Expedition Leather

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Bobby G

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I thought I would do a photo shoot of scratch repair after the scratch or chip has been filled with paint. This is a process that MUST be done with care and knowledge. Here's the link:



Scratch Repair





:)

db
 
Thanks a bunch.



I have a chip that I repaired with touch up paint. I did an ok job, but it is kind of bumpy. I was scared to try to sand it smooth and ruin the paint, and I would have died had I gotten the result you did before applying the 3m.



Since yours came out great, I'm going to do it.



I'm going to follow your instructions. Hopefully I'll get the same result.



Brian
 
DB, good deal, does gotopia have any other pages? paint chips perhaps? I can tolerate my small scratches (silver car), but chips lead to rust. I've read various directions to help but pics make the difference. :)
 
YoSteve,



I have a few pics showing chip repair, but they are not great. If you read the instructions in my book you will get the idea. It's not hard, it just takes time. The most important steps are proper prep work and to apply several thin coats of touch-up, not one thick coat.



Deckard,



I don't know how deep the scratch was, the touch-up repair was done by someone else. However, but the looks of it, it was down to the primer ot the metal.



The car actually has a dozen or more touch-ups that I need to level and rebuff. The hood and front have a lot of stone chip damage that is too small to touch up in the conventional way. I plan to use an airbrush to fix the front. I will document my steps.



db
 
David,



Perhaps you could place a link to these pictures for anyone attempting to do a sanding repair. A picture is worth a 1000 words.



Thanks again for the lesson!!!!!
 
i must have read a thousand threads relating to this topic....but none of them made it so clear as to wht you were doing....when i saw that paint....before you polished it i was freaking out....thats the kind of result that all of us fear IMOH...but you showed that less is more.....thanks alot buddy.........
 
FLONI... no problem. I know it seems terrible to take sandpaper to what looks like an okay finish, but it really is not all that aggressive. There was a time when I would paint my cars with 10-15 coats of lacquer and color sand each coat, including the final coat. With each layer the paint became more and more perfect... like glass.

The first time I color sanded a complete factory paint job was when my 1995 993 got stained with battery acid. It when everywhere. When I finished, the car's paint looked better than the factory finish. In fact, the service manager could not believe it and took this picture: http://store1.yimg.com/I/autopia_1650_1052950

I'm playing with video clips now to see if it makes demonstrating procedures any better. My fear is that too many people won't have the bandwidth to view the videos.

db
 
wow DB, that pic looks like a close up of a car enthusiast's Christmas tree (the ornaments look so shiny and lifelike :D ) Doesn't look much like a toy soldier though ;)
 
wow DB, amazing job of what u done there. great pics help ALOT too.



thing is this process is probably too advanced for me and for alot of people here honestly. it looks simnple with the number of steps and products used. but seriously its 90% techinique here. i really cant gamble my paint like what u did after that horrifying look of the second wet sanding. if i screw up, i know ill be sad for life every time i look at the permanant scars. :(



but u did an awesome job though, but there should be real emphasize on how dangerous this process may be for those who r reading this and are convinced that its super easy according to the pics u provided.



by the way, where do u get that exact kind of sand paper you used?
 
amazing......everybody should have some battery acid on their car...lol.if that's the result....that yellow is gorgeous....i think that Porsche place is so clean....figures a guy with his own "sanctuary" would go to mechanics like that........lol....by the way.....i noticed on your porsche and the one on the lift....whats with that little black pastic?..bumper type thing....next to your drivers side directional...a little bumper?......



i dont know if you still have "junkyards" by where you live....but i do....i know the guy and there are lots of late model cars in there...all beat up....i'm going to ask him if i can try out your technique on a clean section of one of his cars.....i figure....i'll put a lttle scratch on it....then try your technique....best to experiment on a junker than my baby......again...i dont know if "dangerous" is the right word.....but the only way to get to know what the heck your doin is yo do it.....



the video clips would be such a great addition to your book....i fortunately have a cable modem but i know what you mean about the clips...when i had dial up no clip was watchable...to choppy and the sound was often incoherent...
 
well ive finally convinced myself to try to do what u did on a tiny section of my front side bumper. im going to be using the 3M rubbing compund. the question is, is there really a difference between the liquid form and the paste form for the 3M rubbing compund? for some reason i feel the idea of paste in this situation would be better. but my local store only carries the liquid version.
 
