Am I crazy to even try?

[Stuff]

http://my.st/burley/alex%20paint/DSCF0007%20(Medium).JPG



http://my.st/burley/alex%20paint/DSCF0018%20(Medium).JPG



http://my.st/burley/alex%20paint/DSCF0016%20(Medium).JPG





This is not my car but a buddies that really really needs some help. Im still pretty new to the detailing thing but getting the hang of it. As you can see in the first pic there are large white spots. Almost his whole trunk and hood are like this. What is that? Really bad fade? Clear coat gone?



The last pic is not of bird poop. That is some permenent mark. I have no idea what it is. Any ideas?



The strongest thing in my arsenal is SFX-1. Dont think thats going to cut it. So what should I do? Is it beyond the state of repair. Should I be useing a paint gun instead of a PC? He does not want it perfect just better. Thanks for any help guys.

[imported_Grouse]

tag for my learning process.

[imported_themightytimmah]

It looks like an oxidized single-stage finish. You might be amazed by the results that AIO or a good abrasive polish would produce on it. The spot on the front is just rusted, polish away the "trail" and sand, primer and touchup the spot and you should be good to go.



Heres some before and afters to give you an idea of what can be fixed (and this job was relatively easy, one pass with a rotary/optimum/cutting, finishing pass with a rotary/poorboys pro polish/finishing pad. Its very doable with a PC, just keep swapping pads in and out as they cake up with dead paint and soak the used ones in water and a little bit of soap before swapping them back on the machine.



http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y228/themightytimmah/DSC00012.jpg



http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y228/themightytimmah/DSC00019.jpg



http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y228/themightytimmah/Miata-NXT.jpg

[MrSelfDestruct]

Hard to tell really just based on those pics..



If it`s do-able, I`d definatly be wanting to use a rotary though! Light wetsand with 1500 to remove crap off the top, then some GOOD compound such as 3M Perfect-It III Extra Cut and a wool pad.. then whatever polish you want should be good to go..

[imported_steveo3002]

looks like it could just be oxidised single stage....aio might well work for you



theres a great thread on megsonline forum showing a polish job on a 65 mustang.might be worth a look

[Accumulator]

Even if some spots are to metal (and oughta be repainted), you can certainly make it a LOT better.



If those spots are to bare metal, I`d touch them up with some rust converter even if you don`t have any red touchup paint. IMO everybody oughta have a tube of 3M Rust Avenger in the toolbox :D



What kind of car is it? As mentioned, there are some red single stage Mazdas.

[Spork]

Even if some spots are to metal (and oughta be repainted), you can certainly make it a LOT better.



If those spots are to bare metal, I`d touch them up with some rust converter even if you don`t have any red touchup paint. IMO everybody oughta have a tube of 3M Rust Avenger in the toolbox :D



What kind of car is it? As mentioned, there are some red single stage Mazdas.



It is a 1994 to 1997 Miata, and yes the original paint is single stage. when you polish it you will think you`r taking all the paint off because your towels will turn red. I think you will be able to make it better. Is that bird droppings on the front hood, or is that a paint chip. The hood is aluminum so do not use too much pressure. At least it is not a big car. I have a 91 that needs paint and a lot of body work and is currently on jackstands getting a new clutch.

[MrSelfDestruct]

I polished up a early Pontiac Vibe which was single stage (yes they actually make them with crappy single stage paint!) my pads were coming off red. I couldn`t beleive that they made cars like that these days! Anyways I got it looking pretty shiney (not as good as if it were clearcoated) and put on paint sealant.. looked good for a couple months then got kinda dull but we finally sold it. :lol:

[Accumulator]

Heh heh, I often *prefer* the look of (high quality) single stage...guess I`m just old school.



MiataPaul- Good info there :xyxthumbs



Stuff- OK, you oughta be able to make that look a *lot* better. Even when it`s worn to primer on the high points, ss can look good for a long time. There were a lot of areas on my Volvo that were down to primer, but I never had any problems from it other than how it looked.

[Stuff]

Thanks a lot guys. I tried some AIO. Looked really good when I put it on but then when taking it off there was little improvement.



What is this single stage paint you guys are talking about? When I go to polish it and the red paint comes off on the pads and MF towels will it wash out? By the way its a 1993ish Mazda mx-6.

[autoprincess]

Single stage paint, is basically spray paint no added protection.



Please note that if you buff single stage paint for a customer, make sure you tell them that the finish will not last forever. It will begin to fade, make sure a nice coat of wax is kept on the paint to help keep the shine. You probably have a bunch of rags or pads that are red now so your quesiton is can you reuse them. Take them to your local laundry mat in throw them in the wash or you can saturate the pads/rags with a good cleaner then spray them out with a water hose. Make sure they are dry before you use them again. If the pads/rags appear to be a waste then throw them out. More than likely you can reuse them again if you clean them good.



I have used several pads/rags on different vehicles with/without single stage paint. Rags/pads are pretty good for reusing regardless of the abuse. Except when dealing with undercoat spraying, but that is a different subject.

[Accumulator]

Yeah, I`ve never had any problems from pigment transfer stains on my pads/MFs.



I`ve had a lot of ss cars over the years (still have two) and IMO the best thing you can do is keep them out of the sun. Despite all the talk about "UV protection" in LSPs, if you leave a red ss paint in the sun it`s gonna fade even if it`s not true "oxidation" as we usually think of it.



If you avoid leaving it in the sun all the time, ss paint can hold up very well. Of my two ss cars, the one that had to live outside for a (very short) while has far more paint issues than the other one, despite having fewer miles. Some others ss paints/colors aren`t so fragile though, the Volvo`s light blue held up great, outside 24/7, with just Collinite on it.



Stuff- You need to cut off the oxidized paint- it`s getting "wet" from the AIO but then drying out again as you buff it off. When you get the "dead" paint off, it`ll stay nice(er) looking. Just go slow and easy so you don`t take off more than you need to. If it were mine, I`d be looking at a Meguiar`s approach, probably #80 or maybe even #9. If the paint seems really dry I`d put a glaze on it before the LSP. The stuff about "feeding the paint" isn`t always BS with single stage the way it is with basecoat/clear and while I`m not a huge fan of some Meguiar`s products I do think they work well on single stage.