Dr. ColorChip

SYMAWD

SYMAWD

New member
My 2014 Honda Civic Si already has some paint chips on it, so I bought Dr. ColorChip in hopes of fixing them or making them look better. I had a medium sized one on the passenger side fender and a small, medium, and large one on the hood.


Here's what I started with:



Color matched paint. Paint color is Orange Fire Pearl and the match was pretty much 100%:



Dabbed, then spread:



Removed with SealAct:



I then repeated the process hoping for a more level result and this was the best I could get:



And here are the ones on my hood with the smallest now nearly impossible to see:



From a normal viewing distance:



Also got all the salt off of it today with a rinseless wash performed before the Dr. ColorChip process. All chips were cleaned with IPA.



Overall, it is an idiot proof way to minimize your paint chips, but I feel as if using traditional touch up paint, wet sanding, and then polishing would yield a more level result. It seems like no matter how many times you repeat the process, the Dr. ColorChip paint won't build up on itself to eventually level out with the original finish.
 
SYMAWD- Huh, wonder why it wouldn't build up for you...I've filled some awfully bad gouges with it.

I use it pretty much the same way I use conventional touchup paint, and maybe that makes all the diff. In other words, I use tiny brushes and many applications, but I do my best to keep it off of the surrounding paint. I don't use their leveler until I'm satisfied with the thickness, which might take a long, long time depending on how bad the damage is.

EDIT: I bet the difference was a matter of time between coats. IIRC (this was a few years ago, not sure if I documented it in my Detailing Log or not..), I applied it pretty thick and let it dry/cure/whatever for a day or more. I do remember that the whole project took quite a few days and I let it set up for a long time after that before I leveled it. Even so, I polished some of it away with a relatively minor polishing, but still...it worked out better than I'd expected.
 
Accumulator said:
SYMAWD- Huh, wonder why it wouldn't build up for you...I've filled some awfully bad gouges with it.

I use it pretty much the same way I use conventional touchup paint, and maybe that makes all the diff. In other words, I use tiny brushes and many applications, but I do my best to keep it off of the surrounding paint. I don't use their leveler until I'm satisfied with the thickness, which might take a long, long time depending on how bad the damage is.

EDIT: I bet the difference was a matter of time between coats. IIRC (this was a few years ago, not sure if I documented it in my Detailing Log or not..), I applied it pretty thick and let it dry/cure/whatever for a day or more. I do remember that the whole project took quite a few days and I let it set up for a long time after that before I leveled it. Even so, I polished some of it away with a relatively minor polishing, but still...it worked out better than I'd expected.
Click to expand...

I plan to try it again. I tried applying like normal touch up too, but it didn't seem to make a difference. I'll try a longer dry time.
 
Very nice car !!!

I have used a camels hair sword tip brush for years when I was working in auto body shops, to touch up chips..
The idea as you know, is to fill the chip to level and then let it dry completely before touching it again..
Back then, there was no Dr color chip, etc., so I had to figure out how to make it level and smooth, and I did this by using less paint and more thinner for that paint type, to eventually leave it smooth and glossy.. This process is also how you Blend a painted area or panel with the rest of the paintwork, using a spray gun...

It looks like you are removing the paint too soon with the 2nd part liquid...

I have used Dr ColorChip for a few years in my Shop, and in my experiences, you have to follow their time line, let the paint set up enough before you come back and go over it if needed...

Since I have the most superior brush ever invented, I can easily fill in a chip to the top with their product, let it set up enough to stay there, and then go over the entire thing carefully and absolutely flat, so as to not dip into the paint chip crater and possibly remove some or all of the paint I put in there...

Just clean the chips good with something like IPA and Qtip, etc., get it warm if possible, get the paint warm, put it in your pocket for awhile, and go try it again... You will get it !
Dan F
 
Stokdgs said:
Very nice car !!!

I have used a camels hair sword tip brush for years when I was working in auto body shops, to touch up chips..
The idea as you know, is to fill the chip to level and then let it dry completely before touching it again..
Back then, there was no Dr color chip, etc., so I had to figure out how to make it level and smooth, and I did this by using less paint and more thinner for that paint type, to eventually leave it smooth and glossy.. This process is also how you Blend a painted area or panel with the rest of the paintwork, using a spray gun...

It looks like you are removing the paint too soon with the 2nd part liquid...

I have used Dr ColorChip for a few years in my Shop, and in my experiences, you have to follow their time line, let the paint set up enough before you come back and go over it if needed...

Since I have the most superior brush ever invented, I can easily fill in a chip to the top with their product, let it set up enough to stay there, and then go over the entire thing carefully and absolutely flat, so as to not dip into the paint chip crater and possibly remove some or all of the paint I put in there...

