Standard Chip Repair vs Dr. Colorchip

AustrianOak82

AustrianOak82

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Which method do you guys prefer for rock chip repair? I have always done it the old fashioned way with filling in the chips and then wet sanding down, followed by a polish. I wasn't sure what kind of results the Dr. Colorchip product yielded. I have a high end car coming in next week for some chip repair and I didn't want to experiment with a new product then, while at the same time a little nervous given the value of the car.
 
The old fashioned way is time consuming. Also, if you make a mistake you have to start over.

In my opinion, doing rock chip repair starts with getting your customer's expectations grounded in the real world.

If they want a repair that looks like NOTHING ever happened then the old fashioned method and charge by the hour is the way to go. Be sure to explain how long it will take and an estimate for the total cost of JUST the rock chip repair.

If the customer doesn't like the price with doing the repair the old fashioned way then explain the Dr. Color Chip system is fast but you can't put your nose against the paint and expect to not see the repair.

You can stand a few feet away and not see the repair and for the price difference that's good enough for most people. This is especially true if the car in question is a daily driver and you explain to the customer that daily drivers are prone to future rock chips.

So having the correct Dr. Color Chip repair kit not only will fix the current chips but the future chips.

To me... it's all about customer expectations and what they are willing to pay for perfection.

See my article here, it's very in-depth...

How to use the Dr. ColorChip Paint Chip Repair Systems


:xyxthumbs:
 
Mike, can you really do chip repairs the old fashioned way and put your nose against the paint and not see the repair, especially on metallic paint?
 
For my personal car i use both methods. For larger chips i still go the old school route i.e. fill, sand and finish. For smaller chips i use the Dr ColorChip method. I agree with Mike's opinion that my old school method is better in the final analysis but it's costly on time. Building up that slight "bulge" with numerous thin applications with OEM paint and then isolating the sand down to just that bulge is a meticulous effort and takes time to do right. I will happily say, though, it yields far superior results and yes, on my metallic flaked paint. Dr. ColorChip is fast and much easier and does an adequate job of hiding the smaller chips.

Again, for me, it comes down to the size of the chip. If i had a customer car i would talk them into the DC approach and caution towards the results not being perfect but much better and gauge their acceptance. If they wanted my meticulous approach i would price it out with the additional time that takes.

Just my opinion...
 
Puckman said:
For my personal car i use both methods. For larger chips i still go the old school route i.e. fill, sand and finish. For smaller chips i use the Dr ColorChip method. I agree with Mike's opinion that my old school method is better in the final analysis but it's costly on time. Building up that slight "bulge" with numerous thin applications with OEM paint and then isolating the sand down to just that bulge is a meticulous effort and takes time to do right. I will happily say, though, it yields far superior results and yes, on my metallic flaked paint. Dr. ColorChip is fast and much easier and does an adequate job of hiding the smaller chips.

Again, for me, it comes down to the size of the chip. If i had a customer car i would talk them into the DC approach and caution towards the results not being perfect but much better and gauge their acceptance. If they wanted my meticulous approach i would price it out with the additional time that takes.

Just my opinion...
Click to expand...

You must have great skills, cause I can't get a black metallic paint chip to match perfectly. At 3 feet it looks good, but close up, you can see that it doesn't match. I've done the whole process, thin coats, wet sand with 1500, 2000, 3000, buff out. I guess I don't have the skills you have, when you can put your nose right up to it and can't see the repair.
 
Rsurfer said:
Mike, can you really do chip repairs the old fashioned way and put your nose against the paint and not see the repair, especially on metallic paint?
Click to expand...



Of course not.


My point is that's what Joe Car Owner EXPECTS


That's alway why in my post I said,


Mike Phillips said:
In my opinion, doing rock chip repair starts with getting your customer's expectations grounded in the real world.
Click to expand...



And the reason is because most people don't know a squirrel from a swirl let alone what is required to do this type of highly detailed work.

They expect perfection But that's just not real world. What I tell people that expect perfection is to get the panel repainted or the entire car.


