'88 BMW Hard Paint Care

[dgaplin]

Ok, so my usual routine needs something added to it. There are some scratches and dings on my '88 635CSi that Scratch X would not remove. Scratch X did do a great job on minor surface scuffs and marks but these deeper ones are tuff. The paint on this old bimmer is hard. So, should I try Ultimate Compound followed by wax? Is there a step between compound and waxing? I've also read that you can use cleaner wax, then polish, and top with NXT - does this work well?

[rcktpwrd]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

Ultimate compound is more aggressive than the ScratchX so it would be the next option to try out. I have had great success with UC on a couple of different vehicles.
After that you can go to the Ultimate Polish then your wax/sealant.

[dgaplin]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

What wax do you recommend after the polish? I usually use NXT as a top coat sealer on top of the cleaner wax.

[greg0303]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

If your fingernail gets stocked in those scratches it means that they are too deep to safely remove. You needed to level the surrounding paint so deeply that full clear coat removal may happen (or you leave not enough clear coat thickness for base coat protection).

Did you apply ScratchX by hand or by machine?

Ultimate Compound is more aggressive. Work on small area: by machine it's the width of your shoulders and by hand 1' x 1'. If you round up those sharp edges of scratches it should improve light reflection enough to make them barely visible if full removal doesn't happen.

5-step car care cycle looks like this:

1. Washing
2. Surface prep - claying/ cleaning
3. Polishing
4. Protecting/ Wax
5. Maintaining

Your optional step between cleaning and waxing is polishing. It adds richness and gloss to paint surface.

Cleaner waxes usually have mild cleaners in them.

There's nothing we can do about dings with any of paint care products.

[Murr1525]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

You are working by hand?

[dgaplin]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

Yes, working by hand.

Some of these marks are just surface. So, I believe UC may work for most For the deeper ones, would the compound work well to smooth the area after touch-up paint if used?

[greg0303]

Re: '88 BMW Hard Paint Care

Yes, working by hand.

Some of these marks are just surface. So, I believe UC may work for most For the deeper ones, would the compound work well to smooth the area after touch-up paint if used?

Normally you would use a sand-paper/ block, then you'd remove sanding marks with an aggressive compound.

UC by hand may take a long time to level it completely but it will make the area smoother.