While digging my car out after a 16-inch snowfall, I did the unthinkable. I slipped a bit as I drew the shovel back out from under the car, which caused the edge of the shovel to graze the passenger-side front door. The damage: a vertical scratch about three-quarters of an inch long just below the door’s midpoint. (This happened no more than 15 seconds after I told myself that I was going to have to be extra careful, because someone had parked unnecessarily close to my passenger side, forcing me to shovel in a close-quarters situation.) Anyway, from what I can tell, the primer wasn’t penetrated. I’ve just got an almost straight line about the width of the stroke you'd make if you were using a felt-tip pen with a very fine point. (Fortunately, the shovel-to-car contact was gentle enough that no denting occurred.) I’ve touched up plenty of stone chips, but trying to render this scratch nearly invisible is going to be a bigger challenge.
A few questions:
-- How should I apply the touchup paint? I have a very fine artist’s-type paint brush that I’ve used with reasonable success before, but the Acura touchup paint I just bought comes in a bottle that enables you to apply with a brush or the point of the built-in touchup pen. (I obviously WON’T be using the brush that projects from the inside of the bottle cap.) I’ve never used a touchup pen before, so I could use recommendations from anyone with experience using both a fine brush and a touchup pen. Anyone else, feel free to chime in.
-- The even bigger question, I think, is what to do about leveling the paint
after it’s dried in the scratch. I do have the Langka “blob eliminator� and am reasonably satisfied with the results I’ve gotten when I used it on touched-up nicks and chips. This scratch being a much larger and more visible blemish, I’m willing to go to greater effort to get the best possible result. I think my alternative to Langka is to use the repair technique described in the Autopia guide. It’s obviously a much more involved process, and I’d have to buy some products. Beyond that, there’s trepidation about making sanding marks and the need to have faith that you'll eventually be able to polish them away. If anyone has used both Langka and the Autopia leveling technique, please relate your experiences and offer recommendations.
As I finish typing this, I realize I should have done a search of previous posts to see if my questions have been covered, but I’ll go ahead and submit this and hope for the best.
By the way, I notice that the Autopia instructions say not to attempt touchup painting unless the temperature is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Here in Massachusetts it’s supposed at least reach at least 50 the next couple of days -- a good 10 degrees above normal -- so I’m tempted to get some paint in the scratch before the next cold spell. Let me know if you think that would be a mistake.
Thanks in advance for any and all advice.
A few questions:
-- How should I apply the touchup paint? I have a very fine artist’s-type paint brush that I’ve used with reasonable success before, but the Acura touchup paint I just bought comes in a bottle that enables you to apply with a brush or the point of the built-in touchup pen. (I obviously WON’T be using the brush that projects from the inside of the bottle cap.) I’ve never used a touchup pen before, so I could use recommendations from anyone with experience using both a fine brush and a touchup pen. Anyone else, feel free to chime in.
-- The even bigger question, I think, is what to do about leveling the paint
after it’s dried in the scratch. I do have the Langka “blob eliminator� and am reasonably satisfied with the results I’ve gotten when I used it on touched-up nicks and chips. This scratch being a much larger and more visible blemish, I’m willing to go to greater effort to get the best possible result. I think my alternative to Langka is to use the repair technique described in the Autopia guide. It’s obviously a much more involved process, and I’d have to buy some products. Beyond that, there’s trepidation about making sanding marks and the need to have faith that you'll eventually be able to polish them away. If anyone has used both Langka and the Autopia leveling technique, please relate your experiences and offer recommendations.
As I finish typing this, I realize I should have done a search of previous posts to see if my questions have been covered, but I’ll go ahead and submit this and hope for the best.
By the way, I notice that the Autopia instructions say not to attempt touchup painting unless the temperature is at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Here in Massachusetts it’s supposed at least reach at least 50 the next couple of days -- a good 10 degrees above normal -- so I’m tempted to get some paint in the scratch before the next cold spell. Let me know if you think that would be a mistake.
Thanks in advance for any and all advice.