than detailing, someone who uses a paint thickness gauge (PTG) to measure and document the vehicles paint. This is a technique that takes a lot of practice to perfect. This statement is not meant to question anything related to your detailing or paint re- finishing abilities just my opinion on the risks involved

Sanding a paint surface is a very labour intensive way to eliminate orange peel or other paint surface problems; this method can take an entire day to sand a vehicle properly. Sanding can be done by hand using 1500, 2000 or 2500 grit finishing paper and sanding with a palm sander can be done with Finishing Film or 3M™ Trizact.