Can this be Buffed Out?

[Lazzman]

I did this about 7yrs ago to the paint on my '98 black ford Explorer.



They look like little white hairs on the paint.



At the time I was using an 8.5" 3m wool compounding pad on an orbital buffer, Yes I know, I did not know what I was doing at the time. I also used Meguires medium cut cleaner.



I have tried to get out the marks, but the most aggresive I have gone is a lake country orange pad and Menzerna Intensive polish on my Flex orbital. Did not do much to the marks, but the paint looks nice and shiney.



Not sure what I did to cause this or if it can be fixed, Advice is greatly appreciated.



Thanks

 

[smokinfastlegen]

If i remember right, thats a type of clear coat failure that can only be corrected with new paint.



Please correct me if i am wrong.

 

[ten39]

Had that on a black GM vehicle I bought new and owned for years. Those checks don't have anything to do with your treatment of the finish, it's just a form of clearcoat failure like others have said. In my experience, the marks were quite small and not noticeable unless viewing from <18" or so.



FWIW, the progression was quite slow, and the vehicle still looks good unless you're right on top of it (sold it to my neighbor so I see it often). Your tolerance just depends on how OCD you are about the vehicle, and you're willingness to spend the rather substantial sum of cash necessary for a quality re-paint.

 

[GeorgesBlazah]

Yup, def CC failure. My blazer has the same stuff.

 

[lasthope05]

That is crows feet. Like others said it is a form of clearcoat failure. The only correct for that is a repaint.

 

[JohnKleven]

You can't fix it, but you can try to clean the white dried compound out of the crows feet.





John

 

[Lazzman]

Thanks for the replies.... It was worth a shot.



How can the compound be cleaned out? I clay the truck every spring and no luck.

 

[CarCleanO]

I would use some isopropyl alcohol to get the compound out..



There's no real fixing crows feet.. I haven't had to deal with crows feet in a while, but if I recall correctly there's not really even an indentation in the clearcoat if you run your hands over it. If there isn't, don't bother trying this, but you might be able to take a black sharpie and mark it over the crows feet, and then polish it in with a buffer. It may fill it in, it may not. Furthermore it's only a temp fix... Best of luck to you though.

 

[Lazzman]

yeah, you cannot feel the defects, so I guess it is a done deal.



Going to trade the truck in anyway for a new one soon.



Thanks for the advice.