Newbie single stage paint restoration

[TheBandit]

Thank you all for the kind words. This has been a very rewarding foray into detailing. I literally started knowledgeless about how to do this, but thanks to the reading up on this forum and watching videos, I was able to get unexpectedly awesome results. I was oblivious to what was possible. I still intend to repaint the car at some point (chips, dents, and rust need attention), but this has bought me years more of enjoyment which not only puts a smile on my face, but also saves me money.

Mike I greatly appreciate the kind and detailed response. You deserve a lot of credit for the write-ups you've posted. I should have linked to them in my write-up. It's a rare person who can master a skill like detailing AND the art of teaching others - you do a great service to this community. My car came a long way thanks to just reading your stuff! THANK YOU! I wish I could afford/justify attending your detailing class this weekend in Santa Clarita. I am about an hour's drive from where you'll be. If you need a car for the class, there are still plenty of defects and swirls that could use some help

Your article on restoring oxidized single stage paint absolutely put me on the right path. The no 7 glaze changed the consistency of the paint. I have no idea what would have happened if I jumped right onto it with compound. Going forward, should I continue to use the glaze regularly prior to wax? i.e. how should I maintain the car now?

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Mike I greatly appreciate the kind and detailed response. You deserve a lot of credit for the write-ups you've posted. I should have linked to them in my write-up.

It's a rare person who can master a skill like detailing AND the art of teaching others - you do a great service to this community.

Thank you. I try hard.

My car came a long way thanks to just reading your stuff! THANK YOU! I wish I could afford/justify attending your detailing class this weekend in Santa Clarita. I am about an hour's drive from where you'll be. If you need a car for the class, there are still plenty of defects and swirls that could use some help

I would have loved to had a classic car with neglected, white chalky paint for the class. Now that you're so far along the way in the process I let you enjoy continuing to finish your pride and joy, but thank you, I appreciate your trust.

Your article on restoring oxidized single stage paint absolutely put me on the right path. The no 7 glaze changed the consistency of the paint. I have no idea what would have happened if I jumped right onto it with compound.

I can no longer count how may people have used the product and the technique outlined in the article to save and preserve the original paint on their project. The SAD thing to me are all the people that I've helped over the years via e-mail that NEVER join the forum and share the before and after pictures from their projects. They are happy to get help and find time to get help, but can never find the time to give back like you have. :dunno:

Going forward, should I continue to use the glaze regularly prior to wax? i.e. how should I maintain the car now?

The single stage paint is going to always be in a state of oxidation. I'd pick up a bottle of Pinnacle Jeweling Wax and use it with a foam polishing pad on like speed 4-5 a few times a year. You might be able to get away with a foam "finishing" pad, (less aggressive than foam polishing) and this will maintain the max potential. It's a tick on the spendy side but I guarantee you, the first time you use it you will love it.

I have a write-up to share where I used the Pinnacle Jeweling Wax on the original paint on a classic Olds, just can't find the time to get to the pictures.

 

[TheBandit]

That is really too bad that people don't come back online to show their results. I forgive because many people do not have the skill to do so. There is a whole world of talent out there that does not share what they do on the net either due to technical hurdles (unable to take photos or good photos, unable to figure out how to upload and post, etc) or lack of time/interest. I get it. Sometimes I get so caught up taking photos and video or posting my projects that I end up extending the project and run out of time. Case in point - if I hadn't been taking all those photos and video of what I was doing, I might have had more time remaining to go over the car with polish like I should have! But I get a ton of enjoyment out of sharing what I've done and like you I want my experience to benefit others. It is important to give back and not just be a consumer of knowledge. Learn, discover and pass along your experience when you can. The people that you've helped are no doubt still sharing what they learned in other ways, to their friends, at car shows, etc. You are like that butterfly flapping their wings...

I completely understand not needing my car for the class. I am glad that I didn't see that class volunteer opportunity before I started because I might not have had the satisfaction of discovering for myself what can be done!

I saw what you and your group of apprentices did with the jeweling wax on the RS Camaro and that got me thinking an AIO might be a good way to approach the car next time I go after it. Thank you for the suggestion!

 

[LSNAutoDetailingLSNAutoDetailing is verified member.]

So I've been buried lately and finally getting caught up on older posts that needed some dedicated time to review. I have to say for a relatively new poster here, you're post is amazing. The photo documentary of reviving this car is one half of the achievement, doing the work and getting the results you have is the other half.

Sometimes when you feel like you've got nothing to lose is when you get the biggest gains and in this case you got knowledge from Mike, some tools and product, and carefully took your time with out inhibition and look at the results you got! I wouldn't repaint that car at all... Love it just the way it is, and the autocross shots were cool too! Perfect car for autocross and cruise nights.