I just wanted to say thanks. The time and attention to detail you put into that tutorial is very much appreciated.



As for getting battery acid on the finish of your car, had it been me, I probably would have passed out, and never woken up. The yellow is stunning.
 
david,

just another thank you from the gallery....

i too, like most out there have found some scratches or nicks and haven't the courage to sand the perfectly good clear coat finish around the blemish..but after your very nicely documented thread, i feel i have to do the right thing and fix MY scratch.

thanks again for the attention to detail in assembling that thread.

---thomas

:up :up :up
 
Thanks to all for the feedback and nice words.



Holly just about passed out when she saw me sanding away on a $70K car, but what the heck... it's only paint. Trust me, it looks a lot worse and more aggressive than it really is. True, I took down about 2 mil from the surface, but that still leaves about 3-4 mil remaining.



Ng Luder: I use paste rubbing compound when I'm doing hand work and cream/liquid when using a machine. If you use a machine, do not run it higher than 500 rpm and check your work very often. I recommend working by hand with any compound unless you have a lot of experience.



FLONI: you're correct, the little square on the front is a parking bumper. The lights and the bumber cap are expensive!
 
<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote' >

<em class='bbc'>Originally posted by DavidB [/i]
<strong class='bbc'>Thanks to all for the feedback and nice words.
Ng Luder: I use paste rubbing compound when I'm doing hand work and cream/liquid when using a machine. If you use a machine, do not run it higher than 500 rpm and check your work very often. I recommend working by hand with any compound [/b]</blockquote>
thanks for the reply. but i still have some questions... so far i only use my hands for all my detailing needs. i dont even have a mechanical buffer of any kind. would u recommend using the liquid rubbing compound if i use my hands only? or should i order the paste form from CMA? also, very important, any tips on how to use this rubbing compound? should i jsut treat it like i would as i apply SMR? u used a polishign cloth of some kind, would u recommend using the popular fieldcrest towels or shoudl i use foam/terry pads?

also, this might sound dumb since i have no experience with rubbing compounds before, but heres another question:

after u sanded away ur clear a bit, why did it look silver in that picture? it looks as if you sanded down to the metal and the coupound actually brought back the black color somehow... and im pretty sure that wasnt what really happened correct? how exactly does the rubbing compound work? im getting the idea it just rubs away the fine hills created by sanding and also fills in the gaps in the fine lines.

sorry im asking so many questions. but u seem to be the first guy i ever met in my life who really knows how to do this.:up
 
Ng Luder... I'm far from the only one who knows how to color sand a car.



First, the pictures after sanding show how the wet&dry paper remove the gloss from the paint. The gloss is not created by the clear. It is created by a smooth surface. The paper puts 1500 grit scratches in the paint. I sand in straight lines to avoid creating circular scratches which are more difficult to remove.



The clear coat does add depth to the paint. When you color sand, you remove some of the clear coat depth. However, it is my experience that color sanding the whole car, as I did with my Speed Yellow 993, creates a "more perfect" finish by leveling the surface. You end up with a paint finish that's more like a mirror. It is a lot of work to do it correctly.



The question of paste or liquid rubbing compound is pure preference. I use the paste by hand because it rubs out faster. There's no difference in the end result.



Be aware that I did not use more than about 20 strokes with the compound before I switched to polish. The compound is nearly as abrasive as the sand paper. Use it only to cut down the top of the scratches created by the paper.



db
 
An Orbital is a good starting point , a Rotary on the outher hand takes experience.



I recommend a liquid rubbing compound it's beter to work with.



Use foam or terry pads , check your work more often and use firm even pressure.



Color sanding gives the paint a even shiney haze that can look gray or silver.



Rubbing compound is like liquid sand paper but finer. The finer the compound the shiner the paint.
 
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