Paint Correction How To

[bldavis11]

I thought that I would post a quick How-To guide on paint correction for those interested. This is how I do it, but there are a several other methods.

The goal that we are shooting for is a deep mirror finish on the paint that makes the car nearly look wet. Optically perfect paint is something that you won't find on any factor painted Corvette, especially those 12 - 17 years old. If the car has been undergone a high quality paint job, then anything is possible. However, due to EPA limitations on car manufacturers, the paint can not be thinned to the perfect consistancy to avoid all orange peal. To do so would significantly limit the production numbers, and most people can't tell or don't care after a certain quality is met. This is one of the reason why the boutique car manufacturer's (Maserati, Rolls-Royce, etc.) vehicles have a higher quality paint.

Step One: Wheels
The first order of business is the wet the car and clean the wheels. We get this out of the way up front to avoid spraying any chemicals onto the paint after it has been washed and splatter from rinsing the wheels. If the wheels have been properly cleaned, then you only need to wash them with regular car soap (see below) and a good tire brush. I found one like this at Wal-Mart for a dollar or so. It's lasted forever and works fantastic.

If the wheels and tires are pretty dirty, you might need to use one of the chemical tire cleaners. The Bleech White stuff works really well, but should be used very sparingly. I have found it to be a very harsh product, but it does work.

Rinse the wheels and tires well after you've washed them.

Step Two: Washing
The next step is to both clean surface dirt from the paint as well as remove any old wax that has been applied. This is most easily done with a high strength dishwashing soap such as Dawn. Since these cleaners strip away all old waxes and sealents they shoud not be used on a regular basis to wash the car!

If the vehicle has very few swirls then extra car must be taking during the washing process to not introduce any additional paint defects. Use a quality car soap from one of the many retailers. You will need two wash buckets to correctly wash the car. The first bucket containes the standard soap and water mixture. The second is the rinse bucket and contains just clean water. You will also need a good quality wash mit. I have had good luck with the Meguires sheepskin mit I found at my local Wal-Mart.

Work in moderately sized sections from top to bottom. Apply the soap with the mit and work it gently over the paint. If there are some stubborn spots, let them soak under the soap for period of time and then try again with the wash mit. If they still do not come up, you can get them with the clay bar. Rinse the wash mit and the paint very well after eash section has been washed. The move on to the next section.

Remove the squirt nozzle from the hose to allow a free flow of water. Then rinse the car well to get all of th soap off. Doing this correctly will actually speed up drying time! Try and "sheet" the water rather than spray the car. The sheeting action pulls most of the water off of the paint surface leaving a mostly dry car!

Step Three: Clay Bar
For some reason this tends to be a rather misunderstood step. The purpose is to remove any surface contaminants that have "bonded" with the clearcoat and thus were not removable by washing alone. You need a clay bar (purchased from most auto parts stores), "lube", and a quality towel. Most manufacturers use their version of a quick detailing spray for lube. You can purchase the Meguires from Wal-Mart in a fairly large bottle for about $5.00. I have found this to be a great inexpensive clay lube.

Clay Bar Rules
(1) Use lots of lube!
(2) Work in small sections.
(3) Rotate and reform the clay after each small section.
(4) If you drop the clay onto the ground, then "Game Over!" Get a new clay bar.

Spray the QD onto a small section and start rubbing the clay with moderate pressure. Most contaminants can not be seen, but larger ones can. Work the clay over the section, reapplying lube as necessary, until either the lube starts to dry or you can no longer see any large contaminants.

Step Four: Rinse
Some folks like to rewash the car after claying. I just rinse it again. I have had no difference in outcomes whether I rinse or wash after claying.

Step Five: Polishing
We are getting down to business! Now that the paint has been prepped well, we can move to swirl removal. You need a quality polish, a dual action polisher, polishing pads, microfiber towels, and time.

Polish
There are a zillion polishes out there. I haven't tried many of them. I found a combination that works very well for me and I stick with it. I use two polishes, both by Menzerna. I prefer the Intensive Polish and the Final Polish-II.

Random Orbit Polishers
I use a Porter Cable 7336 which I purchased at the local Lowes. Most of the big box stores used to carry them, but I have not seem them lately. This model is still available through online retailers though. Price is about $130.00 depending on the current sale. Model 7424 is the exact same machine, but packaged with a different counter weight. It matters very little which model you get.

Any quality dual action sander/polisher will work great. Be certain that it has a variable speed setting.

