Is it just me?

[Pats300zx]

Hey guys I just wanted to get your expert opinion about some small scratches that I have on my 300zx show car. I assume the scratches are from towels that I have used for waxing or Qding. I will now only use Mf`s.



I had the hood of the car repainted over a year ago and I can only see these scratches under fluorescent light in my garage.



Being the anal person I am, what do you recommend I use to try and remove them?? Do you think SMR would be ok. Granted the hood is perfect but only has some minor swipe scratches from the towels...I don`t want to use anything to harsh. I just want to try and remove some of the light scratches.



I have also used some 3M Hand Glaze but I don`t know if I should go more abrasive...Any ideas???? Thanks for the help...

[JasonC8301]

The next step up from 3M IHG is 3M SMR (swirl mark remover) PN # 39009. It contains slight abrasives and some fillers. This should be adequate for your towel marring. To check if you did anything to the marring after the 3M SMR, use one soft clean MF to wipe on some 70% rubbing alchohol, let it work for 2 min, then wipe clean and inspect. Still swirls, go over it again.



Use foam for the 3M SMR because it will provide the best polishing tool for this job. A terry towel for this may cause even more marring (swirls.)



Be patient, for those isolated areas (I assume, but make an ass if I`m wrong) work slowly and carefully, check your foam applicator pads, towels frequently for contamination and if they get gummed up with product. Don`t rush.



Research the archives/forum/product review section (a great review was on Meguiars #9 2.0 SMR) for techniques on how to remove these scratches/marring by hand.



Jason

[Don2000g]

Young Jason is right on! You should get the results you want with 3M SMR. Try a few passes with this particular product. It is gentle (safe) stuff. The product a step up more aggressive would be 3M Finesse It 2.

[vettefan67]

Unless you have an electric buffer, SMR may cause more marring than you started out with! Go with something milder like PPCL and you should be fine. These are very very small "swirls" aren`t they? If it`s from a cotton towel, I think that SMR would be way overkill and require too much more additional effort.



$0.02

puterbum

[Pats300zx]

Sorry I am kinda of a newbie. What exactly is PPCL??

[BradE]

PPCL= Pinnacle Paintwork Cleansing Lotion. If the car is a true show car, I would not use abrasives unless I had no other choice. The marring might be in the wax/sealant on the car and not actually in the clear. I would strip and wax/sealant and then evaluate if you need abrasives.

[Pats300zx]

Wow guys I am totally confused now. I don`t know if I should use 3M SMR or PPCL. The scratches that I have are very minor and can only be seen under artifical light in the garage at an angle. I assume them are simple towel marring. I am afraid that either SMR or PPCL will cause hazing or make my situation worse. Any thoughts???

[Blue_Ridge_Products]

Pat is this a true show car or a car in what you consider showromm condition? If it is going from show to show then glazing it about 30min before the show will leave the surface perfect for the remainder of the show as it will fill any of these light towel scratches in. When the glaze evaporates, presto the marks come back but the show is over.

If you actually drive the car what do you have on for protection? The reason I ask is the marring may only be in the wax or sealent. Once you determine if the marring is in the protection or indeed in the clear you will have to use a product with some abrasive as that is the only way to remove the light lines you have from the toweling. You will have to follow it up with a non-abrasive polish to get rid of any hazing. Remember any hazing will be even lighter than the toweling marks.

Hopefully the marring is just in the wax/sealent, then strip it off,

use any of the non-abrasive polishes until you get the car looking like you want and then follow up with your favorite wax or sealent. Do yourselve a favor and read David Byron`s " The Perfect Shine" article, he is an expert on show cars.

[vettefan67]

ELD, good point with the possibility of marring being in the sealant.



Pat: I`d really recommend trying the PPCL. I have used both SMR and PPCL and would highly recommend PPCL for any very minor "micromarring" like the stuff you have. Since what you have is so minor, SMR would be way overkill and it can be a pretty involved process to get a perfect finish with SMR applied by hand.



If you have major stuff you could use SMR or FI-II but from your description of it, PPCL will work fine. I really think that SMR will change the situation for the worse or remove excessive paint for the situation. PPCL should work wonderfully, I know I`m not the only one here that loves the stuff.

