Wish I Found This Site Earlier!!!

[jdog53]

After reading Mike Phillips thread on restoring single stage paint,I'm ready to admit the
errors of my ways and seek atonement for my aggressive attempt at bringing back a
30 year old repaint.
Thinking that it was a lacquer base paint,I wet sanded it smooth,going from# 600 to #2000
in some heavily rough areas.Everything looked great ,even after using a liquid polishing
compound and then a final carnauba wax top coat.
Well after a couple hours in the sun,it became dull and full of swirls.
I'm guessing my failure to condition the paint was my shortfall,and have applied my first
rubdown with #7 Meguiars,leaving it on for 24 hours.
Hopefully I'm on the right track
I skipped the clay bar cleaning,figuring the wet sanding cleaned the surface enough already.
Is there any thing else I should be doing?

Hers's a couple of shots before I attempted anything.

 

[ScottB]

welcome

 

[Vegas Transplant]

Howdy hand...Welcome to the forum! :xyxthumbs:

 

[Frenchie]

I love the #7. It does wonders on single stage paints. I use it all the time on clear coats as well and have great results.

If it were me, I'd strip everything off of it that you just did, see how bad the damage is then go from there. If you arent sure on what to do once you see how bad off it is, seek help here. There is someone who will know..

 

[jdog53]

Thanks for the welcome guys.

f it were me, I'd strip everything off of it that you just did, see how bad the damage is then go from there. If you arent sure on what to do once you see how bad off it is, seek help here. There is someone who will know..

I'm a little confused here.
Wouldn't the #7 remove the wax and give me a fresh start?

This is a thirty year old Enamel that had a lot of orange peel.
It was wet sanded up to 2000.then I used Turtle wax Rubbing compound with a 7" electric polisher, and applied a carnuaba wax.
Looked good till the sun hit it for a few hours,then it got dull and all the swirls
showed through.

Since then I've let the #7 stay a day,removed the extra,and did a couple more quick applications.
Could I use a swirl remover now to get it a little better and then recondition with the #7,then follow up with a good wax for durability.



Here's the best shot I could get of the present condition.

 

[Vegas Transplant]

Thanks for the welcome guys.



I'm a little confused here.
Wouldn't the #7 remove the wax and give me a fresh start?

This is a thirty year old Enamel that had a lot of orange peel.
It was wet sanded up to 2000.then I used Turtle wax Rubbing compound with a 7" electric polisher, and applied a carnuaba wax.
Looked good till the sun hit it for a few hours,then it got dull and all the swirls
showed through.

Here's the best shot I could get of the present condition.

What tool are you calling a 7" electric polisher. Seems to me either the compound did not do it's job or that it was done in a garage w/o the use of a work light to check progress.
I see more tic marks and rids than I see swirls.

 

[Alex22]

Thanks for the welcome guys.



I'm a little confused here.
Wouldn't the #7 remove the wax and give me a fresh start?

This is a thirty year old Enamel that had a lot of orange peel.
It was wet sanded up to 2000.then I used Turtle wax Rubbing compound with a 7" electric polisher, and applied a carnuaba wax.
Looked good till the sun hit it for a few hours,then it got dull and all the swirls
showed through.

Since then I've let the #7 stay a day,removed the extra,and did a couple more quick applications.
Could I use a swirl remover now to get it a little better and then recondition with the #7,then follow up with a good wax for durability.



Here's the best shot I could get of the present condition.

Im new here too but over about two weeks I have learned a good amount, I would suggest that you do clay bar the car to remove cotamination left behind after the sanding and compound that was proablably not effective since it was not applied right with your electric polisher.

The reason is that 7" electric polisher is most likely a aka "wax spreader" READ here:
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...ditional-orbital-buffer-aka-wax-spreader.html
U would need to get a DA polisher mate, then if you need something for the swirls use Meguiars Swirl X If you need to get sanding marks or other form of paint correction that does not directly correlate with swirls your safest bet would be Ultimate Compound, Then follow it up with the Consumer version of M205 that is Ultimate Polish. First you want perform Mikes Test Spot link: http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...le-7424xp-g110v2-griot-s-garage-polisher.html also explains how to use a DA polisher.
Then after you have compound and polished your car and you like the finish that you got and are pleased finish it of with your choice of sealant, Hope it was not to confusing please bear with me im new here and sure others will give better info. :dblthumb2: your really have come to the right place. oh and forgot give it a wash with some dawn if you want to remove the old wax/sealant and polish and please only use it for removing the wax/sealant and not a daily thing. Cheers. And Welcome Aboard.

 

[jdog53]

Thanks for the responses guys,

Guess its back to starting from scratch here.

The 7" buffer I used is an orbital buffer,and according to this thread:
http://www.autogeekonline.net/forum...ditional-orbital-buffer-aka-wax-spreader.html
could be used for single stage paint,but I guess my situation may be different.

