Removal of Fine Sunlight-Only Scratches

[ffboy]

Re: Removal of Fine Sunlight-Only Scratches

It looks like cracking from beneath the clearcoat, however upon closer inspection (of the pics) the scratches do look like its on the clear itself, as if something was brushed hard on the paint. You may need to wet sand it to even out the paint then use a rotary, maybe 105/205 combo

[wifpd4]

Re: Removal of Fine Sunlight-Only Scratches

Sure thing! I'll try putting the compound around the edge, and slow my arm movement down.

Here are some pictures of the paint I took today. I could only get the scratches to show up if I looked at them with the sun to my back. When the sun is shining towards me, the scratches can't be seen well. Boy, do these pictures exaggerate the scratches!

(photos)

Like I said, none of these scratches can be felt after claying the car, and certainly won't catch a fingernail. That is why I thought I should've gotten at least some success with the Porter Cable.

Thanks for the help,
Nick

Nick, in photo number five. Not sure what part of the car that is, but look at the edge of the part. It has been brutalized. I'm really surprised you can't feel that. Good luck straightening out that mess.

From my point of view you could leave it and live with it or perfect your technique in a small 2' X 2' area that may take a couple of hours and then you need to repeat that 20-30(?) times over the rest of the car. That's a bunch of time and you'll really diminish the amount of clear coat on your car. Time yourself on the test area, then multiply that times the estimated number of 2x2's left to do.

I might suggest picking an area for your test spot that isn't too large, say a rear fender. If you get that perfect, you can decide whether to move on or be happy with what you did and stop. I would also suggest, don't start on the roof. It could be your most difficult section. It's up high and difficult to maintain downward pressure on the buffer. You could also pick that as your starting point. If you fix it, then you know the rest is a piece of cake.

Another option is to take it to a body shop and get an opinion and a quote. You now have several options: $ body shop, do nothing, or do the best you can and commit several hours (days). If you remove 50% of those swirls, you would see a vast improvement.

Think about and come back here and discuss your decision before proceeding. Many great folks can talk you through a process.

[NTL1991]

Re: Removal of Fine Sunlight-Only Scratches

Thanks for the great input, everyone!

What you see in picture five is the very top edge of the hood, looking down toward the front of the hood. It this was car wash damage, it makes sense that that area would be one of the worst as the brushes usually ride up the hood and then linger a bit before climbing up the windshield. If I took another picture about 3 feet back, it might've not shown up in the pictures, and from about 5 feet back, none of them would show up on the camera. I think the color of the car (and the fact that the paint is metallic) really exacerbates the visibility of the scratches, and of course, the pictures make it look quite a bit worse than in person. Either way, they're there... They're noticeable enough to make frustrated every time it's sunny out...

While I can't justify the cost of any body shop work on this car, as it's just too old, and the payback wouldn't be anywhere close to what it would cost, I might look into doing what I can to improve the paint on my own. How much I couldn't know for sure, but I think it's worth thinking about. I know wet-sanding and detailing in general is like an art form that takes time and experience to master, but I'm open to learning. I WILL NOT, however, start a project without knowing exactly what I need, and the proper procedures for getting a job done.

Looks like I've got quite a bit of reading ahead of me.

Thanks Again,
Nick