Just clean the chips good with something like IPA and Qtip, etc., get it warm if possible, get the paint warm, put it in your pocket for awhile, and go try it again... You will get it !
Dan F
Click to expand...

Followed your tips except I only let it dry for 30 minutes because it's almost dark and it will be way below freezing soon. One more application and I should be good:
 
Stokdgs- Ah, another thread (two in a row today) where our pasts are similar! Yeah, using the right brush is critical. Good point about getting the paint nice and warm. Eh, I forget about such stuff, being spoiled with climate control.

SYMAWD- I always waited a *LOT* longer than 30 minutes with it, maybe I was erring on the side of caution, but given my satisfaction with the results....Again, my memory is hazy, but IIRC I did the really deep damage over the course of a few days, just as I would with conventional paint.
 
I really do wonder if alcohol is a decent stripping agent. Yeah ago I tried dr colorchip as well as langka on my 5 series.

I stripped it with varying strengths of ipa but when I would wipe the car after letting the paint/chip fill dry as prescribed, the stuff came out.

So I never really had any luck at all with them
 
Ronkh said:
I really do wonder if alcohol is a decent stripping agent..
Click to expand...

I use a PrepSol type product, but that's mostly just habit.

My best results with the Dr Colorchip came when I ignored the instructions, and my favorite use for Langka is removing previous touchups.
 
Accumulator said:
Stokdgs- Ah, another thread (two in a row today) where our pasts are similar! Yeah, using the right brush is critical. Good point about getting the paint nice and warm. Eh, I forget about such stuff, being spoiled with climate control.

SYMAWD- I always waited a *LOT* longer than 30 minutes with it, maybe I was erring on the side of caution, but given my satisfaction with the results....Again, my memory is hazy, but IIRC I did the really deep damage over the course of a few days, just as I would with conventional paint.
Click to expand...

Well Dr. ColorChip really doesn't recommend longer than an hour and I didn't want to wait longer due to incoming freezing temps followed by a day of rain. I'll give it a try again soon in hopes of perfecting that one large chip and I'll post back what happens.
 
Accumulator -

PrepSol !!!!! I also know it well !

Is it still sold as Dupont 3806S or is that something else we used?

Perhaps they dont even sell it any longer but boy it really worked back then..

Wipe the panel clean, wipe it down with PrepSol, dry, Tack cloth the panel, spray your primer, paint, etc., and it never lifted, or had problems...

Yeah, since I just spent 11 years in the Northwest., I had to readjust everything from NorCal, and this required me to warm about everything that had to do with paint if I wanted it to flow correctly..

In the Paint Shop back then, we always had a quicker dry thinner or reducer in winter than in summer for exactly the same reason, much colder temps slow everything down sometimes to a detriment..
Dan F
 
I do pretty much as stated above by Accumulator and Stokdgs but I do use SealAct just a bit. Leaving the paint 'high' in the chip. Then I use a polishing pad with something like M205 and buff the spot(s) level. So far no marring or scouring. :yikes:

I even tried using an airbrush. Got a hold of a hole punch and would punch holes on masking tape to surround the chip. Problem is the masking tape wouldn't cut clean. Left jagged edges 'cause of the adhesive. Still working out the airbrush bugs ...
 
Looks like you are good now. Apply higher, then just work down. Some prefer to just apply enough to hide the missing paint, but to me this looks incomplete.
 
SYMAWD- Yeah, I generally disregard their instructions. Guess I should qualify that with a "don't try this at home, kids!" caveat, but I experimented enough to find what worked for me (in my situation, etc. etc.). With your having to deal with the weather, and wanting to not mess it up, I certainly don't blame you for following the rules!

Le Marque- With all the airbrush work I did as a kid, I think it's weird that I just *NEVER* use it for detailing stuff! I bet my Paasche hasn't left its box for 40 years.

Stokdgs- Heh heh, we're really dating ourselves here, huh?!? :D Yeah..PrepSol, PreKleano, forget the name of the other one I used to use.

I'd heard about PrepSol gettting changed (presumbly due to VOC regs), but I haven't tried the new version yet. I'm using up some Wurth CleanSolve/CleansAll that I had around. It works fine too, but finding it in non-aerosol cans is getting tough.
 
So, due to the weather and when I work, an update will probably take about 2 months. Also, I got another test spot:(. This time on the driver's side front fender.

 
SYMAWD- More of my Autopian Heresy: at some point you might decide "real cars have stonechips" and quit touching 'em all up ;)
 
I'm glad someone else has had problems with Dr Colorchip. I worked for days filling and wiping until I gave up. It still looks better than no touch up at all, but not perfect.
 
