Polishing and Buffing (picture intense)

[Dusstbuster]

So i was talking to a friend of mine who's working at a dealership and was asking about what they do for scratches and other paint defects on cars they see. The method they use is extreme (scrap the part be it a fender, hood, bumper, whatever, paint a new one to match it, and put that on. They do that for larger scratches and dents) but he said they polish/buff minor scratches. He said that they do it on ones like those that are on my car and said i should just polish and buff it and they'll be gone. So i went out, spent $20 or so on some stuff, and went to work on it today. Nothing changed, it looks no different. So my question is...is there a certain process you should go through to remove scratches and other blemishes and exactly what is Polishing and Buffing, and what are some good products to use? I was doing it by hand because i dont want to buy an orbital/rotary buffer because id probably ruin my paint beyond recognition. I spent about an hour reading up on autopia too and still am sorta in the dark as to what the difference between buffing and polishing is as well. So ANY help at all as to what i should do, if there even is anything i can do non-professionally to remove these blemishes or are they probably going to require professional help.

I used the following:
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/vk-101.html
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v75/Dusstbuster/Meguiars.jpg

Pictures of Blemishes:

And yes it is dirty, and this is just 2 days after i did a full wash/clay/wax on it too. Lack of garage space sucks.

 

[Evenflow]

Oh jeez it hurts to look at that.

I dont think doing it by hand is going to get rid of them at all. If there in the clearcoat you will need a PorterCable polisher to buff them out.

 

[Anthony Orosco]

Sorry to say that a PC is not going to do nothing for that paint. In fact a rotary won't do anything either.

Buffing is what many professionals define as using a rotary high speed polishing machine to "level" down the paint. "Polishing" can have several meanings. Some use the word to define using products like Meguairs #7 or 3M's Imperial Hand Glaze, which add alot of wetness and gloss to paint. Others use the word to define the process of again, leveling the paint. Leveling the paint means you are removing a microthin layer of paint, the layer where scratches reside, to reveal a fresh layer of paint. The danger here is that you can remove too much and thus "burn" the top coat, which is obviously bad.

From the pictures you posted up though your paint is toast. The scratches look too deep to be leveled out. If your fingernail catches as you pass it over the scratch then it is too deep. The reason it can't be removed is that there is not enough paint to safely work with.

Anthony

 

[Evenflow]

Sorry to say that a PC is not going to do nothing for that paint. In fact a rotary won't do anything either.

Buffing is what many professionals define as using a rotary high speed polishing machine to "level" down the paint. "Polishing" can have several meanings. Some use the word to define using products like Meguairs #7 or 3M's Imperial Hand Glaze, which add alot of wetness and gloss to paint. Others use the word to define the process of again, leveling the paint. Leveling the paint means you are removing a microthin layer of paint, the layer where scratches reside, to reveal a fresh layer of paint. The danger here is that you can remove too much and thus "burn" the top coat, which is obviously bad.

From the pictures you posted up though your paint is toast. The scratches look too deep to be leveled out. If your fingernail catches as you pass it over the scratch then it is too deep. The reason it can't be removed is that there is not enough paint to safely work with.

Anthony

Im sure for SOME of the hairpin scratches a PC could work.

 

[Dusstbuster]

craaappp i was kinda figuring that nothing could take them out but it still sucks. And there is no way i could afford a paint job either :/ guess im SOL

 

[wytstang]

Yeah you need a paint job to fix which sucks.

 

[megan_92]

maaco!

 

[RacEoHolic330]

A light color sanding and buffing could help to get rid of those scratches. It's very labor intensive though and you run the rish of sanding through the clear coat.

 

[89BlackGT]

A light color sanding and buffing could help to get rid of those scratches. It's very labor intensive though and you run the rish of sanding through the clear coat.

Agree, you need to take your time and really pay attention to edges/body lines, paint is very thin there and you will most likely go through.

