Touch up

[JSFM35X]

I touched up a scratch. I have slowly built up the indentation with touch up pait so that it is well over the surface. The car is black and I would like to attempt a repair like I have seen written up on the site. Scratch is 2 inches to the metal top half of driver door.



I have a few questions:



I have a PC. What pads to use? DO I sand with the PC or by hand. What Grit Sand Papers would I need? I have local acess to 3M brand it that OK? I see most of the searches list Megs Unigrit. I am unable to find it locally. If someone knows of a dealer on LI in Nassau, I would appreciate the lead.



Should I wet or soak the paper. i have seen it written up both ways. (Does it matter).



I do not want to damage the clear coar so what is the best way to procede. Should I sand specifically on the spot to around it to blend it?



Lastly. What strength polishes are needed to bring back the finish? 3 steps? Please suggest products I can get locally. All I have is polishing compound, Ultima Paint Prep, Ultimate Finishing spray and SSR1. I would like to do this on Saturday.



How long will it take to perform the above? Do not know how long the sanding and pl;oiushing process should take given my first timer status?



As always, thanks for your input, expdrtise and suggestins.

[bucket]

First, a pic of the touched-up area would help, although not entirely necessary.



I`m not a PC user so I can`t speak at length about what pads to use.



All sanding should be done by hand with the sand paper wrapped around a sanding block.



3M sand paper is perfectly fine.



Since you`re a beginner, I`d recommend 1500 grit wet paper.



The sandpaper should be left to soakin a bucket of water over night.



While sanding, make sure to keep wetting the surface (I usually hold a sponge above the area being sanded and keep squeezing the sponge to release water)



As for size of area: try to keep it contained within an inch of the touched up spot...its not `bad` if you go beyond..but you want to keep as much clearcoat on the car as possible but you dont want a uneven surface either.



As for proceeding; 1500 grit cuts quick so be sure to work slow and constantly check your work. You shouldn`t spend more than a minute on sanding the paint. Even 40 seconds is kind of a long time. Just use little pressure on the pad, let the paper do the cutting.



Your products are not going to cut it (pun kind of intended). You`ll need a compound capable of removing 1500 grit sanding marks. The Porter Cable may not be aggressive enough to do the job...you may need to apply some pressure and spend more time on multiple applications of compound. I haven`t used the PC to remove sanding marks, so again, I can`t speak at length on that.



The compound marks should be taken out with a milder compound and then the surface should be finished with a polish (both steps I know the PC is capable of doing).



For all three steps, I`ve had success with 3M`s Perfect-It line (compound up to polish). I`m sure others will suggest m105 and m205 from Meguiar`s: I have yet to try them out. If you wanted to stick with Poorboy`s (it works well enough to do the job), you`ll want to buy SSR3 and SSR2.5. Start with SSR3 to remove the 1500 grit marks. Then SSR2.5, then SSR1.



As for the length of time this is going to take: treat it as a learning experience...and go slow.



Good luck!