About to throw in the towel on this one. Non-metallic black re-paint thats ridiculously easy to mar.

Harry Da Hamster

Harry Da Hamster

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-Long story short, the entire car's paint job is as close to perfect a daily driver can get, EXCEPT the rear bumper which was repainted. Vehicle in question is non-metallic black. How do i deal with paint that's ridiculously easy to mar? So easy, a light wipe of a clean plush microfiber towel will cause marring.

-Long story not shortened, i was wondering why the rear bumper had so much straight line ultra fine horizontal scratches compared to the rest of the paint which is in excellent condition. I figured using the word "swirl" would not be entirely fitting since the swirls were not in swirl (curly) form, they were straight and horizontal. Upon very close examination, i noticed it was repainted. I usually try the least evasive method first so i bring out my 3401, Menzerna SF3800 (newest branding name) and a finishing pad and get to work. Normally i'm able to get out all fine swirls with this combination. I wipe and inspect, it's still there. So at first thought, i figured it's a little harder than i expected. After all, there's no RIDS or scratches, only ultra fine horizontal scratches. So i bring out a polishing pad. It's still there. Screw it, i bring out a microfiber cutting pad and FG400, then finish with the finishing pad with SF3800. It's still there!!! Dude! I'm thinking there's absolutely no way my MF cutting pad and FG400 isn't making a dent in this. So now my suspicion is, is it the complete opposite? Is it ridiculously soft? Since its a repaint, maybe the clear wasn't mixed properly prior to spraying? So i do another pass of FG400 and SF3800 and this time i wipe vertically and it confirmed my suspicion. It's ultra soft and super easy to mar. I polish again with the polishing pad and SF3800, then finishing pad and this time i go straight to wax and buff off with a towel damp of rinseless wash and buff off as softly as i could. Still marring! Holy cow! I wrap it up and give up for the day. At this point, i'm ready to throw in the towel and 1) leave it be or 2) repaint... Unless you guys have suggestions.

Thanks!
 
Good lord that's frustrating!

I would probably be experimenting with different pile microfiber cloths. That would probably be a task for the Megs Sulreme Shine.
 
anonymoususer said:
-Long story short, the entire car's paint job is as close to perfect a daily driver can get, EXCEPT the rear bumper which was repainted. Vehicle in question is non-metallic black. How do i deal with paint that's ridiculously easy to mar? So easy, a light wipe of a clean plush microfiber towel will cause marring.

-Long story not shortened, i was wondering why the rear bumper had so much straight line ultra fine horizontal scratches compared to the rest of the paint which is in excellent condition. I figured using the word "swirl" would not be entirely fitting since the swirls were not in swirl (curly) form, they were straight and horizontal. Upon very close examination, i noticed it was repainted. I usually try the least evasive method first so i bring out my 3401, Menzerna SF3800 (newest branding name) and a finishing pad and get to work. Normally i'm able to get out all fine swirls with this combination. I wipe and inspect, it's still there. So at first thought, i figured it's a little harder than i expected. After all, there's no RIDS or scratches, only ultra fine horizontal scratches. So i bring out a polishing pad. It's still there. Screw it, i bring out a microfiber cutting pad and FG400, then finish with the finishing pad with SF3800. It's still there!!! Dude! I'm thinking there's absolutely no way my MF cutting pad and FG400 isn't making a dent in this. So now my suspicion is, is it the complete opposite? Is it ridiculously soft? Since its a repaint, maybe the clear wasn't mixed properly prior to spraying? So i do another pass of FG400 and SF3800 and this time i wipe vertically and it confirmed my suspicion. It's ultra soft and super easy to mar. I polish again with the polishing pad and SF3800, then finishing pad and this time i go straight to wax and buff off with a towel damp of rinseless wash and buff off as softly as i could. Still marring! Holy cow! I wrap it up and give up for the day. At this point, i'm ready to throw in the towel and 1) leave it be or 2) repaint... Unless you guys have suggestions.

Thanks!
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Either the paint is not fully cured or you could be very picky.Have you tried reflect.could be numerous things.maybe change your finishing pad and try a medium cut pad with a different polish and leave it,or just use a cleaner wax and call it a day.promblematic paint is hard to pin point the promblem behind a keyboard.maybe Mike will chime in and give you some solutions.
 
Maybe 85rd on a grey pad or megs ultra finishing polish at a low speed less pressure and less working time.are pads clean and primed.Im sure you know what your doing,just throwing out some solutions.reflect on a finishing pad I would try.But then again if you have to spend extra money on different supplies and deosnt work you will be pissed.see if Mike p will have time to help you sorry but I tried,and I normally stay away from promblematic paint behind a keyboard.
 