[imported_TLMitchell]

Or does UPS just stink? :confused:

Got a gallon of M34 delivered a few weeks ago. It was packaged properly with BIG red arrows on the side and THIS SIDE UP displayed prominently. You guessed it... upside down on my porch with product leaking out. :cursing:

My good driver retired a few months ago, he bore an uncanny resemblence to Cliff Clavin so that`s what I called him. Since then it`s a series of replacements that tear up my 500 ft gravel driveway at 40 mph throwing gravel everywhere and lock `em up when they stop and spin `em when they take off. In addition, UPS is slower than any other shipper this side of Pony Express. :banghead: 8 days to get something from the left coast, USPS Priority Mail is never any longer than 3 days, frequently 2. FedEx Ground is primo as well.

So I call UPS Customer Service about the upside down package and product loss in addition to the discoloration on my deck that there`s no way to correct. I get the standard apologies and was told they`ll investigate and any compensation will be made to the shipper. HUH??? :doh:

A few days later I get a call from the local UPS Center Manager with more apologies. I mention the problem with the drivers tearing up my driveway and get the standard "I`ll have a talk with him". Right. A few weeks later same story. When I get home from work I can tell when UPS has been there from the tracks in the driveway! :cursing: What do you expect from a company that specifies their drivers walk to a residence door at a brisk 3 ft per second and advises `em to knock rather than waste time looking for a doorbell? I know some guys that work for `em and the outfit is a real bunch of slave drivers with an adversarial management style. :sarge No surprise to me that their employees only pay lip service to customer service.

I`ve had it. In the future I`ll specify USPS Priority Mail or FedEx Ground when available. If a vendor only ships UPS I`ll do business elsewhere. I was real pleased to see the last couple of shipments from Jack & Co. come via Priority Mail. Two days from Florida... UPS usually takes 5. Unless it`s over a weekend then it can be longer as everything appears to come to a screeching halt at 5PM on Fridays.

My vent... TL

[imported_Flash Gordon]

Or does UPS just stink? :confused:

Got a gallon of M34 delivered a few weeks ago. It was packaged properly with BIG red arrows on the side and THIS SIDE UP displayed prominently. You guessed it... upside down on my porch with product leaking out. :cursing:

My good driver retired a few months ago, he bore an uncanny resemblence to Cliff Clavin so that`s what I called him. Since then it`s a series of replacements that tear up my 500 ft gravel driveway at 40 mph throwing gravel everywhere and lock `em up when they stop and spin `em when they take off. In addition, UPS is slower than any other shipper this side of Pony Express. :banghead: 8 days to get something from the left coast, USPS Priority Mail is never any longer than 3 days, frequently 2. FedEx Ground is primo as well.

So I call UPS Customer Service about the upside down package and product loss in addition to the discoloration on my deck that there`s no way to correct. I get the standard apologies and was told they`ll investigate and any compensation will be made to the shipper. HUH??? :doh:

A few days later I get a call from the local UPS Center Manager with more apologies. I mention the problem with the drivers tearing up my driveway and get the standard "I`ll have a talk with him". Right. A few weeks later same story. When I get home from work I can tell when UPS has been there from the tracks in the driveway! :cursing: What do you expect from a company that specifies their drivers walk to a residence door at a brisk 3 ft per second and advises `em to knock rather than waste time looking for a doorbell? I know some guys that work for `em and the outfit is a real bunch of slave drivers with an adversarial management style. :sarge No surprise to me that their employees only pay lip service to customer service.

I`ve had it. In the future I`ll specify USPS Priority Mail or FedEx Ground when available. If a vendor only ships UPS I`ll do business elsewhere. I was real pleased to see the last couple of shipments from Jack & Co. come via Priority Mail. Two days from Florida... UPS usually takes 5. Unless it`s over a weekend then it can be longer as everything appears to come to a screeching halt at 5PM on Fridays.

My vent... TL

Being from Memphis, I am going to always pull for Fed Ex. However, I live at the end of a cove. Both UPS and FedEx make deleiveries on my street daily (sometimes twice) They both just love to pull up in my driveway for there turnaround. My stoop has a big ole crack in it because of this. I have thought about saying something, but don`t want my packages to end up like yours TL, so I just keep my lip zipped and just wait for the day there front tires drop through my concrete. Then I will let them buy me a new driveway :-B

[drdetail]

never had a problem with ups on my end. fedex doesn`t deliver sometimes:(