Clean Polish out of Pits

[Michael Stoops]

Originally posted by F-150
By pits are you guys talking about fisheyes? lil tiny holes or air bubbles that stand out after buffing?

No, more like very tiny little stone chips. I have two dark colored cars - one is a 2004 that I bought new and only have 15,000 miles on it in 2 years/3 months, the other being a 1999 that I bought used in October 2004 with 57,000 miles on the clock. I have this issue only with the older car and I attribute the difference to simple road hazard exposure.

[Brannon]

Thanks for the very helpful information gentlemen. Mr. Sanchez left me in the cold on this one; was begining to wonder if there was help on the board. I didn't think it was a technique problem either. The product was applied and removed properly according to this site and others. Polishing a car is a learned procedure/skill not rocket science. I'm trying to learn this quickly by picking the brains of people who have mastered or become proficient with this skill.

I run a family owned/operated used car lot and we do all the grunt work. Some of the cars we aquire have seen a lot of highway/dirt road driving and the paint reflects it. I recently decided to start polishing some of the cars instead of just a wash and wax job. We're trying to maximize profit... aren't we all.

Anyway, some of you guys echoed the suggestions I got on another board about using an alcohol/water mix or quick detailer to spot detail the small chips. I may also consider some of the other ideas too. I'll have many chances to get it right seeing that about 1/4 of the cars will need to be polished. In other words about 50-75 more cars this year.

Thanks again for answering my post.

[Tim Lingor]

Originally posted by Brannon
Thanks for the very helpful information gentlemen. Mr. Sanchez left me in the cold on this one; was begining to wonder if there was help on the board. I didn't think it was a technique problem either. The product was applied and removed properly according to this site and others. Polishing a car is a learned procedure/skill not rocket science. I'm trying to learn this quickly by picking the brains of people who have mastered or become proficient with this skill.

I run a family owned/operated used car lot and we do all the grunt work. Some of the cars we aquire have seen a lot of highway/dirt road driving and the paint reflects it. I recently decided to start polishing some of the cars instead of just a wash and wax job. We're trying to maximize profit... aren't we all.

Anyway, some of you guys echoed the suggestions I got on another board about using an alcohol/water mix or quick detailer to spot detail the small chips. I may also consider some of the other ideas too. I'll have many chances to get it right seeing that about 1/4 of the cars will need to be polished. In other words about 50-75 more cars this year.


Thanks again for answering my post.

Hey Brannon,

In all fairness, Jorge may have misunderstood what you were referring to. I do not know a detailing site that will offer as much friendly and helpful advice as Meguiar's Online! Moreover, I beg to differ, polishing paint is very different from just following a few simple steps. It is an art that takes many years to master correctly.

If I understand your post correctly, you are referring to the pits on the hood etc from rock damage etc and that after waxing, the polish in the pits turns white. Is that correct? If so, I stand by what I replied to the first time, using a pressure washer. Using a alcohol rub/mix will remove the wax alright but it will also remove the wax around the pit. This may lead to a removal of gloss around the pit due to the fact that the wax has also been removed on the surrounding area of the pit. Hence a blotchy appearance may result. If a pressure washer is used with a 40* tip, it *should* remove most if not all of the remianing wax in the pits. Noticed I said *Should*. Without seeing the vehilces first hand and seeing exactly what we are talking about, I can only speculate on the correct course of action.
Obviously, do not get too close to the paint with a pressure washer as it may lift the paint around the pit if you are not careful.

Another idea may be to use a Meguiar's Versa Angle Wide Body Brush X-1040. It is incredibly gentle on the paint, and I have used it successfully without marring the finish. The fibers in the brush may help to pull out the wax out of pits while being washed. I have not tried that idea yet, but if it were me, I would try that after the pressure washer.

A third idea is to use a Meguiar's Triple Duty Detail Brush and gently brush the material out of the pits using the end of the brush and its bristles.

Versa-Angle Wide Body Brush



Triple Duty Detail Brush




I hope this helps!

Tim

[Mike Phillips]

Originally posted by Mike-in-Orange
I've got a dark green 1999 Miata with similar small chips on the hood. You can't see them for the most part, but once a product gets into them and dries it does leave these little white spots.

I don't believe it to be a question of improper technique with any product or tool, you just can't avoid getting product into these tiny little pits, and the pits are so small a simple wipe with a microfiber just can't get into them.

What he said.

It's not really the fault of the product or even the process because you have rock chips or other types of divets in the paint, (below surface pock marks, or holes, or pits, etc.), then just about any product pushed into these areas by any process, (hand or machine), if left there is going to dry and often times turn white.