480 GSM Eagle Edgeless and unless your removing wax/polish never use one dry. My audi was like this all over causing micro marring. In the end, put a coating on it. I had one on my S4 when I first did it, then rebuffed it to get it absolutely perfect and then just used various LSP's. However, recently I went back to a coating and will likely continue that route.
 
View attachment 52242

50/50 of the quarter panel with factory paint and rear bumper with non-factory paint. That's using my lousy swirl finder. In direct sunlight, it horrendous.

It's the paint guys. The paint is sub-standard and was probably mixed improperly. It has nothing to do with the pad. I can get the swirls out. It's happening during post polishing during wipe down. As I buff off polish material, it scratches. Another suggestion mentioned using a coating, which is most ideal other than a respray. But once that coating applicator touches the paint, it'll mar. I'm using brand new Pakshak Korean made towels. I also have a brand new pack of Meguiars Supreme Shine yellow towels but honestly then seem far inferior.

Temp solution attempt #1: Try a glaze to hide it. I tried Chemical Guys Blacklight and it helped maybe 10%, so virtually nothing.

Temp solution attempt #2: I didn't try it yet since I'm uber frustrated with it. Polish out marring, then go straight to a soap wash using a ton of soapy lubrication. Use Hydro2 to protect the surface without touching or wiping. And dry the surface with my Metro Sidekick. That's the only absolutely touch less solution I can think of using products I already have.
 
That was a quick picture. I just noticed that after image transfer and resulting degradation, it doesnt show the swirls much. I'll post a better picture in sunlight another day. Heavy overcast in Honolulu for the next week but if the sun pops out, i'll snap the picture. But trust me, it's there. Fortunately its on the lower portion of a low car
 
Wonder if removing dry polish might be easier/less marring with something like eraser on it? (sorta like a lube)
 
Positive. If i wipe off all polish on a horizontal plane, i'll get horizontal scratches. If i polish again and wipe vertically, i'll get vertical scratches.
 
Maybe a stupid reply,but what if you polished it and spraywaxed the bumper keeping wet with a micro and follow directly behind it just to remove the residual.Do you have or tried the chinchilla micro.
 
Have you tried the Kevin Brown method for extremely soft paint, 12 drops of M205 in 32 oz of water?

One other thing that came to my mind is trying Essence, it almost disappears completely.
 
Been meaning to try Essence. Something with very little residual would help
 
Essence may work.Is this your car or a customer?
 
I have heard of polishing very soft Porsche paint with water and soft pad only. The pad by itself has some cut/polishing effect. Google around, there is a video.
 
Personal car.

I was even thinking about bringing it to RestorFX and having them apply their coating to the rear bumper only. It's a very thick coating and it covers and masks imperfections. I work at a dealership and i've done it on a few of our dealership cars. Only problem with that is there's a slight chance of unevenness. I even made a thread about it a few years ago: Coating to remove swirl marks and minor imperfections?
 
I've decided to give Essence a try. Going to buy some of that and some microfiber finish pads and see how that works. After that, it's out of my hands. RestorFX or re-spray at a reputable shop. Part of my reason for trying is because i have a brand new box of Cquartz UK and Reload laying around. It's about time i use it!
 
Interesting I just had a simular experience with my front bumper. I decided to give up on it, because it has bubbles on the front section, and I couldn't touch that part. So decided to complain about the terrible paint job. (Was painted a year ago.) When my ex ran into a racoon. Anyway they said they will repaint it, but I had this problem it is a black with metal flake. I polished it out on the side fender (the only place where the paint seemed okay). Looked brand new, buffed off any polish. It had massive vertical scratches. I was like ###? I did it again, same thing. The whole car was done and looking sweet except for that.....

I literally thought exactly like you did. That the new paint was a harder paint, and was just not cutting it out, but I'm thinking now it was just very soft because of bad solvents in the paint. (Not mixed properly or whatever) So it's possible you have a simular issue. I will see how the new paint acts when I get it repainted on the 26th. I will have to wait a few days for curing, but next time I wash after this I will see if any marring occurs.
 
anonymoususer said:
I've decided to give Essence a try. Going to buy some of that and some microfiber finish pads and see how that works. After that, it's out of my hands. RestorFX or re-spray at a reputable shop. Part of my reason for trying is because i have a brand new box of Cquartz UK and Reload laying around. It's about time i use it!
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I would also pick up the CarPro Gloss pads to go along with Essence and soft black paint. Given that you are working with ultra soft paint, why not start off with the least aggressive combination? I.e. Gloss pads and Essence.
 
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