Removing Scratches

[bill57]

I closed the garage door on the car and have scratches across half of the top. I tried Megs 105 with an orange pad, but did not do too well. Most scratches do not catch my finger nail. I do not want to wet sand, but rather want to work with a pad /product combination. Any suggestions?

[BudgetPlan1]

I closed the garage door on the car and have scratches across half of the top. I tried Megs 105 with an orange pad, but did not do too well. Most scratches do not catch my finger nail. I do not want to wet sand, but rather want to work with a pad /product combination. Any suggestions?

Megs D300 w microfiber cutting disc, perhaps?

[Mike lambert]

Griot’s fast cut, microfiber or white foam pad. Come behind with polish. May take a little work but you should at least get them to where you can live with them.

[Accumulator]

Bill57- Sorry to hear this happened, but I`d be awfully careful about getting really aggressive. Remember that the point of ruination is *NOT* even close to "cutting through the clear".

Something that catches a fingernail is much too deep for safe removal, and even scratches that aren`t half that deep often are too.

I`ve heard that Ford`s newest specs on how much can be (safely) removed are even more conservative than the old ones, and those didn`t allow for even *close* to "nail-catching"-deep removal (old specs- less than 0.66 mil over life of vehicle).

The roof will get lots of UV exposure so I`d want healthy (i.e., thick) clearcoat there.

[Stokdgs]

I closed the garage door on the car and have scratches across half of the top. I tried Megs 105 with an orange pad, but did not do too well. Most scratches do not catch my finger nail. I do not want to wet sand, but rather want to work with a pad /product combination. Any suggestions?

Bill57 --
So sorry to hear this happened to you..
Please advise make model, color, year of vehicle...
Please advise what was your process - machine, speed, how did you use the Meguiars 105, etc...
Which brand orange pad did you use, what size, etc..? How many passes with this combination, how much pressure did you put on the pad,, etc..
Do you have any pictures you can share of this damage ?
Dan F

[WaxAddict]

Those orange pads are great for swirls, automatic car wash damage, mild oxidation.. but they almost never "cut it" on real damage (for me).

I`ll recommend Menzerna 400 on a Lake Country HDO microfiber cutting pad. The smaller pad combined with 400 has never let me down fixing bad stuff like paint transfer/scuffs and clearcoat abrasion, and you can work quick to avoid heat build-up.

I think Griot`s Fast Cut, as Mike mentioned, is likely on par with Menzerna 400.

[WaxAddict]

Bill57 --
So sorry to hear this happened to you..
Please advise make model, color, year of vehicle...
Please advise what was your process - machine, speed, how did you use the Meguiars 105, etc...
Which brand orange pad did you use, what size, etc..? How many passes with this combination, how much pressure did you put on the pad,, etc..
Do you have any pictures you can share of this damage ?
Dan F

Yeah, what Dan said. Pictures and car type would help.

[Accumulator]

Stokdgs- This thread had me thinking of how little clear you like to take off.

[Stokdgs]

Stokdgs- This thread had me thinking of how little clear you like to take off.

Mi Hermano, El Accumulator` --
Yes, I still advocate for taking off as little as possible and measuring it in Microns, so I can see even half a micron removed...
This is why Im asking the OP about his process, car, color, etc., and pics, etc..

I just finished paint correcting all the - I assume After-Factory delivery damage - to a brand new 2018 Red Tesla, and lucky for me, the Total Thickness was as high as 274 um in places and lowest was 157um.. I hired myself out to a ClearBra Shop that needed this done before they coated the Tesla with Optimum Pro...

What I did not like was that the total thickness was not even close to being consistent all over the vehicle.. Were the Paint people or robots a little "shaky" that day?

There were definitely Factory boo-boos around the car - found a couple of deep gouges right below the tail light openings that had to be inflicted by whoever installed those lights,, ugh... Even some paint completely missing on the inside flange of the body where the trunk lid comes down over it.. The paint was scratched off...

The scope of work was to remove the zillion little scratches all round the higher sightline especially, panels, and of course the rest of this big, wide, tall panel car, which I successfully did..
My process was Makita 9227 Rotary, Lake Country Cyan Blue 5.5" pads, and Optimum Hyper-Polish..

Loved that I could accomplish all needed and still leave outstanding clarity and gloss without having to go more steps..
It still took almost 8 hours to paint correct the entire vehicle...

