Cut, polish & wax - did I kill the paintwork

Submitted: Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 16:01

ThreadID: 38637 Views:15984 Replies:6 FollowUps:7

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Member - Tonester (VIC)

Hi all.

I got a little more determined last weekend trying to remove a serious year old scratch (there are many good scratches that exist, but there was one big whopper).

I have a Kitten cutting compound and in the past have used in moderation with success on a few vehicles. I used a bit of the stuff and rubbed a good area around the scratch line, and it appeared to fade pretty well after I wiped the excess off. Then applied a turtle wax coat to whole car and buffed it up.

I would say there was success, as the whopper scratch needs looking for and it don't jump out and proclaim its presence any more.

But, from an angle I can see a significant faded area from where I was cutting the paint back. It has the same colour, but has zero depth to it and kinda looks cloudy.

Is it just that I didn't do a polish step?? Or applied the stuff wrong?

Or have I done something very expensive like cut virtually all the way through the paint? What does a still faded appearance mean after a wax?

Tone

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Reply By: 3F62 - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 16:09

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 16:09

I believe that paint on cars for the last ??? years is 2-pac that is a colour with a couple of coates of clear over the paint...... Sounds like you have rubbed some or all of the clear coates off.........

AnswerID: 199849

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 16:15

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 16:15

So is that a matter of paint touch up (with a clear coat, where that is bought from), or does the entire panel have to be re-done?

FollowupID: 458855

Reply By: brett - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 17:45

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 17:45

2 pack paint is called 2 pack because it comes in 2 parts, the paint and a hardener to make it go off, nothing to do with a clear coat. The 2 parts are mixed then the paint goes on and due to a chemical reaction the paint goes hard, as opposed to air dry enamals and acrylics.
If your paint is a metalic it will most definatley have a clear coat over it, if it's a solid color it probably doesn't.
As a cutting compund is abrasive you've taken the shine off it, a wax is only a protector and won't restore a shine, it has virtually no abrasive properties at all.
Hopefully you haven't cut through the clear coat if it's got one and all you need to do is restore your shine on the spot you cut back, use a less abrasive polish and the shine should come back, or if it's real bad you may need a mechanical buff and some buffing compound.Basically work your way through different grades of polish from most abrasive to least and finish up with a wax

AnswerID: 199866

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 20:14

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 20:14

Thanks Brett. I don't really know if it is metallic. Its that dark green you see on late 90s and early 2000 Hilux & Prado. Check rig pic. I do know that when I cut it back I got no car colour on the rag at all - so thinking about it, it can't have been cutting away paint could it then?

I'll get a polish on to it next time I have a chance and see what happens.

FollowupID: 458893

Reply By: one4dirt - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:11

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:11

If the scratch is gone it sounds like it was only clear deep. So if you have cut a layer of clear you may be able to bring the shine back with the finnest of compounds. It may take a couple of goes with clear polish to follow after each cut to asess finnish. I recommend Meguries Scratch X for the clear finish.

Good Luck

Remember becareful attempting to remove scratches from newer car paints. If it's past the clear it's pointless trying to cut it back as it requries a complete respray (on that pannel).

Chris

AnswerID: 199915

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:25

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:25

Hi Chris. Not entirely gone, but it needs hunting for now. I was going to try the McGuires products, particularly the polish/wax two step. But I will try and the scratch X and see what it does.

FollowupID: 458907

Follow Up By: Mark - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:57

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 21:57

I'll second that, I've used the scratch X a number of times & it works well without rubbing through the clear coat like some of the more abrasive cutting paste. I use a foam pad (velcro backing) in an orbital sander, sounds a bit extreme but works really well with scratch X even on pretty nasty scratches caused by branches on narrow tracks, no paint damage after about a dozen applications.
Cheers
Mark

FollowupID: 458918

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 22:05

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 22:05

I got a lambswool thing that fits my drill - used it for waxing but always to scared to try and do anything that cuts!

FollowupID: 458919

Reply By: Heefers - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 22:08

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 22:08

G'day Tonester,

The paint on your vehicle is indeed a metalic colour, to be precise your paint scheme is a "COB" (Clear Over Base). This means that a couple of light coats of coulor are sprayed over the primer to achieve coverage, after which a few coats of clear are sprayed over top to achieve the appearance of depth and also give a protective coating. As a general rule, if you drag your finger nail over the scratch and can feel a "click", it may be time to bring out the "touch up paint" supplied with the vehicle, or time to become good friends with the local panel shop.

It may have been said already, but waxing is only putting a coating over the paint surface, not polishing the surface to a high shine by means of fine abrasives.

Cheers mate,
Heefers

AnswerID: 199926

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 08:56

Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 08:56

thanks Heffers.

FollowupID: 458963

Reply By: Voxson (Adelaide) - Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 23:25

Thursday, Oct 19, 2006 at 23:25

Tonester,,,
When you use a cutting compound it is doing precisely that "cutting",,, it is virtually scratching away paint until the scratch goes away....
So you are left with a dull area....
Your turtle wax is nothing but a shiny glazey application with no cutting ability...
When you do a serious polish like you have done you need to blend it out to the outers of the panel in question...
You need to use the next less course polish after you do the visious one and so on until you are doing a lightest as light cut....
In most cases you have got the harshness of the one you used to clear the scratch and then another lesser one and then the light one at the end...like magquires gold class.....but the one in the middle must be a medium cut about half as harsh as your first...
Been there and done that a million times...

AnswerID: 199933

Follow Up By: Member - Tonester (VIC) - Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 09:14

Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 09:14

Thanks Voxson. Will give it all a go next time I get a chance.

FollowupID: 458965

Reply By: one4dirt - Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 01:26

Friday, Oct 20, 2006 at 01:26

I only use the Meguiars gear on the good car.(Holden VX Berlina V8)
Not so much on the wash part, any soap product will do but after, I use the Paint cleaner polish followed by Scratch X and I finnish off with the Wet Look polish.
You don't realy have to go to that extreem for the 4by but the Scratch X takes out those swirls in the clear.
Iv'e also heard Toothpaste is a nice fine cutting compound but yet to try it.

Tone,

maybe grab the Scratch X and the wet look and just work it one after the other. If it dosnt seem to work you may have to get a really fine cutting compound or maybe pop into your local crash repairer or paint shop and se what the think.

Good Luck
Chris

AnswerID: 199941