Touch-Up Then Polish??

[Striker]

Or should I polish the paint and then touch up the minor rock chips I have on the front end of the car? It is a black car and i was thinking of using a toothpick to go over the light chips. Any ideas?

[JohnKleven]

It really depends on how you`re doing the touch up paint. If you stack the paint with several coats, and then wetsand it completely flat, then you can do the touch up paint first. If you`re planning on just dabbing a little paint in there and not sanding it, you want to do the touch up paint last. If the touch up paint is not completely flat, ten you will get rubbing compound into the chip, and it will be very dificult to get it all out after polishing.





John

[Striker]

I was just going to touch it up very carefully with a toothpick, just enough to fill up the small stone chips I have on the hood.

[Legacy]

It really depends on how you`re doing the touch up paint. If you stack the paint with several coats, and then wetsand it completely flat, then you can do the touch up paint first. If you`re planning on just dabbing a little paint in there and not sanding it, you want to do the touch up paint last. If the touch up paint is not completely flat, ten you will get rubbing compound into the chip, and it will be very dificult to get it all out after polishing.





JohnIf the OP is not going to wetsand, why would he polish first? The polish would get trapped in the chip making for poor adhesion. No matter which way you do it, do a good IPA wipe down first.

[imported_RZJZA80]

IMO clean the area first, then use the touch up paint (and clear on top if possible), then wetsand and buff, or just buff.