My best friend the Premier Boat Detailer of Seattle, WA. stopped by and left me an LED light made by CAT that was outstanding in giving me a wide beam that was not so focused in a little circle that it blinds one`s eyes out when looking at paintwork to find defects..
Its a rectangle, has a nice carry handle that allows one to stand it up, it charges with an AC charger or even through a USB port like if you hooked your phone up to it, in an emergency..

The process I am going to use is to have at least 2 of these awesome lights - one on the work and one charging so I always have it and have back up...
This little yellow CAT light is sold at Costco for 29.99 on line, perhaps may be less expensive at the Costco Warehouse, I don`t know..
It is a similar shape and type as the beautiful Scangrip light you see at Mike Lambert`s beautiful Shop, but of course smaller...

Hate it when they make cars have bigger butts than they need to be - takes forever to go all over them...
DanF

[WaxAddict]

Yes, I still advocate for taking off as little as possible and measuring it in Microns, so I can see even half a micron removed...

Are You sure the device you are using has the accuracy and repeatability to measure half a micron?

.
My process was Makita, Lake Country Cyan Blue 5.5" pads, and Optimum Hyper-Polish..

I do love me some Hydro-Shreds. I`ve tried to do the whole "3 colors and done" philosophy using just HT`s, but sales keep popping up on other stuff!!

What is the Makita unit that you use Dan? Is it a DA?

[Stokdgs]

Are You sure the device you are using has the accuracy and repeatability to measure half a micron?

Well I have no scientific, totally known to be accurate equipment to measure the total thickness meter accuracy, so I can only be satisfied with the zero it circular metal that comes with it to zero it out each time before I use it on a job..



I do love me some Hydro-Shreds. I`ve tried to do the whole "3 colors and done" philosophy using just HT`s, but sales keep popping up on other stuff!!

Don`t we just love Marketing !! What would we do without it ??
Glad there are so many choices and all, good for the Detailers of the World, for sure !

What is the Makita unit that you use Dan? Is it a DA?

I still lug around my old Makita 9227 Rotary, all 10lbs of it, and can knock out really great correction, clarity, and gloss, with no swirls, holograms, etc...
Having seen a lot of people use Rotaries over the decades, it seems to me that if one fails to work the product, pad and paint long enough to get it all worked through to almost nothing left on the paint and pad, then there may be things left in the paint afterward, which is always product that is stuck on the paint enough that it will not wipe off..

The paint was heated up too fast, the work was too fast, the pad was on edge, then the work stopped, wiped off with dirty towels, etc., and the work moved on to the next part of the panel...

Then, the pad is never wiped off between passes, with a white towel to get a visual of what is coming, off, and now one is putting dirty compound dirty pad, and whatever came off the paint, back into the paint again...

Just keep the pad a little moist, so it has longer to work the product, keep the pad flat, keep the movement smooth, not herky-jerky movement..
Think about how to keep a thin, even, layer of material between the pad and the paint at all times, (kind of like how we all had to strive to make `thin, even, coats" during the Zaino years), have better than average lighting on the work at all times, keep even, downward pressure on the pad at all times, speeds below 1000, and it will work out just fine..
Dan F

[PoweredByJenga]

The problem i find with trying to go down on a car with aggressive pads and compounds is the heat it introduces to the bodyworks underneath it. Removing deep or wide and shallow scratches is doable but i find the heat expansion can be an issue. I know that you dont want to wet sand but maybe reconsider. Watch some YouTube vids for guidance if you are not sure. Its far safer way then doing it via rotary esp if you have not used rotary before.
Cheers

[bill57]

Thanks, all! Sorry I was unable to get a decent picture, but suffice to say there are longitudinal striations. The car is a 2011 Buick Lucerne, black in color. I used orange Lake Country pad on my PC set at 6, with medium pressure. Made two passes before the 105 broke, and repeated times 4 with some noticable improvement. Looking for combination that will be more effective.

[re-tired]

Someone who is experienced / good with a rotary can do a job as good as any other machine. I think rotaries have gotten a bad rap /rep. from folks that dont use them correctly and or their process / technique is flawed.

I would be very hesitant to wetsand

[rlmccarty2000]

Megs microfiber pad with D300 or Menz 400 are my two favorites for nasty scratches.