Polishing Pads
These are what really do the work. Pads are color coded by how agressive they cut. The most popular brand is Lake Country. Their pads work from least to most agressive in color order black/white/orange/yellow. Be certain you know what cut pad you are purchasing! I like working with 4" and 6" sized pads. This allows me to work in both larger and smaller ares without much trouble. You will also need a backing plate so that you can attach your pads to the polisher. These are available by anyone who will sell you the pads.

Technique
It's best to tape off any exposed rubber trim. Fortunately, this is mostly around the windows on our cars and doesn't take very long. Work in 2' x 2' sections. I start with Menzerna Intensive Polish (MIP) and an orange pad. Spritz the area with the same quick detailer you used while claying. You just need the area a tish moist, not soaked. Apply a small amount polish to the pad. I make a star shape on the pad; it works great. Before turing on the unit, quickly smear the polish over the area to be worked. Turn the unit on to a medium speed (on Porter Cable units, around 3 to 3.5). Quick make one pass over the area in side to side motions to evenly spread the polish. Turn up the speed to medium-high (5 to 5.5 on the PC). Starting in one corner work the polish in the horizonal direction, snaking your way to the bottom of the work section.

--------->
<---------
--------->
<---------

Then work vertically. Next work diagonally from one corner to the opposite corner. The move to an adjacent corner and work diagonally the other way.

You will have made four passes over the section essentially guaranteeing that every part has been hit at least twice. Work a slow, but reasonable speed. It takes me about 3 minutes to work a section. The polish will start to dust off. When this happens, it has completely broken down and done its job. Wipe the area down with a microfiber towel.

Repeat as necessary. After removing most of the swirls with the Intensive Polish, switch to a white pad and the Final Polish - II. This combination removes some of the haze induced by the more agressive polish/pad combo. It's like using a higher grit sandpaper.

Notes
Corvette clear coat is rock hard. It will take multiple passes on heavily swirled paint. The first time on my 91 took quite some time; three passes with MIP and orange pad and two passes with MFP-II and white pad.

This can be rather time intensive the first go around. You DON'T have to do the whole car in one day! Just rinse well before starting up again. If it's been a while, wash it and rinse. There is likely no need to re-clay the car.

Step Six: Last Step Products
It's really your choice. Natural waxes, like Carnubas, have a deep rish shine, but do not last very long. Synthetic compounds have a very crisp finish and much longer, but sometimes lack the depth of the Carnubas.

Best of luck!

[Dale@Adams]

Nicely Done! Thanks for the great information.

[A26B]

Great post. I'm not much of a "waxer", but obviously it's part of the game. My biggest fear is going through the clearcoat while using 3M Finess-it II, followed by Perfect-it II. How can you gauge buffing before you go through? Really scary for me.

I've got a "situation." Car sat dirty for a long time, down in the gulf coast area. The hood is the worst, top & rear deck is fine. Not scratches, looks like etching maybe?? I did clay-bar first and helped greatly by removing adhered surface dust contaminates, but still had slightly milky appearance & what looked like water spots at first.

This is only visible at certain angle & light.


Any thoughts?

[bldavis11]

3M makes fantastic products, and you will get similar results using them correctly. It looks like a leaf etching. Maybe from an oak tree? The oak leaves are quite acidic.

Can you catch a fingernail on the defect? Also, does it have a "blotchy" appearance? Both of those tend to be more severe than you can remove with a PC. You'll likely need a rotary buffer or even a wet sand to get it completely out.

Your chances of working through a Corvette's clear coat with a PC is almost zero. You probably can do it with a very abrasive polish paired with an abrasive pad, but you would already have to have a good sized defect (paint chip to primer) in place for that combo to grab.

[A26B]

Originally Posted by bldavis11

3M makes fantastic products, and you will get similar results using them correctly. It looks like a leaf etching. Maybe from an oak tree? The oak leaves are quite acidic.

I'm virtually certain it's not leaves. Garage stored entire life.

Can you catch a fingernail on the defect?

No

Also, does it have a "blotchy" appearance? Both of those tend to be more severe than you can remove with a PC. You'll likely need a rotary buffer or even a wet sand to get it completely out.

No

Your chances of working through a Corvette's clear coat with a PC is almost zero. You probably can do it with a very abrasive polish paired with an abrasive pad, but you would already have to have a good sized defect (paint chip to primer) in place for that combo to grab.

