Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

[cv_soccer]

Spring is coming and I want to get things ready for cleaning my TR MkV from bumper to bumper so that when I emerges after it’s long winters rest it will look the best that it can.

I know how to clean the seats, rugs, and headliner. I know how to clean the engine compartment, tires, rims, and the undercarriage. However I don’t exactly what to do with the paint?

Over this past year five coats of NXT were applied on top of a factory applied sealant but I want to strip it all down and start to rebuild my finish. I expect that polishing will be in order and doing it all by hand may be the way that it get accomplished but how do I know when all of the old NXT has been removed? I would like to leave the sealant, and I do not diminish the top at all so I am a little concern on how to proceed?

Here is my ride which looks very nice thanks to Meguiar’s but there are some very fine swirl’s in the finish which I expect to resolve as I remove the old NXT. Using ScratchX I do not believe is a valid option because I feel that a polish such as Deep Crystal or something from the professional product line will do a much better and faster job. But which product or products do I use?

I have never done this before so any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

The simplest way to strip your car's paint down to a fresh base by hand would be to rub all the paint down with Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner or a light cleaner from our Professional Line like any of these, M09, M82 or even M80

Apply and work in with a little passion behind your pad and then wipe off, after this you'll be ready to start with your paint polishing process.

By machine would be using any of the same products.

You might want to check to see if you need to clay and if you do, then clay first then use the paint cleaner or cleaner/polish.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

You're losing your code? It's a problem we've been having with vBulletin and we don't know why, one cause is if you copy and paste what you write from something like MS Word?

Weird symbols seem to cause it also, we guessed at what your were going to type and typed up the answer anyways.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

I expect that polishing will be in order and doing it all by hand may be the way that it get accomplished but how do I know when all of the old NXT has been removed?

If you just do a thorough job of applying and working-in any paint cleaner or cleaner polish by hand or machine you will have effectively removed any wax or sealant.

I would like to leave the sealant, and I do not diminish the top at all so I am a little concern on how to proceed?

IF you apply a paint cleaner or a cleaner/polish and even clay the car you're going to remove any coating of wax or a paint sealant.

but there are some very fine swirl’s in the finish which I expect to resolve as I remove the old NXT.

Using ScratchX I do not believe is a valid option because I feel that a polish such as Deep Crystal or something from the professional product line will do a much better and faster job. But which product or products do I use?

A machine applied product will ALWAYS out perform your hands when it comes to removing small particles of paint which is how your remove swirls and scratches.

You need to decide how you want to apply your products, by hand or machine and then you can choose your product. Actually, ScratchX has been reformulated and can be used both by hand or machine and will be more effective than the Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner for actually removing swirls and scratches.

[cv_soccer]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

Mark,
Thank you for the quick reply, and yes I did have some problems posting my message as I had to do it three time until it was accepted correctly.

Clay goes without saying but using a paint cleaner rather then a polish is a surprise. If I stay with the consumer product line I guess Deep Crystal would be the cleaner of choice or should I be using another of your products.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

We just re-typed that last answer twice because we lost code the first time.

[cv_soccer]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

We just re-typed that last answer twice because we lost code the first time.

Repaet after me, technology is my friend.

You guys are great, nad you help keep my little red wagon as red as it can be.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

Mark,
If I stay with the consumer product line I guess Deep Crystal would be the cleaner of choice or should I be using another of your products.

Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner will work great as long as you apply it thoroughly, not just wipe-on, wipe-off.

[cv_soccer]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

One last question and I will go away on this topic. Should I use the cleaner and then the clay, or the clay and then the cleaner. Based on other comments from other posts I believe that it's clean and then clay.

[ronniejay]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

Wash and dry, clay, then polish.

[cv_soccer]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

Wash and dry, clay, then polish.

A wash and dry of my ride is a given but the question is do I use the paint cleaner before or after I clay. Polishing and several coats of NXT will come after that

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

One last question and I will go away on this topic. Should I use the cleaner and then the clay, or the clay and then the cleaner. Based on other comments from other posts I believe that it's clean and then clay.

In most cases, you will clay first and then use a paint cleaner or a cleaner/wax or a cleaner/polish, the idea being to remove the things sitting on top of the surface before going after the defects below the surface, the only exception to the rule would be when you're working on a single stage paint that is extremely oxidized, for cars like this you should clean the paint first ot remove the dead, oxidized paint and then clay.

This will keep you from loading your clay up with dead paint, like this,




What you see in the clay above is blue paint removed from the oxidation of the blue paint off this 1986 Bronco.



From this thread,

1986 Ford Bronco II - Extreme Makeover

[cv_soccer]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

In most cases, you will clay first and then use a paint cleaner or a cleaner/wax or a cleaner/polish, the idea being to remove the things sitting on top of the surface before going after the defects below the surface, the only exception to the rule would be when you're working on a single stage paint that is extremely oxidized, for cars like this you should clean the paint first ot remove the dead, oxidized paint and then clay.

So if I read between the lines, and to make sure that I get everything off before I start rebuilding my layers of NXT is Clay, Clean, and Clay one last time. After which I polish, NXT, NXT, and NXT

[Graeme]

Re: Stripping down to rebuild my finish for spring

Wash your car, then clay, then use a paint cleaner, then polish and then apply 1 coat of nxt, let it dry to a haze and remove, wait a few hours and then apply a second coat of nxt.