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paint needing attention


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so my cars paint is needing some light attention. its a few years old and want to try to make it look more like it was new. the surface feels lightly rough, like tiny specks. also, i did some spray painting near by and may have added a few more specks to the surface. i have, and tried, Meguiars compound. but didnt do much. guess i need to do something else before that step. thoughts? before and after pics.




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This is what Ringo is talking about.



>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnH7hCe98Nc




>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajDLHkJlZuM


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i have not tried clay barring it. if i clay it, i should do compound, polish and wax to finish it off and bring back color and shine. correct?


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  • Founders

Clay bar will bring back the shine. If you leave residue, you're doing it wrong ;)



Probably wouldn't hurt to compound, polish and wax seeing as your paint is of concern but it's not needed. Only a wax would be suggested as the clay will remove it.


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alrighty. ill look for a clay bar kit. is it worth getting the Meguiars DA attachment?


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I am with Ringo on this. I would prefer the good old manual method so I can see and feel the paint. I would consider compound only once I am convinced everything else has been tried and didn't work since compound will remove a certain amount of clearcoat in the process. I'd hate to see you burn though the clearcoat to the paint.


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  • 2 months later...
  • 3 months later...

its best to use a machine (instead of by hand) for the compound and polish, correct? cuz when i tried it on my car by hand, (arm was a bit tired) it seemed that it could have been a bit better.


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Agree. Clay first to get the surface as clean as you can get it (what the clay does).  Be sure to use a detail spray with the clay (like the video showed).  This is going to be a long time consuming process.  Don't get in a hurry, work on just one small area at a time.  Get it the best you can, then move on to the next area.  Once you're done with the clay, the finish is going to be "nekkid".  i.e. no wax or protectant on it.  At that point you'll have to evaluate it and decide what to do next.  Is it done and ready for fresh wax? or does it need more attention...  If it needs more, then you'll have to start using abrasive compounds on it to try to remove the contamination.   Echoing the cautions of others, GO SLOW!  The last thing you want to do is start with a super abrasive compound and chew right through the clear coat.  The drill here is to repeat what you did with the clay.  Work a small section, evaluate, repeat until done. (Small means no larger than 2 feet by 2 feet). Begin with a mild compound like this one.  If that doesn't do it, start stepping up one at a time - like maybe this, then  this.   If you're still not out of the woods, step up to more professional grade products like M205,  M105.


You're going to want to use a 'dual action' machine to work all of these, even the first mild compund.  Don't try this by hand.  There are many videos on youtube showing how.  If you get all the way to the end with the M105 and a DA and still have issues (and if you're not VERY careful you'll have broken through the clear by that point) then about the only thing left will be wet sanding with 2000 grit paper, then working your way back UP the compound steps to restore the gloss to the surface.


There's a reason that very high end paint jobs are super expensive, and this is it.  Once the paint is sprayed, the next steps are to wet sand the whole car by hand with 3 to 4 decreasing grits of paper, then working up through the progressions of compound to get the super high gloss.   There aren't any shortcuts,  It just takes loads of time and effort.


 


Bear


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