Cleaning up the paint

[jsup]

A friend of mine said I should come here for suggestions on doing some slight clean up on my car. I have a 1990 Corvette with only 30K miles that is absolutley like new. The color is called Quasar Blue Metallic. A Medium Blue metallic paint. I have already clay-barred the car, hand polished, and sealed it. I want to make it look better.

Last year I took 3rd in a car show. This year I am shooting for a first. The ONLY thing wrong with the paint on the car is that when you look at the paint in just the right light you can see what I have been told are "spider webs" and some minor surface scratches.

I would like to get the finish like a mirror, becuase the metallic really pops when polished up right. I have a Mikita polisher and I use 3M Glaze with a 3M low cut black polishing pads.

I`ve done my boat, other cars, etc.... with this wheel, but I`m` a bit hesitent to put it on the Corvette, since I do put it in shows.

Although I have done some wheel work, I am not an expert by any means, futher enabling my hesitation.

I like to polish the car wet, I keep a hose nearby with a "mist" setting so I don`t burn the paint.

My friend as a PC which is "idiot proof" as I am told. He seems to think that the PC with Poorboy`s 2.5 is the way to go. We are going to try it out on Thursday.

So, I have a couple questions.....

1. How`s the 3M glazing stuff for a show car?
2. How are the 3M pads? I use the black ones since they have the lighest one 3M makes. Is there a better pad?
3. How hard are these "spider webs" and small scratches to get out? Something I can do with a PC and some patience?

One last question. When I first got the Makita wheel, I got some Blue Coral polishing compound, it was fantastic, is it still made?

Am I using the right stuff? Is there a finishing sealer that is good for metallic paints? I am using LIquid Glass right now, which seems to work pretty well.

Thanks in advance.

[HondaMan]

As the friend, I would ask DC folks here for the following help in ID`ing the best way to tackle this problem:

(1) The car in question, a Corvette, is lightly driven (2K miles/year) and has about 30K total miles.

(2) It`s not detailed that regularly but has been cleaned before with non-MF towels (which might account for the spider webs).

(3) I would describe the spider webs as light.

With that in mind.....

(1) I say it`s best to use the PC 7424 and not the Mikita Rotary, at least to start off with. I know myself I`m kinda afraid to use a rotary -- hell, I used too strong a pad with the PC 7424 on my brother`s Accord and needed help from the Poorboys Detailing Day to get the scuffs out.

(2) I hate to break out 4 different pads -- PB Polish, SSR`s 1, 2, and 2.5 -- before deciding which is most likely to be effective. I know we like to use the least abrasive, but since even SSR 2.5 is OK, does anybody have any guestimates as to what level of polish/abrasive is going to be best for getting rid of light spider webs? Remember, this is a Corvette so we want to be gentle !

(3) If anybody has any suggestions on best sealants for this particular color, let us know. Otherwise I`ll default to AIO + 2 coats of UPP or Klasse SG (I have EX-P but I`ve found it less slick than the other 2 sealants).

Thanks for the help, guys.

[audiboy]

Without seeing it in person, or at least pictures, it`s hard to give advice. The PC with 2 sounds like a good place to start from what I read in your description though. The safe way would be to start with SSR1 and work your way up until the swirls are gone. Then work your way back down until your LSP.

[HondaMan]

My friend as a PC which is "idiot proof" as I am told. He seems to think that the PC with Poorboy`s 2.5 is the way to go. We are going to try it out on Thursday.

Unless I hear definitively from some experts here -- preferably someone who`s got/worked on a Corvette -- I would probably start at SSR 1 or 2 (forget the Polish or SSR 2.5 to start). Hopefully, Poorboy (Steve) himself can chime in here, I know he has his own website now that takes up some of his time.

1. How`s the 3M glazing stuff for a show car?2. How are the 3M pads? I use the black ones since they have the lighest one 3M makes. Is there a better pad?

That`s what I like about Poorboys SSR`s -- they are clearly labeled with numbers which make it easy to determine the order of use and the levels of abrasiveness. I can never figure out the Zaino or 3M numbers (of course, they`re more likely to be used by professionals who use the stuff daily as opposed to part-timers like me).

3. How hard are these "spider webs" and small scratches to get out? Something I can do with a PC and some patience?

I`ll let an expert have the final say, but from what Poorboy told me last year at the Detailing Day, you can never tell. Most of the time you can get 80-90% of the stuff right away on the 1st pass. Then you can get the remainder or most of it on the 2nd pass. And sometimes you need a 3rd or 4th pass....and sometimes, more passes don`t matter. Poorboy mentioned a Porsche that he worked on -- took him 12 passes before he got it looking like he wanted !!! I asked him how he could possibly know that it would take that many -- why didn`t he quit after the 3rd or 5th pass -- and he said, "You don`t know -- you just keep doing it." So there`s no easy answer, but I venture to say that you will see immediate improvement after 1 pass with the right SSR even if we only end up with 90% or 95% or 99% of the spider webs gone.

