Wetsanding

[wagsjr]

So I am wetsanding a nice Trans Am today. My friend gets a paint job, gets taken for his money. The guy charged 700, no wetsand no buff. Said his buffer broke and offered a raincheck. So 8 months later he wanted it done right.

To start I havent done it in a while. SO I got some 1200 Megs ungrit and went to town. Unsure of how much clear is on it I got it smooth that u can vaguely see the orange peel in some places when the water dries from sanding.

I had a little of 3M rub it II and some Megs 85. Never tried 85 but it isnt seeming to take the scratches out from sanding. The 3M seemed a little better. Also using my dewalt with a wool cutting pad.

SO do you guys think I should sand with a lighter paper like a 2000 or maybe hit it 2x with the compound. It is only 4 panels on the car. The rest will get an 83/80 treatment. Maybe you know of a better compound. The 85 was supposed to take up to a 1200 sand scratch out I thought. So looking for some input here. Thanks

I knew there was a reason I always decline jobs like this(LOL)

[Accumulator]

wagsjr- Yeah, even with a wool pad, I'd want my final sanding to be a lot milder than 1200. And FWIW, I never believe those "grit ratings" on products, they always seem wildly optimistic.

[SpoiledMan]

And FWIW, I never believe those "grit ratings" on products, they always seem wildly optimistic.

Yep, take those ratings with a grain of salt. If the process was the same(pad, machine type etc.) for all manufacturers then at least they could be a reference point.

[wagsjr]

It started getting dark so I am going to check it in the sun. I hate to have to sand the panels again. It shouldnt take as long this time though. Spent a good few hours getting after it today

[BlueLibby04]

^^yea, at least get some 2000grit paper on it. It will be alot easier to get the marks out..

[wagsjr]

When working in the body shops/detail shops I was in volume was the key. Once the panel was flat and peel gone we hit it hard, polished and out the door.

I would imagine it wont take as many passes but I will have to go 1500 then 2000 at least on this one. The clear was hard and I had to rub the hell out of it to get the peel out. It was bad.

[Asonyexec]

Meguiar's Online - How to Introduction to Wetsanding and Rotary Buffing. (Video)

[danponjican]

I always finish up my wet sanding with 2000 grit. I've heard of some people finishing with 3000 grit. It just makes it easier to buff it out.

[Accumulator]

I always finish up my wet sanding with 2000 grit. I've heard of some people finishing with 3000 grit....

Yeah, I'm a big fan of 3K for the rare occasions when I do this stuff. But my good painter (who's generally urging me to get much more aggressive) always suggests to finish the sanding with 4K; he even gave me some foam-backed Nikken disks in 4K when I tried to blow him off with "well, I don't have any.."

[wagsjr]

I used the 3m PI III and it tore it up. I would say 95% or better of them gone. NEVER again will I do it this way. But the 3m was impressive. Hit it at like 2000rpm.

I will be better able to tell once it is polished.

Thank you for all your insight. I have done wetsanding before but I am no pro. MY boss always handed me te stuff to use yet never said what it was. SO lesson learned and thank you all

[SVTContour]

I was able to easily get 2500 grit marks out of Honda paint (soft) with 3M PI II FCC and a PC with cutting pad.

I've also found that when reviving headlight lenses, that last step with the finest paper you have really makes the polishing go fast. Nothing really groundbreaking there.

[wannafbody]

2000, 2500 and 3000 unigrit paper, and a rotary (possibly a wool pad)