Paint Restoration

[0660harley]

Anyone have any DIY tips for restoring paint? I would like to try restoring the paint on my truck myself, but fear doing more damage then good if I try anything too agressive. I claybar'd and cleaner waxed the whole truck which made a big improvement, but the truck was previously used as a work truck and has minor clear coat scratches as well as water etching in the paint/clearcoat. I have an orbital buffer and sander/polisher. Thank you in advance for your help!

David

[firemb]

Bump. I would like some info on this as well.

[Dave Thompson]

You can LIGHTLY sand the surface with some 2000 grit sand paper and then buff to a shine with your orbital buffer. If you have never buffed on a car or truck I would suggest finding someone that has. If you want to do, start out with you buffer on the slowest speed you have and go slowly. You can destroy your paint very quickly. Be very careful around edges, lay some masking tape over them to protect them. You may check around some detail shops to see what they would charge. You would be amazed what some of them can do.

[0660harley]

Originally Posted by Dave Thompson

You can LIGHTLY sand the surface with some 2000 grit sand paper and then buff to a shine with your orbital buffer. If you have never buffed on a car or truck I would suggest finding someone that has. If you want to do, start out with you buffer on the slowest speed you have and go slowly. You can destroy your paint very quickly. Be very careful around edges, lay some masking tape over them to protect them. You may check around some detail shops to see what they would charge. You would be amazed what some of them can do.

I'm one of those that has to learn my lesson the hard way. Within reason, I hate paying someone else to do something I think I could do just as well or better myself. That being said, over the years I've learned to ask for help or get help sooner rather then later as I also hate spending double/triple in the end by trying to be cheap in the begining. I hate to say it, but this may be one of those scenerio's where I have to give in and let someone else do it. Unless........................someone has some good suggestions.

edit: without some coaching I would cringe at the thought of using, even a high grit, sandpaper. So, if you think that's my only option to restore the clear then I guess I'd need to give in.

[boomboom]

Let someone else do the hard work and you just enjoy the waxing once a year to keep it up. Pride of ownership without messing things up

[0660harley]

Originally Posted by boomboom

Let someone else do the hard work and you just enjoy the waxing once a year to keep it up. Pride of ownership without messing things up

Prolly the right thing to do. I'm still all ears though.

[brc51m]

If you do attempt the 2000 grit sandpaper be sure to have a bowl of water with a little bit of dishwashing soap. Dip the sand paper in and it will help the paper glide across the surface a lot easier. I personally wouldnt attempt it with the use of an electric sander I would do it by hand.

[ACD2]

If the scratches are down to base coat, you wont be able to remove them. Filling them and then sanding them smooth may work, depending on the base coat, a metallic base will show flaws more than a solid base. Wet sanding inst that hard to do, the idea is to smooth out the blemishes and give the surface multiple directions for the light to hit it so when you polish it, you are less likely to see any scratches. If you want to practice, start up on the roof at the back of the cab to get the technique down, that way if you f it up, no one will see it. Just remember to use light pressure and only go so far as to smooth out the surface, and never let it get dry on you, always work it wet, Its OK if the residue dries when you are finished with an area, it will wash right off. You can polish it by hand if the buffer scares you, and you probably wont need to do the entire truck to make it look good. If its really bad where polishing wont help, then a good scuffing with 3m pads and wax/grease remover will prep the surface for a recoat of clear. As long as the base coat isn't scratched, then a fresh coat of clear can go a long way and is not that expensive as long as the prep work is good. Prep is the most expensive part.