Just outstanding work, I really have nothing to add because you did your homework, you did the tests, trials and got great results, what more could anyone ask for?

Amazing write-up, amazing car, amazing story. Thank you for sharing!

Paul G.

 

[JustJesus]

...The SAD thing to me are all the people that I've helped over the years via e-mail that NEVER join the forum and share the before and after pictures from their projects...

One day, I WILL get to posting my write-up of the single stage VW I did a couple years back. I do want to give back and show the few tricks I employed in that project

I have a write-up to share where I used the Pinnacle Jeweling Wax on the original paint on a classic Olds, just can't find the time to get to the pictures.

Every time I go back to the folder housing my VW pics.....i get discouraged. Over 600 photos to sort through. And I KNOW it will be the longest, most time consuming thread I will have posted. I just need to dedicated a good chunk of time to do it. I'll have more free time in August, once I finish my mini "move" and get back from my trip.

That is really too bad that people don't come back online to show their results. I forgive because many people do not have the skill to do so. There is a whole world of talent out there that does not share what they do on the net either due to technical hurdles (unable to take photos or good photos, unable to figure out how to upload and post, etc) or lack of time/interest.

My biggest hurdle is time! I usually spend my lunch hour on the forums. My latest thread took over an hour to put together. And that was AFTER I sorted through the pics. You can't tell from that thread that it did take some time to put together, but I assure you, it did! Review: WOLFGANG All-Surface Cleaner

I get it. Sometimes I get so caught up taking photos and video or posting my projects that I end up extending the project and run out of time. Case in point - if I hadn't been taking all those photos and video of what I was doing, I might have had more time remaining to go over the car with polish like I should have!

Ha! Yeah, I've been there, done that. I don't take photos of some of my work when I'm trying to get done and out. I take long as it is Although in my case, I don't post pics or video right away. I still have lots of video waiting to get processed and posted.

Bandit, thanks for taking the time to write this AND to follow up with more postings and pics and videos.

Mike P, thanks to you as well. I still push your books and videos to others interested in learning car care

 

[TheBandit]

Thank you for the continued encouragement! It is great to have the support and knowledge of this forum to guide me. My car is still far from perfect but it's come a long way.

I will definitely come back and update this thread as I continue to work on the car. There are LOTS of areas that would benefit from more attention that just don't show in the photos above. Sometimes it's good to leave room for improvement! I am new to this forum but I am a long time forum junky. You can find a lot more write-up and over a thousand photos on other build aspects of my car here: '70 Nova LY6/TH400 6.0VVT - LS1TECH - Camaro and Firebird Forum Discussion

Here is one more photo someone sent me from Supercar Sunday.

 

[TheBandit]

Can anyone recommend a product to use to shine and protect my vinyl top?

 

[JustJesus]

Two names that I see pop up more than others are Raggtop and 303 (Aerospace Protectant)

 

[Sizzle Chest]

I can't believe I've missed this thread! Excellent write up, pics and work! Your Nova is really looking great compared to your before pictures! You should be very proud that you did it yourself and got such great results!

Well, well done!

 

[Dan Tran]

Superb!!!!!!!!


Dan Tran
www.thebuffingmoose.com

 

[TheBandit]

I appreciate all the kind words. The reality is my car still has a ways to go and I think there are some things I will never be able to really fix. You can't see all the imperfections in the photos, but I will try taking some closer shots and video before I do my next round of work.

I took advantage of the Autogeek "PRIME25" sale to pick up a big bottle of the Pinancle Jeweling Wax (AIO) and some additional pads. Hopefully I'll be ready next time I get the wild hair to work on the paint. In the meantime I'll be driving!

 

[Blushingmule]

Hi Bandit,

What a great car, job, and thread!

Bob

 

[Jeremy5431]

Great write up and nice car! One question though. Would you have saved clay if you applied #7 before claying?




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[TheBandit]

Great write up and nice car! One question though. Would you have saved clay if you applied #7 before claying?

Sorry for the very late reply. I think I did the right thing using the clay before applying the #7. There was a lot of contamination on the paint and I think it would have interfered with the #7 penetrating the paint. The car felt and looked a lot cleaner after doing the clay.

 

[Gav'sPurpleZ]

hell of a bump here, i went through the entire thread.

The car looks amazing !!
Love me some classic chevys !

 

[TheBandit]

Thanks Gav. It's really still an unfinished project because the whole car still needs to be polished. But the car is looking and photographing like I had never seen before. It came a long way! I can see why detailers find satisfaction in their work!

