Clear Mirror Reflection

[ADPGT]

Hey all,

I was wondering on how to achieve a very reflective image on your paint surface that is clear and not blurry. On my current car, I clayed it and there is somewhat of a mirror image but it is not clear at all. It is very blurry. After claying, I took some UC and tried to make it clear but that didn't even make the smallest of a difference.

Any help would be appreciated

Thank You

[ClearlyCoated]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

You will probably need to post some pics and give us an idea of your application methods (hand/machine - how much pressure - pads used, etc)

[Murr1525]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Not referring to orange peel are you?

[ADPGT]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Car: Ford Mustang GT (Gray)

Done by hand
Pad: Meguiars Foam Applicator
Moderate Pressure


Whats orange peel?

[james0509]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

got pics? do you have any friends that might have a DA by any chance?
polishing by hand with moderate pressure sometimes won't get the job done

[cd36]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

I'm gonna guess you have orange peel, which can be pretty bad on some vehicles. It looks just like an orange peel (rough surface) but on the clear coat, can make a nice reflection seem kind of fuzzy, which may get better depending on distance and angle. Only cure is to wetsand the clear coat smooth.

[Murr1525]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Yeah, just do a little google image search for paint orange peel...

[Ravi_1992]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Here's what orange peel looks like , it happens when the car is being painted. Poor technique, temperature etc etc

This will have to be wet sanded to level it out.

[J. A. Michaels]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Sounds like a bad case of orange peel.However pics would help out greatly.

[ADPGT]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Hey guys,

Sorry for the late response. I had my son take some pictures of the car and here they are.

[ADPGT]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

One More,



Is it orange peel then?

[Murr1525]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Yup.

[ADPGT]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

What should I do now to get it fixed?

[Murr1525]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

Make it shiny and learn to live with it.....

Factory paint jobs dont have thick enough paint to safely remove it.

Think of it as texture....

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Clear Mirror Reflection

What should I do now to get it fixed?

It is generally not a good idea to "fix" orange peel on factory paint because the only way to truly correct the condition is to wet sand and then buff it out with a rotary buffer. The problem with that is:

• Wet sanding is a highly advanced technique that should only be done by someone with a lot of experience
• Rotary buffing, the follow up to remove wet sanding marks, is also an advanced process that should not be entered into lightly
• Wet sanding removes, potentially, a lot of paint. Rotary buffing as a follow up removes a fair bit more.
• Your factory clear coat is only about 2 mils thick - that is 2/1000 of an inch thick, which is as thin as it sounds.
• Virtually every auto manufacturer will tell you that removing more than 0.5 mil of clear coat will lead to premature clear coat failure. Ford recommends the removal of no more than 0.3 mils on their newer vehicles - that is 3/10,000 of an inch!!
• Your orange peel is deeper than any of this - do NOT attempt to wet sand it to remove or "fix" it.

Here's what you can do, however, to maximize the reflections in this paint:

• Clay the surface to remove all above surface bonded contaminants
• Remove all swirls, fine scratches, etchings, stains and other below surface defects with a D/A buffer (not a rotary, a D/A like Meguiar's G110v2 or the Porter Cable 7242XP) and something like SwirlX or Ultimate Compound (depending on how responsive the paint is)
• Refine the finish with M205 using a finishing pad on the D/A. You can work this product for quite some time and gain a lot of clarity to the finish
• Top everything off with a couple thin coats of NXT Generation Tech Wax 2.0

Medium to dark gray metallic clear coat paint can often look really deep and wet with the above process. The metal flake really pops with the above process and the finish takes on a level of clarity that is really impressive. Yes, the texture of the orange peel will still be there, but you won't mind quite as much!