Removing sanding marks

[kieron24]

I'm planning to wet sand my paint to remove orange peel and I was wondering if Meguiars M105 and a WRFC7 cutting pad on a DA will be able to remove 2500 grit sanding marks?

[davey g-force]

Re: Removing sanding marks



It depends on the hardness of the paint and your technique, but generally yes, that would be a good starting point.

Do you have any MF pads or any other compounds just in case?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Removing sanding marks

We've had excellent results removing 2500 grit hand sanding marks on even very hard paint using M100 or M105 on microfiber pads with a DA. The cutting pad you referenced is a thick 7" pad that is better suited to rotary work. You might be able to accomplish the task with our new DFC5 thin foam cutting disc, but we'd go straight to microfiber for sanding mark removal.

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Ok thanks alot guys, I haven't bought the products yet. I've been looking at a few meguiars videos and I've seen that the microfibre pads are the most common, however where I live locally I can only get the foam pads so thats why I asked. But I'll order them from amazon to be safe. Thanks again for the feedback!

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Mr. Stoops another thing I need your advice on is whether to even wet sand at all. I've been looking at some of the other threads where you recommend that you don't wet sand factory paint if its a daily driver. Currently I have two vehicles with paint defects.

The first is a blue car that was re painted about 6 years ago and about 3 years ago it was wet sanded and polished, however back then I honestly did not know what I know now about maintaining the finish and it slowly degraded. A month ago I used UC and ULW with a DA however the reflections are still not clear its severely blurred. Should I wet sand with 1500 and then 2500 followed with M105 and M205?

The second is a black factory painted van that has light orange peel (the reflections are slightly blurred) should I do the same process I described above? (1500 then 2500 then M105 etc.) Or use a less aggressive sand paper or not do it at all.

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Mr. Stoops another thing I need your advice on is whether to even wet sand at all. I've been looking at some of the other threads where you recommend that you don't wet sand factory paint if its a daily driver. Currently I have two vehicles with paint defects.

The first is a blue car that was re painted about 6 years ago and about 3 years ago it was wet sanded and polished, however back then I honestly did not know what I know now about maintaining the finish and it slowly degraded. A month ago I used UC and ULW with a DA however the reflections are still not clear its severely blurred. Should I wet sand with 1500 and then 2500 followed with M105 and M205?

You just might be amazed what you can do with just 3000 grit and either M105 or M100 on a microfiber pad to really clarify those reflections. Below are some before/after shots from NXT 2014 where we did just that on a badly resprayed black 3 Series BMW (the below is taken from our post on the class):
How's this for a little non invasive paint correction: this is on a rental BMW with a truly horrid respray on the rear of the vehicle. The paint had an incredible amount of texture and therefore almost zero clarity in the reflections (if you want to call it a reflection!). Two things to observe in the images below: A) the paint thickness readings showing the minimal amount of paint removed, in this case 0.05 mil which is virtually nothing, and B) the clarity of the reflection of the paint thickness gauge in the "after" shot on the right versus the "before" shot on the left. This level of correction was achieved with a 3000 grit finishing disc on a DA followed by M205 on a microfiber cutting pad. Yes, you read that right - M205 on a microfiber cutting pad.


A "before" reflection on the same hood.


An "after" reflection on the same hood, after using the steps described above.


This may not be Facebook, but this is indeed a selfie, shot in the "before" of that horribly resprayed hood. How's that for texture and lack of clarity?


Same hood, same process as above. How crazy is that?

The second is a black factory painted van that has light orange peel (the reflections are slightly blurred) should I do the same process I described above? (1500 then 2500 then M105 etc.) Or use a less aggressive sand paper or not do it at all.

With this vehicle, we wouldn't touch it. Yes, orange peel can be annoying to those who know how paint looks without it, but factory paint is so thin that removing that peel can often mean removing most of the UV protection provided by the clear coat. From Toyotas to BMWs and Ferraris we see orange peel all over the place, and in varying degrees. In almost every case our recommendation is to live with it.

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Thanks again I will take you advice on both. My blue paint looks just like that rental car. So I'll try the 3000 grit.

I wont wet sand the black one but I'll inspect it for other defects like swirls and if it does have, is it safe to use to M105 + MF cutting pad to remove (depending on the severity) ? Or is this too harsh for the factory paint?

[Michael Stoops]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Thanks again I will take you advice on both. My blue paint looks just like that rental car. So I'll try the 3000 grit.

I wont wet sand the black one but I'll inspect it for other defects like swirls and if it does have, is it safe to use to M105 + MF cutting pad to remove (depending on the severity) ? Or is this too harsh for the factory paint?

Perfectly fine for factory paint, not a problem at all.

[allenk4]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Pictures Please

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

I saw that in the NXT class M205 and a MF cutting pad was used to remove the 3000 grit sanding marks, was that because the paint was soft? And when I attempt my correction should I try the same as a test spot and if it doesn't work switch the M205 for 105?

And in your opinion now that you see the black paint, will 3000 grit (since it removes so little of the clear coat) at least reduce the effect of the orange peel?

Thank you again for your experienced advice

[allenk4]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Make sure you take lots of pictures, including close-ups during the process

Avoid the temptation to do a tape-line 50/50 shot, it can leave a line that will bother you forever

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

I saw that in the NXT class M205 and a MF cutting pad was used to remove the 3000 grit sanding marks, was that because the paint was soft? And when I attempt my correction should I try the same as a test spot and if it doesn't work switch the M205 for 105?

And in your opinion now that you see the black paint, will 3000 grit (since it removes so little of the clear coat) at least reduce the effect of the orange peel?

Thank you again for your experienced advice

Mr. Stoops?

[kieron24]

Re: Removing sanding marks

Make sure you take lots of pictures, including close-ups during the process

Avoid the temptation to do a tape-line 50/50 shot, it can leave a line that will bother you forever

Thanks for the heads up about the tape-line, I was originally planning to do it.