Today...

[kbkid]

Since it was such a beautiful day today, I decided to wash my Explorer and wax it. Lately I've really been trying to get rid of these small scratches or etches that are on my hood.

So today, I washed my Exlorer with Meguiars Gold Class Shampoo, I then proceeded to clay the entire vehicle. Since I do not have a Porter Cable polisher yet, I decided I'd warm my muscles up a little bit. I used DC #2 on the entire hood. I wiped it off with a Meguiars Ultra Plush Terry Cloth.

Next I applied NXT Liquid Wax by hard to the entire hood. I was expecting much better results. Maybe you guys can tell me what else to use or try. The rest of my car looks wonderful. It looks really good for being 10 years old.

So if you guys could give me some advice I'd greatly appriciate it.

[explore_02xlt]

did the clay help? have you ever applied a paint clean like DC 1 on it? and maybe some scratchx could fix some of those defaults. next time try removing with a Supreme shine Microfiber.

[benhui86]

u need a paint cleaner.... from the looks of the pics i'd say u need scratch x... it'd take a lot of work by hand though.... wat u can do as a temperary solution be4 u can get a pc is to use a terry cloth bonnet w/ the cheapo $20 orbitals if u have one on the whole thing and then concentrate in more serious areas by scrubing scratch x on it with a terry cloth..... the orbitals not really recommended w/ scratch x though since it can gum up but if u have lots of area to cover might give it a try.... if u dont have the orbital... dont waste ur money on it...

[kbkid]

Actually I do have a 10" Orbital Buffer. I hate it. I mean it works decent, but not as good as I want it to. Also I do have some DC #1, I just didn't think it would make that big of a difference. Tomorrow I'll use DC #1 and then go over it with DC #2 and finally NXT again. When should I apply the Scratch X? Can you give me a sequence?

Also, when I rub my hand across my hood, I can feel very very light bumps. I used the Clay bar and that didn't seem to work quite as well as I've heard everyone talk.

[aaron33]

Those 10" orbitals don't work well with scratchX. Last time I tried, it ripped the cotton bonnet off the orbital!

Use scratchX first, followed by DC#1, then DC#2 and finally NXT

[benhui86]

Originally posted by aaron33
Those 10" orbitals don't work well with scratchX. Last time I tried, it ripped the cotton bonnet off the orbital!

Use scratchX first, followed by DC#1, then DC#2 and finally NXT

hahahha urs must be really crappy.... my friend got this ryobi one that was actually quite decent for a budget buffer.... the one i got gummed up the scratch x pretty bad but thats because i was working in the sun.... ur not suppose to have any expectations for these things... its just a way to apply things u'd usually apply with hand if u get a little lazy.....

[kbkid]

Where is the cheapest you guys have found the Porter Cable at?

[stealth]

First pic looks like clearcoat breaking & you said claying was ng so imho you may need to reclear the hood.

[JG_Detailing]

Lowe's has this one. It runs about $109.00

(Edit: Commercial links are against forum rules -Mike)


Meguiar's Forum Rules

9. No commercial messages will be allowed. This includes web site links, phone numbers and email addresses.

[the other pc]

Has the hood been re-sprayed?

The first shot appears to show clearcoat cracking. Is it? Or is it my imagination? Can you feel the cracks? Will a fingernail catch on them? Do they go through to the basecoat?


PC.

[kbkid]

The hood hasn't ever been resprayed and it is smooth. My nail doesn't hook on to any of them. I'm going to give that ScratchX, DC 1, DC 2 and then NXT a try in a few minutes. I'll post pictures when I'm done. Mike do you have any idea what the problem could be or a solution to it?

[Mike Phillips]

Re: Today...

Originally posted by kbkid

So if you guys could give me some advice I'd greatly appreciate it.

Hi kbkid,

The picture above makes it look as though there are cracks in your clear coat finish? If this is true, you cannot polish these out and will have to learn to live with them or repaint the hood.

As for which paint cleaner to use and the order,

Deep Crystal Paint cleaner is a chemical cleaner only and for light duty cleaning, not removing swirls and scratches.

To effectively remove swirls and scratches you need to use something with a diminishing abrasive like ScratchX.

If you use ScratchX, then you don't need to use Deep Crystal Paint Cleaner as you really only need to use one paint cleaner. After this you can either polish and wax, or go right to wax.

Here are some articles that relate to this topic,


How to remove a defect by hand with ScratchX

How To Remove Swirls By Hand

What it Means to Remove a Scratch

Meguiar's 5-Step Paint Care Cycle

[kbkid]

I've come to the conclusion that they are scratches in my clear coat. I used ScratchX for a good while. I worked it in very well. I did everything as stated above, and I still have those little scratches.

If I had a Porter Cable, could I cover up those scratches better? Or not really. Is there anything else I can try to use or do to fix these things. Its mainly just my hood too. Nowhere else on the car do I have these scratches.

[aaron33]

Originally posted by benhui86
hahahha urs must be really crappy.... my friend got this ryobi one that was actually quite decent for a budget buffer.... the one i got gummed up the scratch x pretty bad but thats because i was working in the sun.... ur not suppose to have any expectations for these things... its just a way to apply things u'd usually apply with hand if u get a little lazy.....

You can say that again! It was my friend's crappy 10" GMC (which is like 2-3 levels lower than Ryobi. So low that they give a 2 year REPLACEMENT warranty, no questions asked). After I tried it, my friend then used it on his car to work in Klasse AIO. After 15 minutes, there was a loud POP and it stopped working. Haha... Lots of smoke too.

I think scratchX is quite a thick product, so it won't work too well with a ranbom orbital. A PC might be better with its forced rotation. Anyone tried a rotary with scratchX? Although there are more suitable products to use with a rotary.

[kbkid]

I was really thinking about getting a Porter Cable. My main reason for wanting one was I thought I'd be able to take care of these little scratches. I guess I was wrong.