need advise on those micro rock marks...im working on it right now.

Chip Douglas · 10-12-03, 03:59

hi all, i got inside to ask if in my place you'd do those VERY TINY rock marks.........so tiny im afraid paint won't hold in em cause they re not DEEP enough to hold paint......i've been racking my brain whether i should do them or not(they re at the bottom of door panels). From my point of view, it's like obvious among those TINY rock marks, there are those that we call chips, as they stand out from the rest, and the latter need to be fixed, but as far as those TINy ones, im certain they wouldnt even show on a lighter colored car, so that may explain why i think i have many of them, whereas in fact i only have couple of actual stonechips.

I want to know what a true autopian would do about the above......i'll get in preiodically to check for replies. I tried to do couple of those tiny ones, but paint doesnt old in them, even though i cleaned it very thoroughly(it was squeaky clean for sure)...even days after they re done paint doesnt hold much.

this worries me a lot cause winter is on its way and i HAVE to end the winter prep soon

thanks all....back outside now...

Accumulator · 10-12-03, 05:49

Chip Douglas- I can be a bit of an "Autopian Heretic" at times, but *I* think you oughta give some thought to what your car is really about- for YOU. Perfect (show)cars are very seldom drivers (especially in winter) and there is, IMO, a point of imperfection that is reasonable to live with when it comes to cars that are driven all the time. So *I* wouldn't worry about the little chips. *IMO*, "real (street driven) cars have stone chips".

You're going through a LOT of hassles already and *I* wouldn't want the car to consume *MY* life. I didn't always feel this way, but I sure do now.

Just my $0.02

Chip Douglas · 10-12-03, 07:10

Accumulator, i have to admit i strongly agree with you, yet i can't stop working at the car lol

.......i think i'm one of the most meticulous, so much so that i'm beginning to think i should wear a straight jacket

My car is metallic black, so needless to say that imperfections show a lot, so part of them i have to live with, yet a black car that is detailled can look awesome. I think you were the one who offered his sympathy cause you too have had numerous black cars....i think it was you but not sure though.

Anyway, im back inside, as temperature is starting to lower a bit........well i'm off to some well deserved rest, so catch you later accumulator, thanks for your input, i always appreciate it.

Bill D · 10-12-03, 07:24

Hi Chip,

I now own my second black car, my other car was kept in above average shape but did have those awful stone chips. I admit I've become even more meticulous now about cars but I gave it my best shot to fill in those chips and left them at that.

I made over 90% of the car look fantastic by my very strict standards and I taught myself to accept the stone chips I couldn't fix. After that I really enjoyed the car as everyone should.

It was also comforting for me to read a while back that even in some very competitive concours events reasonable stone chips are overlooked on vehicles that have seen lots of traveling miles and are given the advantage over excessively restored cars.

I always try to avoid the chips but if they occur and I can't fix them as I'd like, I just focus on the overwhelming majority of the car I've beautified to the max

After all the hard work you put into detailing you still deserve to give yourself a big pat on the back and enjoy. ( which I know you do

)

Just thought another black car owner should chime in.

Hope this is helpful.

Chip Douglas · 10-12-03, 07:55

Bill, i find your word somewhat comforting, i guess i'm going a bit overboard with my car, a lot of people have told me that, although they find the results stunning, thye would never be willing to invest so much time and effort into beautifying theirs.

oh come to think of it Bill, would you agree with me that on a black car, a lot of those micro chips as i like to call them, wouldnt show at all on let's say a grey colored car ? It's like in a cluster of about 10 micro chips, only one would actually show on a grey car....i'm pretty sure i'm correct saying this.

Ok i'll let you go now, and yes you had a very good idea to chime in, it helps me a bit with my car mania..........notice it's not yet *mania* alone lol

Bill D · 10-12-03, 08:09

Yep, I agree with you about the chips not showing as much on a gret car.

I personally wouldn't own a silver car because I'm too nuts about wanting the shine black provides although silver is very forgiving.

Glad my other car is white and is only driven on nice Sundays otherwise I would've went mad a while ago .

Honestly, once you stop thinking about the marks and focus on the car in its entirety, it won't be as nerve wrecking;at least for me and I'm PICKY

FWIW, I try to tell myself ,"detailing is supposed to be fun". It truly is my therapy.

HTH

Acehole · 10-13-03, 11:30

If you are talking about those pinhead-sized marks, there are a couple of options. First, there is a pro touchup method using tiny hypodermic needles to inject paint into the chips. Check with a local car dealer for some names. For the non-purist approaches, you may be able to fill the spots by putting some touchup paint over the spot and then lightly rubbing it off, leaving some paint in the chip to minimize the visibility. Finally, on a black car, you may even be able to get away with touching them with a black permanent marker - not a magic marker, the permanent laundry markers with the pointy tips - Sharpies, I think they're called. I'm just talking about those tiny dots, nothing too big. I did a few small scratches on a friend's black bumper and it wasn't bad at all. Certainly much better than the white plastic showing through.

Chip Douglas · 10-13-03, 08:23

Acehole, i like your suggestion about the sharpies, i sure hadn't thought about that as yet............and yes i'm talking about those pinhead sized dots.............thanks for your handy tip, i'll prolly give it a go tomorrow.

take care

Bill D · 10-13-03, 09:08

Can you use a sealant or wax over the sharpie touch up to help prolong the color of the touch up? Sharpie now needs to make every color car paints come in

Chip Douglas · 10-14-03, 10:41

i've bought and tried those fine felt tip *sharpies*(black colored for mine, but they come in various colours where i got mine) and the results are i have to say very good in terms of masking, yet i can see a little difference, and seeing how well and accurate they re, i thougt that automagic pen IIRC would be just perfect.......i think they come with very fine tips too......i'll look that up right now..

Bill D · 10-14-03, 12:24

sounds like the best route to take

vprdak · 04-23-04, 12:15

Ah yes the dreaded micro chip i noticed many of these on my trucks hood this morning and have been worring about them all day. I feel a little better after reading these posts. I will just have to live with them and calm down. Ha Ha...