Chips on hood

[imported_Lawdog]

What`s the best way to fix these. I guess they are from small rocks hitting the hood. Really small chips in the paint which is black, allowing white undercoat to show. It is pretty noticeable on a clean hood. Seems like everytime I try to use touch up paint it looks worse afterwards. Is there a better way to fill these?

[flyinhigh]

This is a great article LawDog.

Involves some wet sanding though:xyxthumbs

http://www.bettercarcare.com/articles.php?articleId=27

[lbls1]

If they`re a small number, very very dilligently fill in with touch-up. If there are a lot of them then I wouldn`t bother. You do have a point, touch up actually will stand out more than the chip if the area is large, and multiple chips filled in with touch up just looks awful. I`m not sure how white handles it.



I would just keep the hood clean and waxed as best as possible. The original paint that is maintained will always look better than a cheap fix.



If its really bad, you may have to consider a repaint of the hood in question. Be careful if you are going that route, and always get a quality paint person, regardless of price.

[rgilbert24]

For those very small chips about the size of a pinhead I will often use a black permanent marker (sharpie) with a very fine nip. just touch it to the spot, dont rub, then touch it immediately (it drys very quickly) with a corner of a paper towel to absorb any excess. In about 10 seconds, when it appears dry, give it a quick rub with a clean towell so the only ink is in the small pinhead size chip. Then let it full dry for a day. Add a coat of wax on top to prevent it from washing off after several washes. Works great on bumper scatches too and I find it lasts a long time. Would not try this though on a large chip though as the colour is slightly off. But unless you are really looking for it, the fix is almost invisible.

[imported_Lawdog]

Thanks fo rthe replies. Informative article, but I can`t bring myself to take sandpaper to my paint There are only about 5 of them and they are real small. Only time I see them is when I am waxing or right afterwards. If they hadn`t used white undercoat on the black paint they wouldn`t be noticeable at all.

[togwt]

Quote: Thanks for the replies. Informative article, but I can`t bring myself to take sandpaper to my paint





~ One man’s opinion / observations ~



At one time detailing foam / polish / compounds were referenced to sandpaper grit sizes.

i.e. Very Fine Scratch- 2000 Grit Abrasive<

Light Oxidation - >2000 Grit Abrasive etc.



When I suggested to one of my helpers to use sandpaper on a small scratch he had a very similar reaction to yours.



But pre-wax cleaners as well as polish contain ‘grit’ type abrasives and are really just ‘liquid’ sandpaper, but we use them all the time without thinking of them as such.



~Hope this helps ~



Knowledge unshared is experience wasted

justadumbarchitect / so I question everything/ Jon

[Mr. Chemist]

There are Chip Repair Kits that are designed to remove the "blob" once you have filled in the chip. It works by softening up ONLY the blob, and allowing you to "sand" the blob smooth with only T-shirt material wrapped around a flexible card. There is a bit of a learning curve...but once you master it you can make touch ups look significantly better.

[lbls1]

That article was impressive.



Your best (my best) preventive measures against chips:



Very good paint care, with a lot of wax.



A bra (honest, it works!) for extended trips.



Avoid truck routes (especially with your good car).