Removing Water Spots - Very Old Car

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rmmagow

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1958 Mercedes Maroon paint original and getting thin. It got badly water spotted (should I upload photos for better advice?) and I'm not sure how to proceed. I read a little about using a vinegar spray to see if it would help. I've tried a couple of real fine polishs by hand to little effect although it seemed to help a little. Trying to avoid a re-paint on an otherwise original car. Water spotting occured from the car being left out in the rain and dried by the sun, an accident since I keep it garaged otherwise. I'm thinking I need a real pro to try to fix this but have been unable to find anyone I really trust. Advice sought and appreciated.
 
No question, photos will render you more accurate information to proceed with. '58 Mercedes sounds like a single stage paint job so you may be able to compound the spots out.

Let's see some pics.
 
I would take it someone with a PTG that can read how thick the paint is. Especially with original paint on a car like that.
 
Search water spot remover, there are a lot of products that AG carries. If none of these products work, pm me and I'll direct you to a line that will work. I say this because I have not used any water spot removers that AG has, but a friend gave me a bottle to use on a badly spotted car and it took it right off.
 
Is the Duragloss offering ok ??? I too see several outside companies offering an acid based water spot remover and reviews suggest they work well ... but havent gotten a chance to pick one up.
 
Beautiful car first of all. I would say to try with the least aggressive approach first which would be a quick detailer. Most have slight cleaning power and could potentially remove those water spots if they haven't etched the paint. After that, I would try an abrasive free paint cleanser.
 
rmmagow said:
I've got pictures here
http://s30.photobucket.com/albums/c333/rmagowan/2nd Set MB PICS/?albumview=slideshow&track=share_email_album_view_click
Password is mb220s
What company is AG
Thanks for the info folks.
Click to expand...

The link doesnt seem to work for me.... hmmm

The acronym AG stands for Autogeek, who's forums you are on. They also have a store, which has NUMEROUS, NUMEROUS good products. Here is a water spot remover I found that they carry.

Duragloss Water Spot Remover (WSR) #505

The first thing you need to do, is figure out which kind of water spots they are. At the bottom of this post http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...ics-detailing-diagrams-dialog.html#post158814 There are a couple pics of the different kinds of water spots. The first, is above surface, and can normally be removed with a chemical cleaner, that doesn't remove any paint. The 2nd kind, has etched its way below the surface of the paint, and can only be removed by using compounds or polishes to level the surface down to the water etches.

I agree with Superduty on this one. Given the car, age, and original paint.... I would find a detailer with a PTG (paint thickness gauge) and let them see how much paint there is left. That will give you a good idea on what actions can safely be taken to remove the spots.
 
Link did not work.
Have you tried washing and then claying the car with a medium to aggressive clay?

Also I would try LC white pad and polish first and see if that works. if not then try LC orange pad and compound. If that doesnt work you will have to bump it up to a wool pad.
 
sullysdetailing said:
Link did not work.
Have you tried washing and then claying the car with a medium to aggressive clay?

Also I would try LC white pad and polish first and see if that works. if not then try LC orange pad and compound. If that doesnt work you will have to bump it up to a wool pad.
Click to expand...
I notice your an AG consultant. Are advertising logo's and phone numbers and web site now allowed on AG? If so, I would like to start posting my business on my Sig.
 
RSurfer ... not sure of the rules regarding business sigs, please give us a moment to have Meghan chime in.

Does appear there are no issues with using your business logo and number in sig. We do review all for forum safety and to curb anything "unbecoming" of a forum member. So Sig on !
 
Signatures that include your detaling business, logo and telephone number are fine. Websites urls are also ok as long as the website does not have links to a competitor or a affiliate program.
 
The reason I ask is because I remember when photo's of a detailing job was posted and showed vans and trucks with names and numbers, they were asked to remove that photo that showed the detailer's name and phone number. I guess AG's policy has changed.
 
rmmagow said:
1958 Mercedes Maroon paint original and getting thin. It got badly water spotted (should I upload photos for better advice?) and I'm not sure how to proceed.

Water spotting occured from the car being left out in the rain and dried by the sun, an accident since I keep it garaged otherwise.
Click to expand...

I've worked on a lot of antique single stage paint and if the number one priority is to save the paint then you definitely want to proceed with caution, don't let any self-proclaimed expert take a coarse rubbing compound to it for sure.

Sounds like what you have is a Type III water spot and that's a stain? Is the paint where the spots are lighter in color than surrounding paint?

I wrote an article on how to work with pictures on forums, for what it's worth it will help you on this forum or any forum but if you want to make it easy on yourself then if you can send them to me in an e-mail

[email protected]


Here's the thread that has all the articles listed,

How-to work with pictures on discussion forums


But here's the specific one that should help you get your photobucket photos to show up...

How to insert an image from your photo gallery into your message




:)
 
chemical guys water spot remover work VERY WELL. Be sure to read and follow directions.
 
Keeping the thread alive. I'm going to a paint shop to have them tell me how much paint is left before I go any further. The car had to take a back burner this past summer due to other vehicular adventures. My 2010 resolution is to get the old girl looking as good as possible without a repaint. If this is impossible, I will need to seek out a shop that can repaint it properly. I would want to stick to single-stage if possible. I can get away with changing the front and back rubber window gaskets and I think I have a source for the clips for the trim parts so the car could be painted properly. Even though this might have some down-side to the value of the car at least I'd still be able to enjoy it. For those of you who had trouble with the link, cut-n-paste the link and the small section afterwards and the mb220s password will work. I'll get this car back to being a great 5 footer again.
 
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