Need help with repairing metallic paint

[twahlert]

I have a Subaru Outback, dark metallic grey paint that has been scratched a bit. I've supplied some pictures to show what I'm dealing with. I don't have any experience so I'm open to any suggestions. I've looked at Langka and Dr. Colorchip but from what I can tell, neither talk about clearcoat finishes which is what I have. I went to an auto parts store and the guy told me to take it to a pro. Well, I can't for two main reasons, money and time. I'm on a tight budget, but more so, I work full time and need my car so I can't let it sit in a shop. I realize it won't be a fast process, but it's something I could start Friday afternoon and work on over the weekend.



If anyone can give me some directions that would be awesome. Also, I living in the Augusta, GA area if that helps anyone for any reason.



These first three are the same chip. It's hard to see but the area is indented a little. I might need some body compound to fill in or patiently fill in with paint.

You can see a little light on the back side reflecting from the indent

This one was made from hitting a deer. I'll probably have to use a knife and cut off the excess. It's also painted plastic so I might have to use some sort of plastic paint adhesion method.

There's the last one

 

[Richard Grasa]

How perfect do you want/need it? A chip repair on metallic paint will never look right because it will never match, it's the nature of metallic paint. The depth and angle of which the metallic particles lie in the paint directly affect the shade of the paint and it's impossible to match that to the original paint. The only proper fix is to have the panels repainted edge to edge.



If you really want to attempt it yourself, I'd say go with Dr. Colorchip, but it's not going to look right. If you can't afford to have the panels resprayed, this is your best bet, but be prepared to live with a mis-match of the repaired areas. Though it should look better and be less noticeable than the chips/scratches that are there now. Best bet is to practice on a junk panel or something first.



Stay away from the wetsanding methods of doing this, very easy to make things much, much worse if you're not experienced with it.

 

[togwt]

1. Lanka Paint chip and scratch repair technologies, is both a chemical and mechanical process, once the touch up paint has dried, The Blob Eliminator® will re-soften the paint, and the light rubbing mechanically begins to "smooth" down the excess paint, with the touch up paint now appearing on the cloth

2. Langka and Metallic Paint-the reason metallic looks different after using the product is the metallic flakes migrate to the upper level of the paint surface while setting up. To counter this, use the blue sanding card on edge immediately after applying the touch up, like a razor. This will remove most of the touch up while the metallic flakes are still suspended evenly throughout the paint, smearing the excess across the local area. Let dry and use the Langka to wipe away the smear tail left across the original (OEM) paint. - LANGKA Paint Chip and Scratch Repair

 

[bob_r]

Bringing this thread back as I have a similar question. I have the following scrape on blue metallic paint.

I'm not looking for perfection, as this is a relatively small scrape. This looks like more than Quixx, which I've used on minor scratches before, can handle. Is this one a job for Dr. Colorchip or Langka, or should I just take it to a body shop. The car involved is brand new and I'm not interested in having a whole body panel resprayed.

 

[Accumulator]

I've been dealing with this since my first metallic car back in the '70s, and I've maybe had three or four touchups look OK, out of an innumerable number of tries. FWIW, my "good" painter can work miracles, he's somehow gifted and I can seldom spot the ones he's done. But then he'll redo a chip countless times over many days if he has to until he's satisfied.



The "no clearcoat" products/systems are designed to be that way for a reason and are compatible with basecoat/clearcoat oe finishes. Whether you'll like how they turn out is another matter... but I bet the results won't be much/any worse than doing it with a two-step approach.



I've tried touchup paints from many of the "usual places" and it's always hit-or-miss; sometimes one is good/bad, another time another is better/worse.



Just accept that it won't look all that great.



If you really, *really*, care, get a good shop to reshoot the panel and hope that turns out OK (no guarantees there either).



And even though I sometimes do it myself, I agree with Richard Grasa about *NOT* trying to level touchups via wetsanding unless you're prepared to really invest a lot of time and effort into getting the hang of it. It's one of those "if you have to ask...." kind of things IMO and we see a *LOT* of posts about "help me fix this disaster, I was wetsanding and..."



I often just live with chips, even ones that are to-the-metal. I know, that's a huge :nono but I never have problems from it (no, the panels don't rust out). Or I'll touch 'em up and just leave the "blob" of excess touchup paint...at least for a while. If I ever feel the urge I might level it later, but otherwise I just live with it and consider it better than a chip that'll retain polish/LSP residue. When things like this really bug me, I just have the panel repainted.

