Just got a new paint job

[stangfiveohh]

Hello everyone, I am new to this forum so hang with me.

Well, I just got a paint job done at Maaco. I know at this point you are probably thinking i am crazy, but that i was my budget could afford. Now, i am obviously not looking for a show car by any means, but i do notice that the paint does not look anything like it does from the factory. Sure, you can see yourself in it, but it is no where near as clear as if i were looking at a brand new car. It has a pretty decent amount of orange peel. Maaco says they do a couple color coats and then a color/clear coat mix for the final coat.

So, what are my options as far as making the car look a little better than it is? Is there any options at all or do i just simply have to stick with what i paid for.

Thanks,
Steve

[roushstage2]

Re: Just got a new paint job

By what you are describing, it sounds like single stage paint. How long has the paint been on the car?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Chances are the paint is pretty thin, this limits what you can do to make it better. Besides that to make it better you would either machine buff it or wet sand it and machine buff it, this is past most people's abilities.

You can clay it, clean it, polish and wax it.

See these threads,

Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle
(Posted in the The Information Station)

How To Remove Swirls By Hand

How old is it?

Some people join our forum and post they have a new paint job, we think it's new like a few days or a few weeks then we find out it's new.... a year ago...

[stangfiveohh]

Re: Just got a new paint job

The paint has been on the car 3 days now, and yes i would assume it is pretty thin as i have heard Maaco doesnt put much paint on

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Just got a new paint job

They probably sprayed one or two coats of clear, hard to say how thick it.

Doesn't matter if you're not going to wet sand, cut and buff.

Sometimes a new paint job will have overspray on it because it's being parked in a place where fresh paint is being sprayed, so when the paint is clean and your hand is too, feel the paint, it should be as clean and smooth as brand new glass.

If you feel any texture or bumps, then you may want to clay it.

After 30 days, or whatever they told you you can then wax it and this will help to make the paint shiny.

[roushstage2]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Besides the clay, you can get some M80 and rub the car down with that until the paint cures.

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Just got a new paint job

My new 1975 GMC Jimmy has a $2000.00 paint job, not sure where but regardless, it has orange peel, dirt particles in the paint and they didn't remove all the dents, just painted over some of them. At the same time, it's red and shiny!




No plans at this time to try to redo it, instead we're just going to drive it and enjoy it. The paint job is less than 6 months old. After we washed it we felt the paint and it was rough like sand paper so we clayed the paint and removed a ton of red and black overspray paint.

Removing the overspray helped to make the paint smooth and gloss comes from smoothness, thus we make the paint glossier by claying it and then waxing it.

Hope this helps...

[stangfiveohh]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Yes if i remember correctly he told me not to wax it for a month. So what type of clay should i use? Can you provide a link or something about how to use clay? Do i have to wait a month before i use clay or can i do it before?
Also, once it is ready to be waxed, what type of wax should i use and do i need anything special to apply it and then take it off?

Thankyou both for your help!

[brickyardz]

Re: Just got a new paint job

You can get Meguiars Smooth Body Clay Kit. This comes with 2 clay bars, Quick Detailer for lubricant and a Supreme Shine micro fiber towel to remove the Quick Detailer.

It is really easy to do this. The biggest key is to do small to medium sections at a time and wipe off the Quick detailer immediately after you clay an area.

You spray on the Quick Detailer, rub the clay on the area and let it glide over the paint finish and your done. If it stops or sticks somewhere there isn't enough lube. Either spray some more or grab some from another section of the panel with the clay and push the detailer to the area that stuck. After each section check the clay and kneed it so the dirt dis appears. Repeat until the car is done. You will be amazed at how much smoother the finish will feel for about a $17 investment. There are also instructions on the box.

This will take all the wax off the car so if your doing this on a finish with wax, you may not want to do the entire car if you can't complete it in one day. In that case, do one or multiple sections of the car at a time.

The clay should be safe to use on the painted finish along with a pure polish or cleaner polish like #80 that Roush mentioned. The reason for not applying any wax for 30 days is to give the paint time to fully cure and the solvents time to disipate. If you apply wax it will seal them in and they can't escape which can cause the finish to have issues over time.

[stangfiveohh]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Excellent, and this will be a dumb question but what is #80 and #4 etc. etc. i know they refer to products but is there like a chart to cross reference them or something

[roushstage2]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Meguiars Online Acronyms - Product Links

[stangfiveohh]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Thankyou, that makes things easier. Also what was previously mention, #80 (Speed Glaze) what are the benefits of doing this instead of using the clay bar?

And is it bad that i will not be able to wax the car after i use either the clay bar or #80 (whichever someone will recommend) because of the brand new paint job and having to wait a month for it to cure?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Claying will remove any overspray

M80 is a cleaner/polish but if you just apply it lightly by hand it will polish the paint and make it look clean and shiny and it leaves a little protection behind in the way of a polymer that is safe for fresh paint.

Then in 30 days, you can apply a real coating of wax or some time of paint sealant.

[stangfiveohh]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Cool, you guys have been a great help!
Maybe i could even clay the vehicle first and then use M80 after that as it leaces a little protection?

[roushstage2]

Re: Just got a new paint job

Exactly