worried I botched wetsanding.

[Gopher]

So I`m in the process of repairing some paint chips on my hood. I filled the paint with an autosharp pen and let it dry for 24 hours then came back to wet sand today.



I`m using 2000 grit paper and moving very slowly and controlled. I told myself in advance to be prepared to see some hazzing, but now that I`ve actually seen it bright and clear on my hood, I`m worried. Its a really white-ish cloud in my test areas, but when water is applied it looks normal again until it dries back to the cloud.



Is this waht i should be seeing? I`ve been searching a lot here trying to get information, but it seems limited. It seems every thread on the cusp of being detailed and informative gets discontinued telling newbies to do their due diligence. Also, it seems people that linked others to other threads which were particularly helpful, now lead to dead links.



I can`t want to get to my parents house to make sure my PC can elivate the damage...



Wet sanding is scary.

[Holden_C04]

Yes it is normal. Polishing will remove the scratches that you see.

[Eliot Ness]

That`s about how it will look. The following thread has a pretty good picture:



A small "how-to" on chip repair/wetsanding + spring cleaning (black G35) (56k = owie) - Autopia.org (http://autopia.org/forum/click-brag/70028-small-how-chip-repair-wetsanding-spring-cleaning-black-g35-56k-owie.html)



Edit: if those dead links are to threads on Autopia look and see if the word forums is in the URL. If so try removing the s (forum) and try the link again. One of the updates Autopia went through changed the URL so a lot of links no longer work unless you remove the s.

[Envious Eric]

compound it out, then polish it out, then wax



via PC you might want to hit it with some 300 grit, and possibly 4000 grit to ease the polishing/compounding steps...instead of hitting the panel for another 3-4 minutes with given compound twice, hit it with some higher grit paper for 15 second, then hit it once with the compound...



just another route to take

[Accumulator]

gopher- Given that you`re using the 3M 2k, *I* would stop wetsanding now and try to restore the areas in question with your PC. This is something where you really don`t want to go too far ;)



toyotaguy- Yeah, I already suggested the [3000] or finer paper but the 3M 2K was what gopher could find.

[SuperBee364]

That`s about how it will look. The following thread has a pretty good picture:



A small "how-to" on chip repair/wetsanding + spring cleaning (black G35) (56k = owie) - Autopia.org (http://autopia.org/forum/click-brag/70028-small-how-chip-repair-wetsanding-spring-cleaning-black-g35-56k-owie.html)



Edit: if those dead links are to threads on Autopia look and see if the word forums is in the URL. If so try removing the s (forum) and try the link again. One of the updates Autopia went through changed the URL so a lot of links no longer work unless you remove the s.



That thread should be a sticky, or at least in the Hall of Fame.

[Gopher]

I`m sure its OK... just really nerve wracking, as I`ve buried up to my nips in wedding expenses and can`t afford an expensive "uhoh"



I rubbed in a little FP by hand with a red/white german applicator and it cleared up some, so i think I`ll be alright. My concern is that it isn`t fully smoothed down, but I`m worried about the areas surrounding the blob geting sanded too much. I`m going by hand over a finger rather than over a block to have greater control/friction over smaller area...



We`ll hope for the best I guess.

[wannafbody]

You need a 4 inch orange or Sonus yellow pad and compound with a PC to remove the hazing.

[imported_themightytimmah]

I`m going by hand over a finger rather than over a block to have greater control/friction over smaller area..



Try a flexible block if you`re doing a small area... a finger has a tendency to "dig in" and cut unevenly and make removing the scratches a challenge.



Meg`s makes a great flexible block.

[Accumulator]

Gopher- Yeah, use a block. It can make all the difference.



I myself would rather still have a bit of blob than have a more serious issue...for that matter, very (as in, *VERY*) few of my touchups are perfectly leveled.

[Gopher]

Thanks for re-assuring me everyone. I was uneasy, but everything is fine--sort of.



Its a good news/bad news scenario:



The good news is, I`ve built a little confidence in wetsanding, even with the 3M paper which, though I had no problems with I won`t ever buy again (thanks Accumulator). I could only find a single megs cutting pad for my pc (thought they were at my parents house, but they were in my condo), so I got it less rough looking, but was unable to finish it down, but no harm done and it`ll blend fine I`m sure.



The bad news is, it really hasn`t improved the appearance of my rock chips. It looks better when you`re standing directly over it looking straight down, but from just about every other angle it looks the same.



Here is a picture of my current hood situation--any suggestions? I`ll polish out the rest of the sanding marks next week.

http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/3108/dscn0374mc4.jpg

the ones to the right are the ones I worked on.

[mose]

This is how my first attempt looked.....you should be fine!!



http://www.autopia.org/forum/click-brag/98794-1st-attempt-paint-chip-repair.html

[Mindflux]

The one thing that always worries me about wet sanding is having `low` spots in your clear afterward. Sometimes that looks worse than the offending chip.

[Bruce B]

Go to Staples or an art supply store and pick up a "Pink Pearl" eraser. It makes a perfect size "sanding block" for chip repair. You can use the face or an edge to minimize the sanded area. Go slowly and check your work often.



Good Luck

[Accumulator]

Bruce B- Great suggestion! Yeah, erasers make good little sanding blocks :xyxthumbs



Gopher- Don`t feel bad...I`m always posting about how crappy I think my touchups turn out :o Somehow my one painter can do `em incredibly well, but hey, he`s been dong it longer than most of us have been alive.



Honestly, I sometimes do the touchups if a given chip looks hideous, but most of the time I let `em go until the panel simply needs repainted because the chips get so numerous. Two to-the-metal chips on the Jag`s hood stayed OK for ~20 years, no rusting/etc. (my good painter finally touched them up perfectly, without my permission, because they bothered him so much).



Another thing to consider is a fine-grit (IIRC they now sell a 2500 but their 2000 works well too) Meguiar`s Unigrit sanding block. Easier for stuff like this than paper on a separate block, but no, it`s not right for every job as panel contours can really require something like the eraser-block that Bruce B suggested.