Am I using the right stuff? Is there a finishing sealer that is good for metallic paints? I am using LIquid Glass right now, which seems to work pretty well.

I used to use that 15 years ago on my Corvette, it`s not a bad product still (actually, I used the CLASSIC LIQUID GLASS stuff which is not made anymore thanks to a patent/lawsuit problem).

Anyway, check out the "LSP`s" section for posts by guys with Corvettes -- probably on this section they`re all using Poorboys EX-P, Klasse SG, FourStar UPP, and Zaino. Also check out the search function for "metallic blue" cars, Corvette or otherwise.

[HondaMan]

Without seeing it in person, or at least pictures, it`s hard to give advice. The PC with 2 sounds like a good place to start from what I read in your description though. The safe way would be to start with SSR1 and work your way up until the swirls are gone. Then work your way back down until your LSP.

Once you get the spider webs gone, why would you `work your way back down` ????

Can`t you just go to LSP/AIO steps right then and there? If I took it off with SSR 2.5 and it looked good, why go down to SSR 2.0....SSR1.....and maybe even Poorboys Polish ???

If it`s for a smoother finish, can I just jump right down to Poorboys PP or SSR 1 before going on to AIO + LSP ????

[JaredPointer]

This should be engrained in your memory - start with the least aggressive pad/polish combo in a test area, see how the combo works, and adjust your pad and/or polish. It may take several tries to get what you want, but it might save you a lot of heartache in the end. By using small test sections, you won`t waste a lot of time fooling with something too light.

[JaredPointer]

Unless I hear definitively from some experts here -- preferably someone who`s got/worked on a Corvette -- I would probably start at SSR 1 or 2 (forget the Polish or SSR 2.5 to start).

Paint`s paint - Corvette or not.

Once you get the spider webs gone, why would you `work your way back down` ????

To remove possible hazing and to burnish the paint to a higher shine.

Sometimes, you could probably go to a LSP right from 2.5, but sometimes you can`t. If you`re gonna show a car, there`s no reason to do a halfway job. Do it right.

[Mikeyc]

Once you get the spider webs gone, why would you `work your way back down` ????

Can`t you just go to LSP/AIO steps right then and there? If I took it off with SSR 2.5 and it looked good, why go down to SSR 2.0....SSR1.....and maybe even Poorboys Polish ???

If it`s for a smoother finish, can I just jump right down to Poorboys PP or SSR 1 before going on to AIO + LSP ????

I compare polishing to wood working. If you were sanding a piece of wood you wouldn`t use an extremely aggressive piece of sandpaper and then just stop. You would work your way down to finer papers to get a smooth finish.

In polishing a car it`s a little easier because typically you can jump from a somewhat aggressive polish like SSR 2.5 straight to a finishing polish like SSR 1. If you`re using a polishing pad for both polishes then you`ll have no problems. However, if you need to use a cutting pad with SSR 2.5 to get out the cob webbing then you may need to polish again with SSR 2.5 on a polishing pad before proceeding to SSR 1 on a polishing pad. As was already said it`s hard to make an specific recommendation on a pad & product without seeing the car in person.

I always make a test spot somewhere inconspicuous on the car to see what the best combo will be to remove all the defects and get the car to it`s best shine.

[audiboy]

Once you get the spider webs gone, why would you `work your way back down` ????

Can`t you just go to LSP/AIO steps right then and there? If I took it off with SSR 2.5 and it looked good, why go down to SSR 2.0....SSR1.....and maybe even Poorboys Polish ???

If it`s for a smoother finish, can I just jump right down to Poorboys PP or SSR 1 before going on to AIO + LSP ????

You work your way down because of the hazing that could occour while trying to get the swirls and spider webs out. If it takes SSR 2.5, I would go to SSR 1 and the to Pro Polish, assuming you`re only using PB`s products. If you only have to go to SSR 2, I would try going straight to the Pro Polish or another final polish. Like I said, it`s hard to give spot on advice without seeing what I`m working with. I was more or less just giving a general idea of what you could do.


EDIT: The others beat me to it. I guess I should take a little less time while I`m posting...

[jsup]

Without seeing it in person, or at least pictures, it`s hard to give advice. The PC with 2 sounds like a good place to start from what I read in your description though. The safe way would be to start with SSR1 and work your way up until the swirls are gone. Then work your way back down until your LSP.

It`s hard to get a good pic of them. but I`ll try.

[Mikeyc]

It`s hard to get a good pic of them. but I`ll try.

If you have a strong light like a spot light or a work light that helps with taking pictures of cob webbing. Also, make sure your falsh goes off.