The problem is just that, a problem, it's the nature of rock chips or holes in paint. Product, (polish or wax), gets into these areas as a by-product of working on the paint, and because they are small and hard to get anything into such as a microfiber or even the bristles of a toothbrush or something like our Triple Duty Detailing Brush, it's difficult to get any kind of residual product out of them.

Wiping with a 50/50 mixture of Alcohol and water may help, but again, it's going to be hard to get this residue out of these chipped areas because of their size. Plus, wiping, or rubbing these small areas with a 50/50 mixture of Alcohol and water will tend to remove the wax in these areas and potentially mar or dull them depending on how hard you rub.

Using a pressure washer would probably be the best way to physically remove the residue without re-instilling scratches into the paint.

The honest truth is, there is no quick, easy, simple solution to this problem.

If you decide to go try the pressure washing idea after polishing with M80 or any other type of swirl mark remover, you might consider using M26 Hi Tech Yellow Wax afterwards as it dries fairly clear. M21 Synthetic Sealant would be another good choice as you able to apply it using very thin coats, the idea being not to get huge amounts of wax into these rock chips.

Each Saturday we have people at our Saturday classes that bring up the problem of rock chips and they want to know how to fix them as it's a real big problem here in SoCal with all the debri on the road and all the cars on the road.

Again, the truth is there is not simple, quick and easy solution to applying touch-up paint to tiny, little small areas on a usually smooth flat panel without leaving blobs of paint everywhere you work.

Residue from polishing rock chips and fixing rock chips is always going to be a problem for both someone such as yourself selling cars as well as owners trying to deal with the problem on only a car or two.

I wish we had a simple, easy solution to the problem but it's the nature of the problem that makes all aspects of dealing with it difficult.

[Michael Stoops]

Originally posted by 2hotford

Another idea may be to use a Meguiar's Versa Angle Wide Body Brush X-1040. It is incredibly gentle on the paint, and I have used it successfully without marring the finish. The fibers in the brush may help to pull out the wax out of pits while being washed. I have not tried that idea yet, but if it were me, I would try that after the pressure washer.

Now why didn't I think of that!? I have one of these in my arsenal but never thought to try it on this problem. Next time around though......it's worth a shot.

Originally posted by 2hotford
A third idea is to use a Meguiar's Triple Duty Detail Brush and gently brush the material out of the pits using the end of the brush and its bristles.

This is the tool I've been using. As I mentioned, it's a bit tedious, but tell me what in life is worth having that takes no work to achieve???

OK, that was a little melodramatic, but you get the point

[tguil]

Guys,

Many of you know that I drive on ten miles of gravel road daily. I "know" chips. I may try the brush suggestion or a wax that dries more clearly, but more than likely I'll just not look so close (and my next truck is going to be white). Chips happen.

Tom

[trooper99]

I detailed my 01' sebring a few months ago, and afterwards I noticed the white spots 'more' than before?? Wasn't sure. After reading this post, I'm thinking 'ahhhh', thats what happened
I also just bought a new 06 sonata, and had heard about the 3M clear bra. After local quotes for $550-$900 installed, I found the kit for my car on ebay for $165. Read instructions on the web, and it doesn't look too hard to install. We'll see how it goes. Hopefully will keep most chips at away. Lots of gravel on the highways here in Dallas.
I'm just trying to decide if I should clay the car before putting the bra on. Not sure if it would make it harder to remove down the road if it gets super attached from perfectly smooth finish?
I read on a site once, VERY detailed instructions on how to fix small paint nics on cars. Looked really good, I'll see if I can find it again.

[Newport Viper]

Clear bras are the way to go! Let's face it most cars are 20K and up! Spend the extra $600 the dealer wants and get it done. It is worth 5x that if you are a detail freak!


PS Clear bras are easy to take off. Clay, Polish, get all the swirls out, then apply.

[Jeff Smith]

Originally posted by Mike-in-Orange
A big part of the problem here Jeff is that you don't know where these little white dots will show up because the pits in question are so tiny you almost don't know they're there. But once the product dries against a dark finish, they sure stand out. On your white Ridgeline you'd never have a clue it was happening.

Just getting back from vacation here. I see the others have been working with you.

I have a rock chip or 2 but my main problem is a poor factory paintjob. Looking closely at it I see what "appear" to be little bubbles all over the finish. Only under certain lighting.

Heck, On white, I almost wish I could find something to fill those in.

[VonLego]

Re: Clean Polish out of Pits

Pardon bumping an old thread---

Would M26 result in sufficiently less white spots? Will my cleaners still get stuck under the wax and go white?

I love my nxt... it will be missed.