Possible small scuff through clear coat

**tguil** · 03-20-2013, 05:15 PM

I recently had the hood on my white Ram repainted. In the process of removing a paint nib, I`m quite sure that the tech "nipped" the clear on a curved surface. I`ve seen the tool that this shop uses for nib removal and I can see how this could have happened. The shop also corrected some "die back". It could have happened then. The tech used a 3000 grit Trizact disc for this correction.

The "scuff" is only about 1/2 inch long and 1/8 inch wide and because the paint is white it can only be seen under "just right" conditions. I didn`t notice it until I was polishing and waxing the hood. It cannot be seen in sunlight.

The paint work is warrantied...no problem there. However, I do not really want the hood recleared. The truck already has two coats of base coat/clear coat from the factory (Found that when the repair was being made. Lucky me.) plus the repaint from shop. The area that has the scuff received only clearcoat.

I really don`t want mess with any serious polishing to see if this scuff really goes through clear. It looks OK right now. However I do plan to point it out the the body shop owner, just in case I have future problems. As I mentioned earlier this truck is white and it garaged almost enough to be considered a "a garage queen" so UV damage is not a real concern to me.

A "normal" car owner would have never noticed this scuff, but then I`ve never been "normal" when it comes to vehicle care.

Does this plan make sense?

**Dan** · 03-20-2013, 07:06 PM

Get a dark colored pad and a light polish, you`ll see white on the pad if its cut through the clear.

**tguil** · 03-23-2013, 04:20 PM

I`m pretty sure that Optimum 2.0 or perhaps even Opti-seal to the whole hood would take care of the problem/concern. However, I would prefer to continue using a regular wax/sealant for the general maintenance of my truck`s finish. (I`m just an "old school" kind of guy.)

Would it be possible to protect just the area of the scuff using either Opti-Seal or Opt-Coat 2.0. Blend it in a bit and then apply regular wax over this "repair" after the Seal or 2.0 has dried?

Again, I am not overly concerned about long term UV protection. If the clearcoat really "goes south", I`ll have a repaint, but not until then.

**Accumulator** · 03-24-2013, 01:18 PM

tguil- What about doing a little touchup with some clear?

**tguil** · 03-24-2013, 08:08 PM

Originally Posted by Accumulator

tguil- What about doing a little touchup with some clear?

Been thinking that`s what I may end up doing...someday.

**tguil** · 04-12-2013, 11:46 AM

Just detailed the truck. The scuff is through the clearcoat but it is smaller than I thought..1/16"x3/4". (I`ve successfully repaired scratches that were bigger than this.) I definitely do not at this time want the whole hood recleared. However, because of the guarantee, it is always an option. Opti-Coat is not really an option unless I do the whole hood/truck. Still prefer not to do this. The question: .... Will a good quality sealant (Meguiar`s Ulitimate) pretty much provide adequate protection for this small area, especially since the truck is garaged most of the time...day and night. I`ll only keep the truck another year or two.