Fresh paint - Polish OK?

[hoanger]

Hey guys, I just got some fresh paint on my front fenders, hood, drivers side door and rear quarter panel. It came out of the shop and it is swirls GALORE. I honestly don`t know how it got so many on fresh paint. I think it`s the shop that wiped it down with some dirty rags.. and my car is black! :nixweiss



I`ve searched and searched, but haven`t gotten a clear answer. I know that it shouldn`t be sealed or waxed for at least 30 days. But haven`t heard anything on polishing.. is it ok to use Poorboys SSR 2.5 and SSR 1 since it has no silicone?

I have a car show at the end of the month and I don`t think I want to go in with swirls like that.



Also, I need to put 3M on the hood.. the shop said it`s OK to do so right away, however I`m still skeptical. What do you guys think?



BTW, the shop does not bake the parts after painting.



Thanks!

[imported_cj99si]

Yes you can polish, you just cant put any wax/sealant on after

[imported_mystic04]

NO pro here but i know people have buffed fresh paint i assume as long as you don`t seal or wax it the paint should still cure ok, you should be able to put a glaze on for some protection.i wouldn`t do the 3m shield till latter so the paint can cure more. More people will chime in and you`ll get a better idea of either you can or can`t.I know my son works at a body shop and he buffs fresh paaint all the time so i don`t see a reason why you can`t buff out the swirls just use bodyshop safe products.

[Accumulator]

honanger- Just note that the fresh paint might be kinda soft; I`ve had paint that was too soft for Meg`s #80 (!) for the first few weeks.

[hoanger]

Thanks guys! So it won`t do anything to the clearcoat if I use an aggressive polish such as SSR 2.5 right?

I`m worried that it might still be "soft" or something and it`ll just mess up even more. But if your son works at the body shop and he does that, then I guess I`m good to go!



I`d like to hear more input though if anyone has anything to say!

[hoanger]

honanger- Just note that the fresh paint might be kinda soft; I`ve had paint that was too soft for Meg`s #80 (!) for the first few weeks.



How do you tell?

[imported_mystic04]

Try using the lightest polish you have on a soft pad and see how that goes before you step up in product or pads.

[hoanger]

Try using the lightest polish you have on a soft pad and see how that goes before you step up in product or pads.



will do. What should I be looking for?

However, the swirls on the car are far worse than it has ever been. I`m thinking a couple passes of SSR2.5 will only deal with that. SSR1 just can`t touch it, I`m afraid. :help:

[jeteast99]

you will be fine. the body shop you went to probably used 3m extra cut rubbing compound after wet sanding with a wool pad and thats why you have the swirls. ssr2.5 followed up by ssr1 will should take care of it

[SuperBee364]

Yes you can polish, you just cant put any wax/sealant on after



+1



You`ll get a huge variety of answers about how long you need to wait before applying a sealant or wax. Personally, I`m going to wait three months on my recently repainted SUV.



It is ok to polish the paint immediately.

[hoanger]

awesome thanks guys.

one more thing.. in the meantime while i wait to put 3M on.. is it ok to put some green painters tape on the front portion of the hood? just so it protects the edge of the hood.

or is that just doing the same thing 3M would?

[Accumulator]

..

one more thing.. in the meantime while i wait to put 3M on.. is it ok to put some green painters tape on the front portion of the hood? just so it protects the edge of the hood.

or is that just doing the same thing 3M would?



Good move waiting on the 3M PPF; they say to wait until the paint is cured as as with waxing/etc.



I dunno about the tape :nixweiss If you do it, don`t leave it on there all that long or it`ll leave residue/etc. Even the "clean release" tapes only work as advertised for a little while and then they cause issues just like the cheap stuff (gee, guess how I know *that* :o ). It *is* a catch-22 alright...



On the soft-repaint thing, the worst that`ll happen is that you`ll get some micromarring that you`ll have to wait to remove (unless you have some super-mild product). It`s not a huge issue, at least it wasn`t for me, but it sure did :eek: me when I saw the #80 leaving a marred-up surface.

[derek37]

+1



You`ll get a huge variety of answers about how long you need to wait before applying a sealant or wax. Personally, I`m going to wait three months on my recently repainted SUV.



It is ok to polish the paint immediately.



Why is it necessary to wait to apply a sealant or wax on fresh paint after polishing? :confused:

[BigJimZ28]

Why is it necessary to wait to apply a sealant or wax on fresh paint after polishing? :confused:



because it needs time to cure

and an LSP can slow down or stop that process

and you end up with a paint job that you can not even look @ with out swirling it:LOLOL

[derek37]

great thanks Jim Disregard the question I asked on the other thread that you already replied to