:laughing:
 
Does anyone know if you can use OEM paint and the Dr. Colorchip step 2 system to wipe off the excess? I'd assume paint is paint. I have lots of extra step 2 from leftover kits and I can get an OEM paint pen for $10.
 
Thanks Mike!
medicscott said:
Does anyone know if you can use OEM paint and the Dr. Colorchip step 2 system to wipe off the excess? I'd assume paint is paint. I have lots of extra step 2 from leftover kits and I can get an OEM paint pen for $10.
Click to expand...

I was wondering this as well. Is the step two product just glorified mineral spirits?

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
medicscott said:
Does anyone know if you can use OEM paint and the Dr. Colorchip step 2 system to wipe off the excess? I'd assume paint is paint. I have lots of extra step 2 from leftover kits and I can get an OEM paint pen for $10.
Click to expand...

I actually asked this question to Tony Pando from Dr. Colorchip and he said that it would not work with OEM paint. The paint used in the Dr. Colorchip system is a little different than OEM paint and is designed to work together with the blending solution.
 
FrankS said:
I actually asked this question to Tony Pando from Dr. Colorchip and he said that it would not work with OEM paint. The paint used in the Dr. Colorchip system is a little different than OEM paint and is designed to work together with the blending solution.
Click to expand...

So of course I didn't see this post and tried it. Epic fail, whipped out the plastic razor to get it off.

Now I know why we have to pay $59. Worth every penny.

Do NOT try the OEM and step 2 as it will NOT work.
 
No...put if you want to remove excess Dr Colorchip faster you can add a little mineral spirits to the solution and it will speed things right up.
 
How do you guys charge for chip repair services for both options? I never know how much labor it will take or anything, plus the kit or paint has to be ordered in advance.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
From my experience Dr. Colorchip works great for small chips and "road rash" (many very tiny chips), but not for large chips.
 
At what point do you bite your tongue and say... I'm sorry but I'd have so many hours in chip repair you could have the hood painted.

I know chips exist other places, I hunt, my jeep sees a lot of rock roads. Me doing chip work on my ride, if it takes a week so what.
 
One could argue that road rash can be taken care of in under 30 min with Dr. Colorchip. Once you have purchased a bunch of kits you can order the individual pieces at a much cheaper price. I hope AutoGeek will start to offer the full line of Dr. Colorchip products in the future.

My costs range from $30-$65 depending on supplies needed from Dr. Colorchip and for road rash I find its so easy with the squeege method, I can charge $125 for the front and for chips themselves on the hood and grille I charge around $100 because it only takes 30 min with this system. I do not sand anymore. It's all about setting proper expectations.

Jeremy.Hoffman said:
At what point do you bite your tongue and say... I'm sorry but I'd have so many hours in chip repair you could have the hood painted.

I know chips exist other places, I hunt, my jeep sees a lot of rock roads. Me doing chip work on my ride, if it takes a week so what.
Click to expand...
 
And I'll only do the repairs off a piggy back on a full detail package not alone.
 
for those looking to do the Colorchip process with OE paint, you mean with base or with OE touch up paint? what about Langka? i'm sure that's still around.

anyway, i've done my fair share of chip repairs using the old methods (18/0 brush or Ez-Dabber, custom mixed base, clear) and i've found that particularly with metallics, once you put clear over it, the repair will change color. it looks better than an untreated chip and the spot is protected, but i've found that 99% of the time, the color will change so the spot will still be evident. with metallics it seems to usually darken up quite a bit.

for chips that don't go all the way to the primer, where it's just a light spot on the paint, a lot of times you can just precisely fill the spot with clear and it will look better than if you tried to fill with base and then touch up, since again the clear would darken the base.

i am currently looking into mixing base with clear on a repair by repair basis. i am not sure of the ratio, probably 50/50 to start, but i am curious if that will give the best of both worlds between base/clear and OE touchup without having the color changing issue. i've read about it but never tried it on a repair, only a test card.
 
Not meaning to hijack this thread, but why can't you mix touchup with some clear?
 
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