Cut & Polishing ???'s

S

Sanders7981

I finally picked up a Dewalt 849x polisher and began making the General Lee shine. Here is the backstory on my paintjob and steps. This is my FIRST attempt at a full paintjob from start to finish. So I did lots of reading to get spun up on what all was required. Last summer I used Rage Extreme filler, blocked, painted over it with slicksand, blocked some more, then painted white epoxy over all that... then used the rest of the epoxy as a sealer coat. I applied 4 coats of Big Bad Orange in Nason basecoat. The base layed out NICE and FLAT all over the car. Then came 3 coats of SPI Universal Clear, which got some runs and trash (lint, hair, etc). I didnt think I had enough left to do another coat. I did all this in my garage, which I turned into a paintbooth using plastic sheeting and wood to build a frame extending from the garage door with fans sucking out the overspray at the front and fans pushing in fresh air on the side. Of course I wasn't expecting a showcar finish job. I got some runs and orangepeel, not too worried about it because I figured I could just cut and cut/polish it out. Then it sat for about 4-5 months before I decided to wet sand it... plus I had some exercises and training that kept me away (Active Duty Marine) off and on. I began wet sanding with dura block boards and a ruler using 800, 1000, 1500, and 2000 grit. I ONLY used 600 to level out the runs and was very careful to not hit the recessed clear around them, but they are still somewhat visible. I was more concerned about sanding through the clear so I didn't press too hard. Anyhow, I was advised by my local paint guy at Napa, who has been a tremendous help through out this project with guidance, to get the 3M blue waffle foam pad and Perfect-It Ultra Machine Polish to buff out the wetsanding scratches. It looks good from 5 feet away, but the polish is not gettign out all the scratches. I thought I had leveled it all out pretty good, but there are a few areas that look like pinholes but is actually deep orange peel, I think. See the pics below for details. I probably could go back over this and wet sand some more, but again I was afraid of burning through the clear coat. I do have just under half a gallon of clear left over, but I don't think its enough to do a "Flow Coat" over the entire car... and I no longer have the garage set up as a paint booth, so I dont think spraying another coat without getting A LOT of trash in it is optional.

So my here's question.... Since it has set for about 5 - 6 months, what should I do to try and get out the little pin hole-like orange peel? Do I wet sand more..., get a polish with more cutting grit, or respray the areas that are like this? I know that it has aleast cured and hardenend lol... IMG_3491.JPG

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Did the NAPA tell you to use any other pads before the 3m blue waffle pad? I think it even says on the bag "step 3". If not, they led you down the wrong path there. You will need to get the 3m "step 1" and "step 2" pads and compounds. A search on the "perfect it system" should tell you what you need to know.

I am interested what some of the pros on here are going to say about that peel/pin holes. Judging by the texture, it looks to me like the clear was applied very heavy. My guess is the pin holes is solvent pop. Don't put much value on my opinion though. I'm sure someone that really knows this stuff will be on shortly.
 
Tough to judge in the photos if the pinholes are solvent pop or from pinholes in the primer, or just the result of texture buildup/dryspray? The buffing needs to start with a compound pad and compound. Not what you want to hear I'm sure but I'd clean it well, scuff it good and shoot three more wet coats of clear.
 
Bob Hollinshead;26963 said:
Tough to judge in the photos if the pinholes are solvent pop or from pinholes in the primer, or just the result of texture buildup/dryspray? The buffing needs to start with a compound pad and compound. Not what you want to hear I'm sure but I'd clean it well, scuff it good and shoot three more wet coats of clear.
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I did get a bit of dry-spray texture build up in a few areas, first time mistake on my part. It's not all over the car just on the trunk where it is flat and a few places along the top edge of the body line. Haven't seen any on the sides of the car. There were no pin holes in the primer or base,I made sure of it before moving on to clearing.
 
Bob Hollinshead;26963 said:
Tough to judge in the photos if the pinholes are solvent pop or from pinholes in the primer, or just the result of texture buildup/dryspray? The buffing needs to start with a compound pad and compound. Not what you want to hear I'm sure but I'd clean it well, scuff it good and shoot three more wet coats of clear.
Click to expand...

I agree with Bob her...and try to get full even slick coats with minum runs and no orange peel. If the choice needs to be made in the shooting stage, go for the runs and back off it just a bit...Dave
 
Just spent the day, and majority of the night wet sanding.... I think I got out about 95% of those pinholes. I will polish it tomorrow and see where I am at. I may pick up that rubbing compound to try it out on removing some of the wet sand scratches. I did sand through the paint in a few areas, all on edges and small enough that I can dab some paint on then do a small spot repair on it. I just don't have the time to attempt re-spraying the car with under half a gallon of clear left, plus I am deploying in a couple weeks. With my luck, the clear would just be as bad as it was before and I'd be back where I am now. Just wanted to get done what I could so I can complete the next phase when I get back. Bob, thanks for the suggestions. I think I just wasn't aggressive enough when i wet sanded the first time.
 
Definately use the step 1 compound and a compound pad either wool or form will work. Go slow if you're new to buffing, once all the scratches are cut off clean it well and use a different pad and the step 2-the blue pad will work.
 
Got a lot of improvement after yesterday's wet-sand session, but I still got some scratch marks. I guess I will try out the rubbing compound. Not sure how many more hours my finger prints can take of all this wet sanding.
 
Hang in there. It isn't so bad once you establish a routine that works for you. You want to remove all your defects with 800-1000. From there, you are mainly just refining scratches. Go in small steps. I use 800, 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000, 3000 trizact. When I'm close to done with each step, I go all one direction. Then I look for scratches going the wrong way and sand a little more if needed. If those scratches don't come out, then I go back a step. Keep everything super clean, and don't contaminate your paper with grit from previous steps. Take it easy with the buffer too. Go slow and move the buffer a lot. Always buff off of the edges and never into any surface. If you sand to 3000, buffing hard to get areas can be done by hand. I hope this helps your frustration a little, because I know what you are feeling right now.
 
I just thought of one more thing. Probably the best advice Bob told me when I was learning. Start with one easy panel and establish your routine on that. Do not attempt to sand and buff the whole car at once because you will be screwing up the whole thing if there is a problem with your process.
 
Thanks for the advice guys. It's looking pretty scratch free...almost. I need to hit the hood one more time. I have been contemplating if I have enough clear left to spray another coat or two. I have a third of a gallon left, after mixing it'd be 2/3 of a gallon. Would definitely cover the hood, but its been too cold here to spray outside... Which is where I'd probably go with it. We'll see what it looks like tomorrow.
 
Finished results... Most of all the tiny holes were sanded out. i can still see sanding scratches in teh clear, but nothing as bad as before. i am sure there is enough clear left on it to refine the sand scratches later on, but i just dont have time to do it now. Not a show car finish by any means... But not bad for my first time painting and in a garage. It will work fine for a daily driver! Now to just get the decals on.image.jpg

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The next time around you'll do better, the shine looks good on the front!
 
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