Thanks! That's good to know. I think I'll go work on it some more.

They are not white, nor nearly as visible as shown in the picture. It just caught the light that way for the picture. In fact, unless you're looking for it, the defects are nearly invisible. However, once you see them, it's hard not to.

I need to get a PC and the right pads. I've been using a 2400rpm, orbital B&D with a wool pad, so I doubt I'm making very much headway.

Thanks again for the guidance.

[Aurora40]

Originally Posted by bldavis11

Your chances of working through a Corvette's clear coat with a PC is almost zero.

(isn't there just an "I agree" smilie??) Unless you are using sandpaper on the thing, a PC just doesn't have the power to burn through paint.

Originally Posted by A26B

I need to get a PC and the right pads. I've been using a 2400rpm, orbital B&D with a wool pad, so I doubt I'm making very much headway.

I'd be hesitant of using a wool pad on an orbital. I'd think it would leave some pretty serious swirling behind. If you need to step up to pads or products that rough, you probably just need to use a different tool like a rotary.

Jerry, they may just be water spots. Especially as it's on the top surfaces. These cars seem prone to it, not sure if it's because owners are likely to wash them a lot (possibly in the sun and/or not dry them quick enough?)

My car also has water spotting, visible only in certain light. I have reduced them with a rotary, cutting pad, and Meguiar's Compound Power Cleaner. That was as aggressive as I cared to get with it. I'd rather leave them in and not level the clear down that much. I'm not saying yours won't come out, but you have to decide how far you will go to try to remove them, and at what point you'd rather leave the paint the way it is.

[Aurora40]

Also, awesome write-up!

[Dale@Adams]

The Porter Cable D/A Polisher is a great tool to start out with. Combined with the right pads and polishes, you should be able to remove a majority of the water spots.

If the PC doesn't 100% do the trick, a rotary may have to be used. If you do not have experience using a rotary buffer, I would highly recommend having a professional do the work.

If you have any additional questions, please let us know!!

Thanks and let us know how you make out.

[A26B]

Originally Posted by Aurora40

(isn't there just an "I agree" smilie??) Unless you are using sandpaper on the thing, a PC just doesn't have the power to burn through paint.


I'd be hesitant of using a wool pad on an orbital. I'd think it would leave some pretty serious swirling behind. If you need to step up to pads or products that rough, you probably just need to use a different tool like a rotary.

Jerry, they may just be water spots. Especially as it's on the top surfaces. These cars seem prone to it, not sure if it's because owners are likely to wash them a lot (possibly in the sun and/or not dry them quick enough?)

My car also has water spotting, visible only in certain light. I have reduced them with a rotary, cutting pad, and Meguiar's Compound Power Cleaner. That was as aggressive as I cared to get with it. I'd rather leave them in and not level the clear down that much. I'm not saying yours won't come out, but you have to decide how far you will go to try to remove them, and at what point you'd rather leave the paint the way it is.

Aurora40: Water spots were my first impression of what it might be. Thanks for the additional advice and assurance of cutting thru the clear.

Dale@Adams: Roger that on the rotary!!

[Hammer]

Here's what I did last weekend. My car was scratched pretty good from the original owner not taking care of it. I don't know what they did to let the car get so bad, but I have spent a lot of time on it so far.

I would recommend doing all the buffing under flourescent lights.

I start by color sanding with 2000 grit paper. I stay about an inch or half inch from the edge. The top photo shows what it looks like when done and dried off.

Then I used a rotary buffer/wool pad with 3M Perfect-It 3000 Xtra Cutting Compound. This cuts and removes the sanding marks pretty fast. Keep it moving and stay away from the edges. A little detail spray makes the compund go further. Spike the pad often to get rid of crap the pad picks up. It shouldn't take to much to get the panel shining. The end result is in the middle picture.

I then used three steps with the Porter Cable and Sonus products because I have them.

1. Orange pad and Sonus SF-1, Kit Scratch fix works well too.
2. Green Pad and Sonus SF-2
3. Blue pad and Sonus SF-3

I then used the white pad that comes with the PC and applied Kit Carnuba wax. This baby pops now. Third picture shows the end result.

If you look at the middle and last pics you might be able to see the difference. trust me, there is a big difference.

A word of caution, I have some experience with this and it is not for the timid. Practice on something else that you might be able to make mistakes on before you use the big buffer on your paint.

By the way, I got my big buffer at Harbor Freight for about $40. You don't need to spend $200 on these things.