LeMarque said:
I do pretty much as stated above by Accumulator and Stokdgs but I do use SealAct just a bit. Leaving the paint 'high' in the chip. Then I use a polishing pad with something like M205 and buff the spot(s) level. So far no marring or scouring. :yikes:

I even tried using an airbrush. Got a hold of a hole punch and would punch holes on masking tape to surround the chip. Problem is the masking tape wouldn't cut clean. Left jagged edges 'cause of the adhesive. Still working out the airbrush bugs ...
Click to expand...


The way to spot in a repair using an air gun say, in the middle of a panel, etc., is to prepare the entire area around the panel by buffing it with compound to flatten and clean it up really nicely, then wiping it down for the last time, and then you "Back Tape" around the repair with paper and masking tape..

If you do this correctly and are good with controlling your gun and the amount of paint in it, no one will ever be able to tell you did it..

Back Tape ---

Get some painters paper if possible, or use something clean and not porous to paint bleed through

Run a length of masking tape down the edge of the paper, leaving equal amount of tape on paper and free.

Now, the most natural thing to do would be to place the tape around the repair and the paper drapes backward around the panel to protect it from overspray, right ?

If you tape and paper around the repair and spray the paint, when you lift the tape off, there will be a definite tape line of paint build up around the repair = a no-no.. :)

Compound it off later ? Really ? No one would want to do that extra step and try to get the paint level...

What you have to do is take the paper with the taped edge, with the tape at the top and the paper hanging down for example, on top of the repair, you tape away from the repair, the paper is hanging down over the repair, then you carefully fold the taped edge UP, so it is now a nice round tape edge, and the paper goes up and over that edge and you use some more tape to hold it backwards over the spot..

Get it ??

If you do this right, you will be able to spray that small spot, and any overspray will hit the rolled up over, tape edge, and when you pull the paper and tape off, there will be no line of paint build up to deal with..

You have to go all around the repair area Back Taping the same way, leaving yourself enough room to work on the repair ..

Of course, it goes without saying that you know how to control your gun so that when your come off of the edge of the repair you are spraying paint on, you gradually release trigger pressure and fan out and away from the repair, so that the paint is not ending in a straight line of paint at the end of the paint stroke..

Did tons of these the same way for years when I was a young kid and then older and working in a couple of Shops.. Never had an issue with this process..

Good luck with your project, if you decide to continue to pursue the airbrush !
Dan F
 
Stokdgs said:
The way to spot in a repair using an air gun say, in the middle of a panel, etc., is....[good detailed explanation]...If you do this right...Of course, it goes without saying that you know how to control your gun .
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Heh heh, I did a fair bit of painting with various things back in the day, and there's zero way I could pull that off now. Probably could've have done it to my satisfaction *ever* though I know two painters who can/do (and props to them, they're *really* good).

IMO some of you guys have a real knack for such stuff that we mere mortals don't, easy for us [unskilled individuals] to mess stuff up in a huge way so I always think such methods are in the "don't try this at home, kids!" category.

..Did tons of these the same way for years when I was a young kid and then older and working in a couple of Shops.. Never had an issue with this process..
Click to expand...

I bet those tons-of-'em helped contribute to your successs! I remember when Brad B. did something similar on his silver Porsche, and I was impressed as all get out. While the whole idea just gives me the willies, I'd be really interested to hear how this would go for some neophyte...somebody who'd never done it before. Maybe he'd be off to a bodyshop for a Pro's fix, or maybe it'd turn out great and I'd be eating my words!
 
Accumulator -
Tks for your comments ..

Lucky for me, was blessed to be around all things automotive since a little kid at my Dad's shop.
I was always very interested in these things anyway and to be around them and get taught by some really great men certainly helped me to get better at all things mechanical, etc..

For sure, the Body Shop was always more interesting for me because I was fascinated by the processes that took real steel vehicles back then that were wrecked and made new again.

Perhaps it was the smell of lacquer thinner in the morning??? :) :) :) And the real Masters would repair sometimes with melted lead - Lead Finishing - fascinating - but Im sure toxic as heck.. I came away from that learning how to Solder anything and still try to use solder as much as possible in wiring, etc..

You are absolutely correct in that not everyone can do this really well; it takes some talent, a lot of time spent learning, and hopefully being taught by really good people along the way..

There are some really great Painters in the world and I was so blessed to be around a few who taught me and let me learn through my mistakes and figure out how to fix the problem and know now to never do that again.. :)

The key word of the day - every day - Innovation -

You had to figure out how to do this, fix this, undo that, and make it better, find a better solution, and on and on..

No Internet, no Video, no You Tube to watch...

We actually communicated - a lot - and that alone really made the difference and I believe still makes the difference today..

There were steps - levels to go through - Helper, Apprentice, Journeyman, etc...

I loved all that and here now a zillion years later, I still love it... Must be in my genes? :)
Dan F
 
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