Single Stage paint - Need help and tips please

P

Paulie Walnuts

New member
I have a client that is brining me a 1991 Volvo that she had brought up from TX due to some sentimental attachment and I am going to have it Friday night and Saturday. I wasnt thrilled to jump on this but she offered $350 for just an exterior so who am I to pass that up.



I have not done a SS since 2002 and I dont remember much. How abrasive do I need to go typically? Im not going to waste my 106FF and SIP on this car which is all I use so the only left over products that I have are Poorboys SSR 2.5 and Menz FP II. Will be using the rotary and getting rid of some Megs pads that I dont like. Suggestions please?



Also, how far can you do with a SS before you get to the primer?



Suggestions for an LSP? My Colinite Ins Wax? JWs AJ? Megs #16. She doesnt care about the "vanity of looks" she wants it protected through winter until I can seal it again.



I hate to use good Zaino on a SS beater like that. Maybe Megs #20 topped with OS?



Any help is GREATLY appreciated.
 
I would simply correct the paint as you normally would. SS reacts the same to just about everything, it just discolors all the pads and towels that you use on it, that's all.



I would go with Megs #16 if she is looking for durability, and it looks good on most colors that come in SS paint.
 
SS paint is a really easy ballgame. If it's white, it'll be hard as a rock and you can almost finish out with a wool pad. If it's black or red, it's usually super soft and a good glaze (M07 comes to mind) will save you. You can finish swirl free, and usually SS black looks even better than CC black when finished (warmer look).



The only real pain is that it tends to gum up pads with dead paint - a light cut wool pad will save a lot of time, otherwise just rotate between 2 or 3 foam pads, and toss the ones you aren't using in a bucket with some APC, hose em out after a few minutes of soaking, and let them dry in the sun.



Either Collinite or M16 are good choices - they date from the old SS days. I'd put the nod to #16 on light colors, 845IW on darks.
 
themightytimmah said:
The only real pain is that it tends to gum up pads with dead paint - a light cut wool pad will save a lot of time, otherwise just rotate between 2 or 3 foam pads, and toss the ones you aren't using in a bucket with some APC, hose em out after a few minutes of soaking, and let them dry in the sun.



.
Click to expand...



Well said mighty! If there is much dead paint, I polish the car once real quick to remove the dead paint that will inevitably gum up your bads and also will be very difficult to remove off the car, the buff it a second time for final results.
 
WilliamHBonney said:
I have not done a SS since 2002 and I dont remember much. How abrasive do I need to go typically? Will be using the rotary and getting rid of some Megs pads that I dont like. Also, how far can you do with a SS before you get to the primer?



Suggestions for an LSP? My Colinite Ins Wax? JWs AJ? Megs #16. She doesnt care about the "vanity of looks" she wants it protected through winter until I can seal it again. I hate to use good Zaino on a SS beater like that. Maybe Megs #20 topped with OS?
Click to expand...



From time to time, many here talk about how hard some of todays paint finishes are, well when it comes to ss paint, it is the complete opposite. It is a question of how soft various types of ss paint can be. The fact is, most older ss paints can be very soft and you may find that if you are not careful, you may actually burn through to the primer in a matter of seconds. From my experience with older volvos, they have extremely soft paint.



When it comes to a LSP, I certainly would not use a wax, such as the ones you mentioned. My experience has shown that when you go with a wax as the last step, you just speed up the oxidation process. I would much rather go with a polymer sealant, such as Meguiar's #20 or their newer #21.



These comments are based on my experience, not opinions.
 
WilliamHBonney- Are you *sure* it's single stage? My family had a '90 (or maybe '91 :think: ) 850 and it was b/c and it wasn't all that soft either (our '84 240 had the soft single stage that MirrorFinishMan referred to).



If you want maximum winter protection and only have one day, I'd do 476S, spitshining the second/ect. coats if possible. If you do the #16, I'd *absolutely* consider the spitshining mandatory, that wax seems happiest when it has a few days between coats. That's based on what I did on the two Volvos mentioned above, both of which were driven through winters/carwashes/etc.



If it's an 850, *keep polish off the charcoal plastic trim*.



And yeah, you can get ss swirl free/flawless, but don't take off too much paint if it's nice and soft ;)



I've never been a big fan of sealants on ss, always went back to carnaubas. But that's just me...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top