I'll be getting back to this again soon. The car needs wax again and I've picked up some Pinacle Jewling Wax (sort of an AIO as I understand it?) for the next round, but I'm going to do my best with the trim still in place this time.

 

[RobertJ34]

This was great to read through, awesome documentation!
The work looks phenomenal!

Looking forward to seeing it after a polish.

 

[Gav'sPurpleZ]

Collinite 476s or even Blackfire One Step would look awesome on this car.

We are all ready for updates as they are available !

 

[TheBandit]

Thank you!

I decided to take on a side project and refresh my grill area before doing any more work on the paint. Looking at the photos of my car above you may have noticed the filler panel between the grill and bumper has some areas body color and some areas gray. That's because the body-color paint has chipped and peeled off the plastic over the years since I painted it around 1999. It's been bothering me a lot more since I cleaned up the paint last year and I finally had enough of it.

I decided to take the whole grill assembly off the car and make some changes. First I decided to give the grill an "SS" style blacked-out finish where just the top and bottom fins of the grill are exposed. After thoroughly cleaning the grill, I masked the top and bottom fins.

Then I used a self-etching primer.

And finally I shot it with Krylon Satin Black.

Next, rather than strip down the old filer panel, I decided to start fresh with a new one from AMD. I gave the whole panel a scuff-down with 150 grit and painted it Rustoleum Metallic Titanium Silver

Years ago cut off one end of the old filler panel and underlying metal support so it could be removed and installed easily without removing a fender. I did the same with this one. No one will ever see this, but it makes taking the grill and filler panel assembly in and out a breeze.

Next I decided to tackle the headlight bezels. Looking closely at the originals, a lot of the edges that were supposed to be exposed chrome had overspray on them.

So before doing anything, I carefully removed the overspray with steel wool.

The ribs on either side of the headlights are exposed chrome on the top, front, and bottom faces. I tried masking one off and decided it was just way to intricate and time consuming for masking. So I decided just to mask and spray the centers and save the areas between the ribs for later.

I spayed the bezels the same color as the grill (Krylon Satin Black), then I used a little trick to decant the paint for brushing.

What I did above is attached a bendy straw to the nozzle of the paint can, then I poked it through some plastic wrap on the top of a glass jar. After spraying enough paint into the jar, I let it it out for about 6 hours so all the propellant could make it's way out of the paint - otherwise it would become a volcano when shaken or blow it's cap off.

Next I took the freshly decanted paint and hand brushed the areas between the ribs.

Unpainted on the left vs. fresh first coat on the right. I did two coats to cover this area. The decanted paint was a bit thin for brushing but it did the job.

With everything cleaned up and repainted, I reassembled the front end. Here's what I have now.

Now that the grill is taken care of, I'm ready to start polish and wax! I'll be sure to come back and update when I get that done.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Compound: After stumbling on your thread of doing the single stage car that's literally on the bottle of Meguiars Ultimate Compound I thought I'd give that a shot.

It's so nice to read something and then think,

Hey... I have an article on that


Meguiar's Ultimate Compound History


Meguiar's Ultimate Compound and SwirlX

Based on your advice, I may try polish only, but if you look at the photos/video I was thinking I would at least need to compound the scratches on the rear panel and some of the oxidation on the quarter panels. What do you think? Should I just try polish first and then come back and use compound and re-polish on any areas that don't clean up?

Do a Test Spot with the polish first and then do a Test Spot using the compound and see how each section looks. Trunks and hood work best for test spots.

Polish:: I bought Meguiars M205. I was really unsure about what to buy especially because so much info online is not relevant to single stage paint. M80 compound and M205 were used in one of your articles on using no 7 to restore paint, so it was one of the first things I bought even before getting the DA.

That's a great polish.

Wax: Again I was lost in all the product information that seems to be mostly focused on base/clear. I landed on Meguiars Ultimate Liquid Wax. Is there any harm in trying it out and switching to a carnuba wax later if I'm dissatisfied?

That's do.... Are sure there's no carnauba in it?

THANK YOU for all the great help and advice. I wish I had bought more of these products from Autogeek to help support all the great info you provide here.

Your very welcome. My classes are just as good and just as detailed as the detailed info I share.

When I first stumbled on the forum I did not realize at all it was related to a store so I bought a lot of this stuff locally or through big retailers.

It seems obvious now but that was just my impression. Now that I see the connection, I will be sure to spend more of my money with you (as I did today with the Griots 3" polisher - can't wait to get it!)

Now that's an interesting comment. I wonder how many people extract info from the forum and don't realize we support the Autogeek.com store?


Keep up updated to your success.

Be sure to do some testing, sometimes old single stage paint simply don't like to be machine polished. I can think of two projects where this was true.