 

[bob_r]

Thanks for the quick reply.



I really, REALLY care as it drives me bat$hit crazy looking at it. Just my car OCD, I guess.



I'm just trying to sort out my options, which are:



Leave it alone and (shudder) accept it

Paint/body shop

Try something myself



Sounds like you think it should go to the pros. That is my preference as well. I'm simply not excited about having that huge panel (it's on the back of the rear passenger side wheel arch, and the involved panel is a large panel on a wagon) sprayed on a brand new car over one small spot, but if it's the best thing....



PS I'm in NE Ohio myself. Know any good shops that work on high-end cars that could handle this?

 

[Accumulator]

bob_r- Yeah, good timing as bunch of us happen to be online!



On the blue car, I'd do it myself and see how it turns out. I would *NOT* repaint a whole panel over that. I'd probably try to mostly fill the damage with either Dr.Colorchips (no clearcoat) or with *just clearcoat* and I'd aim more for a "smooth surface" than a "good paint repair".



I can't really recommend a shop as a) my "good" guy won't work on modern stuff..yeah, he's a bit of a snob about what he works on to put it mildly and b) the shop I've used for years has been....uhm...struggling with the learning curve with regard to the new water-based paints and I'd hate for you to be disappointed by somebody I recommend. They've only been doing, oh...about 1:3 (not the good interpretation of that ratio either!) with regard to satisfying me recently.



Seriously, if that were my beloved S8, I'd do it myself and I'd plan to do it over and over and over (a solvent will clean off the touchup paint and then you just try again). You open a can of worms when you have a shop repaint stuff, and *unless you have a shop that'll satisfy you, no question about it* then none of the stuff I've seen on this thread rises to the "reshoot a whole panel" level of severity. And really, I'm *VERY* picky; when I say "if that were my S8", well.... I don't say that lightly.



Get it better and live with it. IF the shop doesn't please you...and that could easily happen, you'll think back about that "little flaw" and it'll seem less and less like a big deal. You'll wish you'd just lived with it but by then you'll have precipitated other problems.



Now if somebody here *can* recommend a shop that'll do it to Autopian perfection, then OK, spend the money. But consider stuff like how much basecoat they'll shoot (they'll clear the whole panel), and whether the new clear will be the same (texture, hardness, etc.) as the rest of the car, and whether they'll somehow mess up the rest of the car (bodyshops are notorious for this). And note that there'll have to be some disassembly as you can't paint that panel with the bumpercover abutting it- taking off the bumpercover makes for another chance for things to go wrong. It's a big can-o'-worms for that amount of damage :think:

 

[rdorman]

I have used the Langka on metallics with varying degrees of sucess none of which have ever been perfect. They range from 'you have to look for it' to a 'five footer' or so. I use the wet/squegee method as described on their website. Since shrinkage is normal and often takes a second coat, I inspect once dry. If the metallic looks acceptable my second coat is the clear, if not, it is more metallic. If it is really bad I remove it all and try again!

 

[bob_r]

I purchased Dr. Colorchip. If it doesn't work, I can always buy some Langka and either start again or take it to a pro.

 

[Accumulator]

I purchased Dr. Colorchip..

This might be worth the dreaded search as we've discussed various approaches to use with the Dr. Colorchip a few times.



I myself get the best results if I ignore their directions and basically use it just like "regular" touchup paint. I do *NOT* do the "smear it around", but rather I apply it carefully with small brushes. I then level it with their stuff *VERY GENTLY* using an old MF (it'll trash the MF so don't use your best one). I DO NOT like what happens when I rub my paint with their included cloth! I try to avoid touching the surrounding paint (the solvent is OK but I don't like the rubbing) any more than I have to.

 

[tom p.]

Bob, is the metal deformed?



The Dr. Colorchip will make that look better, but if you seek perfection, Bob, it's not the solution.



FWIW, I'd think long and hard before I start "breaking" factory paint to fix something like that. To me, that's just opening a whole new can o' worms not to mention that the paint will be less durable than the original which starts the whole cycle over again...



There are the mobile (not Mobil ) air brush re-con guys. They'll probably offer the best result, IME. Maybe someone in the OH area can provide a referral for Bob?? If that is a small dent, a dent doctor may be able to deal with that, too.



Welcome aboard!