I'm going to try a more aggressive approach with my VS sander/polisher.
Like I said before,this is a 30 year old re-paint,If that doesn't take it to a better
finish,maybe I'm looking at bad prep work before the re-paint.

I see more tic marks and rids than I see swirls.

Guess I need to read up a bit more.What are and causes tic marks and rids?

 

[Setec Astronomy]

Holy cow, I read this fast--but it sounds like your problem is the Turtle Wax Rubbing Compound. That stuff is likely rocks in a can, and you couldn't break it down with your "wax spreader".

Getting more aggressive isn't the answer, you need the proper approach. You need to get something like some Meguiar's 80-series polishes or I guess you can use the newer SMAT on single stage paint.

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Thinking that it was a lacquer base paint,I wet sanded it smooth,going from# 600 to #2000 in some heavily rough areas. Everything looked great ,even after using a liquid polishing compound and then a final carnauba wax top coat.

Well after a couple hours in the sun,it became dull and full of swirls.

I'm guessing my failure to condition the paint was my shortfall,and have applied my first rubdown with #7 Meguiars,leaving it on for 24 hours.

Hopefully I'm on the right track I skipped the clay bar cleaning,figuring the wet sanding cleaned the surface enough already.

Is there any thing else I should be doing?

Hers's a couple of shots before I attempted anything.

My article about restoring antique and original single stage paints is about how to condition the paint before you work on it because all too often old and antique single stage paints oxidize, dry out and become brittle.


First, are you confident that you're working on single stage paint? Did see color coming off when you wetsanded?

Second of all, regardless of whether the paint is single stage or basecoat/clearcoat, after you sand you normally need to use a rotary buffer with a wool pad and a compound to remove your sanding marks.

An old fashioned traditional orbital buffer like this doesn't have the power to remove sanding marks, at least not effectively.


The Traditional Orbital Buffer aka The Wax Spreader

Copyright ©PBMA - AutogeekOnline.net® All Rights Reserved​

Third, if the paint is single stage and it is old or original, sanding is not normally the first option as it removes a lot of precious and thin paint.

See this article,


Wetsanding - Fresh Paint vs Factory Paint

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Here's your last picture "inserted" instead of attached, it makes it easier to see, talk about and deal with...

From the picture the pait has the appearance of old, scratched or even cracked single stage paint.

What I always teach people to do including when it comes to wetsanding is called a Test Spot.


See this article,

How To Do a Test Spot

A Test Spot

Heck I kind a did a wetsanding test spot yesterday, at least on the buffing side,


Video: Wow! 3M #5000 Grit Polishing I mean Sanding Discs!

 

[jdog53]

Thanks guys,did some more reading here and tried the compound again
with the Buffer/Grinder.
Starting to learn about the right technique and waiting for the compound to
break down till it starts polishing more.
Three passes later the results are looking promising;
Just have to figure out the next step.

 

[Vegas Transplant]

rops:

 

[Alex22]

A good polish/finishing polish then a good coat of either sealant or wax for durability go sealant and for the extra shine glossybess go with a good carnuba wax although nothing sais u cant put the carnuba over the sealant. :wink:

 

[Mike PhillipsMike Phillips is verified member.]

Just have to figure out the next step.

The next step after compounding with a wool pad and a rotary buffer would be to switch to a less aggressive polish and a foam pad on a rotary buffer or something like a Flex 3401 or a DA Polisher. Just make sure whatever tool, pad and polish you're using is removing the swirls imparted into the paint by the fibers of the wool pad and the abrasives in the compound.

You always want to test out your system before you buff out the entire car to make sure you don't waste your time.

It's called the Test Spot and you would normally do this at the very beginning of the project so you already know each pad, product and process you're going to to from beginning to end.


How To Do a Test Spot



I also cover this in my how-to book...

 

[BobbyG]

Armed with some knowledge, the right products, and some ambition there's almost nothing that can't be made better!! rops:

 

[jdog53]

Thanks again ,you guys have been great help.

As luck would have it,I was working on a
clients home who just happens to do the detailing for a local restorer.He
travels to a lot of the East coast shows,seen a lot of products demonstrated,
and also is a distributor for one line.
I was invited over so he could do a test spot,and get me going in the
right direction for the condition of my paint.
So,my shopping list was : 3M "Perfect-it,step 1&2,and some
good buffing and polishing pads.
I'm posting some progress pics after the first compounding.

The whole color of the car has changed dramatically.I'm very pleased with
the results so far.

Half done fender

[/IMG]

Before:

After compound with wool pad:

Last winters projects before and after:

I'll post the finished product when its done.........should be next week.

This site has been great for getting the rest of my detailing tips,so glad
I found it.

 

[jdog53]

Just an update;

Thanks again for all the tips,here's the reason I had to get it done.
nephew and his GF needed it:

[/IMG]