My wetsanding project with PICTURES!

The Gloss Boss

The Gloss Boss

You Mirin'?
So I've decided to learn wetsanding. After being bored with just reading about it I decided to go to my local auto parts store and buy some sanding paper. I purchased 1000, 1500, 2000, 3000 grit 3M wet/dry papers and a 3M sanding block. Yesterday I recieved a package that included some OPT wool pads, 3M Rubbing Compound, and PBW SSR2.5 among other things. Today I planned on just doing a section of my car to get a feel for the whole thing and find out what grit would flatten my orange peel the best. This ended up being my process:

-Paint was levelled with 1500 grit 3M wet/dry sand paper.

-Sanding scratches were cut out with 3M rubbing compound/rotary buffer/optimum wool pad.

-Compounding swirls were removed with Poorboy's SSR2.5/rotary buffer/orange lake country light cutting pad.

-Haze from first buffing step was cleared up with Poorboy's SSR1/rotary buffer/black lake country finishing pad.

-The result: clear, crisp reflections!

Enough talking, here are the before and after pics.

Thanks for looking
 

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Shiny Lil Detlr said:
Excellent results! Was that factory paint? If so I hope you've got a PTG to check how much paint you're removing.
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Yes it's factory paint. It's my own car so I'm not too concerned about removing too much CC. However, until I do purchase a PTG I will limit my retail job sanding to fixing scratches.
 
The bosses were in Michigan all week on vacation. They will be trying to push a lot of trucks through this week now that they are back so I'll put the word in for you.
 
Well he told me before the holiday to come by or call this Monday so there should be something. Sounds like I could be busy then. I need some $$$, haha.
 
There is no doubt that the reflection in the finished picture is much crisper and clearer. Good job. Did you have fun?
 
Great job!!!! I would recommend some Poorboys Pro Polish with a porter cable and a finishing pad to finesse that finish :drool:
 
wallyStang said:
Great job!!!! I would recommend some Poorboys Pro Polish with a porter cable and a finishing pad to finesse that finish :drool:
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Thanks man! Poorboy's does make some dang good polishes. I'll have to add that to my list of products to try. It appears to be pretty versatile.
 
I'm wanting to try machine sanding and was wondering what speed to set a PC at to do so. My guess would be 3 or 4. I feel like any faster would be overkill...I could be wrong.
 
Theres not a lot to be afraid of. Do some homework, buy what you need to do it right, and take things slow at first. There seems to be a lot to it, but once you get the hang of it its not that bad. Common sense and a good eye will take you a long way but I will always suggest using a gauge. Guys like me who are too stubborn or cheap to buy one are doing it at the risk of sanding through a paint job even though that risk is a lot lower than that of someone doing it for the first time. High spots, sharp body lines, corners, and edges are where you have to stay away from when sanding and compounding. Learn how to work around those areas without actually doing much to them and the biggest danger is out of the way.
 
Addicted2Bling said:
^^Don't you think 650 bucks for a gauge is a little crazy???
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Yep. Thats why I dont have one. There are cheap ones out there for a couple hundred bucks but I know very little about them. I dont personally do enough retail wetsanding to justify buying one. Most of mine is all wholesale vehicles. I could tell someone new to wetsanding that its perfectly safe to do it without a gauge if you pay attention to what your doing at all times and take all the precautions, but I do feel that a gauge would be a life saver to someone whos really unsure of how far they need to go.
 
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