Scratch X 2.0 Aftermath

E

Eric052492

New member
Joined
Jul 12, 2016
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Hi Guys,

First time poster. I recently tried to remove some scuff marks from my 2016 Mustang using some Meguiar's Scratch X 2.0. They seemed like relatively deep clear coat scratches, like someone swung a bag with a buckle into my car, and two or three applications of Scratch X did the trick. The problem I've run into now is that the finish was left cloudy with some swirl marks. I followed up with a very light application of Scratch X 2.0 to try and minimize the scratches and it improved it but not by much. I used some ultimate polish and wax to shine it up but the swirls are still noticeable in direct sunlight. What do you think would be a good next step? I've read some places that following up with some Swirl X and a foam applicator pad should do the trick since it's less abrasive.

I cleaned the surface well before hand so I'm not sure why this happened. Possibly too much pressure? I should also mention I did all of this by hand. I attached a picture of the damage to hopefully get a proper assessment of how to proceed. A lot of this is new to me so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advanced!

View attachment 50328
 
I'm not sure what you want us to see in the picture--the area where the sun reflection is?

I can't keep track of which version of ScratchX is available now and what it's like, but if Ultimate Polish didn't remove that marring perhaps you have to drop down to Ultimate Compound and go back up to UP.

How hard did you work the UP? Removing defects from paint isn't easy, especially by hand, you may have to work the UP just as hard to remove that marring as you did the ScratchX to remove the scratches.

Also be aware that it is possible to polish through your clearcoat by hand, especially when trying to remove deep scratches.
 
It looks like the upload degraded the photo quality a bit, sorry. I didn't work the UP too hard because I was worried about making things worse at that point. I may give it another go when I have some time to see what happens, but I wanted to post here first to get some opinions.
 
I've worked a lot with SwirlX 2.0. My guess is that the applicator caused the haze, if you weren't using foam initially. It's hard to advise without knowing how much clear is left, as you can remove quite a bit if you hit a small spot pretty aggressively by hand with an aggressive applicator. You don't want to instill a "valley" in the clear.

Do you have access to a DA (machine)? Knowing what we do (or don't-- cc thickness), I wouldn't want to go at it anymore by hand with something aggressive. Ultimate Polish with a DA would likely clear it up in no time and you could do a larger area, not just focusing on the area of defect, but the defect + the surrounding area. I honestly think it'd be fixed quickly.

If you are intent on doing it by hand, I'd sort of "Palm" a foam applicator (even spread of pressure across the pad face, unlike the finger tips you likely used for defect removal) and go at a larger area- but favoring a longer time over more pressure. We always advise least aggressive method first, but with foam, even + gentle pressure on the pad face, and time, swirlX itself can finish very nicely.
 
I actually tried to spread the pressure pretty evenly on my first attempt, so as it sits the swirl marks are very evenly spread out. Fortunately I didn't go at it too long with the Scratch X so I'm hoping the thickness is okay. The swirls are also relatively light, but it sticks out a sore thumb (to me anyway) since the car isn't that old yet. Meguiar's sell a DA, one of those drill attached ones, so I'll probably give that a go. I'll have some time and various products to throw at it this weekend to try and resolve it.
 
I would just repeat the process with the Ultimate Polish until the swirls are gone. My suspicion is that you just didn't go at it long enough.

In my opinion a DA is not a necessity for that small area (I'm assuming the fuel filler door is your area of concern). I certainly wouldn't buy one just for this.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top