 

[Turbo92PGT]

I just stayed at my work from 8am - 1:30AM wetsanding and buffing a two toned lincoln mark LT truck. The whole time i wasn't buffing, but from 2PM - 1:30AM I was. It was so much work. But looked amazing when we were done. Use some 2500 or 3000 grit paper, over the factory clearcoat. Wet it down with some water with a tiny bit of soap in it and wetsand. Then go over it with meguiars Heavy Cut cleaner (4) and then with a machine glaze or something and you should be good to go. Use a high speed buffer

 

[wms004]

$1200-1400 for a new paint job.. sorry dude

 

[Dark Knight GT]

I just stayed at my work from 8am - 1:30AM wetsanding and buffing a two toned lincoln mark LT truck. The whole time i wasn't buffing, but from 2PM - 1:30AM I was. It was so much work. But looked amazing when we were done. Use some 2500 or 3000 grit paper, over the factory clearcoat. Wet it down with some water with a tiny bit of soap in it and wetsand. Then go over it with meguiars Heavy Cut cleaner (4) and then with a machine glaze or something and you should be good to go. Use a high speed buffer

I'de try the suggestions given by this guy first. Chances are, you do need a new paint job, but who knows, you might get decent results by trying the above suggestions. I know its worth a shot to try to save yourself the 1500-2000 dollars for a new paint job. For the chips, some touch up paint my help. Apply it sparingly if you use it. Good luck and hope it all works well for you.

 

[Turbo92PGT]

Its worth a try dude! You really would be amazed what buffing can do! last night i decided to just quickly run the buffer over my trunk. WOW what a difference. The paint was turning white and scratched up. It was bad. Ran the buffer over it lightly with "swirl remover" night and day difference. I want to lightly wetsand and buff it really bad lol

Andy

 

[umachme]

I just stayed at my work from 8am - 1:30AM wetsanding and buffing a two toned lincoln mark LT truck. The whole time i wasn't buffing, but from 2PM - 1:30AM I was. It was so much work. But looked amazing when we were done. Use some 2500 or 3000 grit paper, over the factory clearcoat. Wet it down with some water with a tiny bit of soap in it and wetsand. Then go over it with meguiars Heavy Cut cleaner (4) and then with a machine glaze or something and you should be good to go. Use a high speed buffer

This is what I was going to tell you to do... If that doesnt work you will need a paint job... This will HELP! This works great on Factory ORANGE PEEL cars... Factory paint looks like ass... A good wet sand/buff makes a BIG difference... Adds depth!! Makes it look like 30coats of clear

 

[bertsbluegt]

So i was talking to a friend of mine who's working at a dealership and was asking about what they do for scratches and other paint defects on cars they see. The method they use is extreme (scrap the part be it a fender, hood, bumper, whatever, paint a new one to match it, and put that on. They do that for larger scratches and dents) but he said they polish/buff minor scratches. He said that they do it on ones like those that are on my car and said i should just polish and buff it and they'll be gone. So i went out, spent $20 or so on some stuff, and went to work on it today. Nothing changed, it looks no different. So my question is...is there a certain process you should go through to remove scratches and other blemishes and exactly what is Polishing and Buffing, and what are some good products to use? I was doing it by hand because i dont want to buy an orbital/rotary buffer because id probably ruin my paint beyond recognition. I spent about an hour reading up on autopia too and still am sorta in the dark as to what the difference between buffing and polishing is as well. So ANY help at all as to what i should do, if there even is anything i can do non-professionally to remove these blemishes or are they probably going to require professional help.
Hey I own a detail shop in atlanta and have been detailing for about seven years now. Those scratches from what I can see look like they cannot be buffed out. I have always told people and always heard that if you can catch your thumbnail in the scratch that it cant be buffed out. Basically that means that its all the way through the clear coat, so the car will probably have to be painted
I used the following:
http://www.autopia-carcare.com/vk-101.html
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v75/Dusstbuster/Meguiars.jpg

Pictures of Blemishes:

And yes it is dirty, and this is just 2 days after i did a full wash/clay/wax on it too. Lack of garage space sucks.

Hey I own a detail shop in atlanta and have been detailing for about seven years now. Those scratches from what I can see look like they cannot be buffed out. I have always told people and always heard that if you can catch your thumbnail in the scratch that it cant be buffed out. Basically that means that its all the way through the clear coat, so the car will probably have to be painted

 

[edubb11]

Maybe if you polished the body part out with a PC it might "hide" the blemishes a bit and look much better while you save up for paint work. Try Meguiars #80 and if that doesn't work you can try Meguiars #83 which is a bit more aggressive than #80. Follow that with your favorite wax and you'll be done. Both can be found online or locally if you have a car detailing products shop near you. Good luck!

edubb11

 

[mustangrmyk]

WTF happened anyway?