Deep Scratch Repair

HondaMan

HondaMan

2004 Civic EX magnesium
My brother's car got a nasty scratch from our nephew who brushed/fell into the rear passenger door with the handle end of his bicycle. He wasn't going fast -- just peddling slowly to get into the garage -- but he was between cars and he's young and....well, you know the rest.

Anyway, my brother's brand-new Honda Accord EX got 1 pretty tough scratch about 3-4 inches long along with a couple of smaller nicks near the biggie. All he did so far was wash and/or wax it and nothing happened. With time passing, he's not as excorcised about it but I was wondering if anybody had any thoughts on what might be worth trying that will absolutely not do more damage to the scratch area or the surrounding door. .

From what I've read here so far, maybe SSR1 would do the trick? Could I apply that just to the door area, without doing any other steps (clean, sealant, chemical wash, wax, etc) either before or after?

Thanks for any suggestions.
 
It depends how deep the scratch is - ssr1 will proabably not do the trick. Can you feel the scratch with your fingernail?
 
Good question...in the immediate (ahem!) "coverup", I think I may have touched it and it was more of a scratch you see but can't feel. But I don't think it went down to the paint area; the bicycle handle that scratched it was I believe hard plastic, not a metal edge or anything like that. Could be wrong, but doubt it.

I could ask my brother tonite to run his finger over it and/or maybe shoot me a digital picture. If I can figure out how to post it, I'll do it.
 
Right now, good old fashioned elbow grease!

Why? For such a small area, is the DA really necessary?

FWIW, I was thinking of getting that DA that was listed on PAC and someone linked; I think it's the 7624 or something like that? 6" rotors?

What would you use that for -- final waxing, applying SSR's, etc?
Someone told me that applying SSR's by hand is tough and takes along time and that a DA is perfect for that -- true? How much time are we talking to SSR a car by hand vs. by DA?
 
If you are just trying to remove a single scratch ... working by hand will not reguire that much of an effort. That is if the scratch can be removed with a polish. I would start out with SSR2 and a cotton terry towel ... gentle pressure. If you do not have SSR 2 or 2.5, go to a local store and purchase some Meguiars Scratch X ... that should also work. If the scratch has gone through the clear, you will not be able to remove it but through polishing you should be able ti hide it a little.
Good Luck ....
 
Thanks Kim....again, on SSR'ing a whole car (say SSR1 or another light abrasive): is it tough and long to do it by hand? How much time would I save if I bought that 6" rotor DA?

And can that DA be used for other steps on the car?
 
I can be done but you will develop some sore arms and it will take a while.
Using the PC will save a lot of time and yes it can be used for polishing with many different abrasive levels of polish or Swirl removers. It can also be used to apply sealants like UPP, EX, NXT or others as well as carnuba wax. It is a definite time saver. There are a lot of threads on DC about the PC so do some searching and settle in for at least a weeks worth of information.
 
Well.....I was thinking of going with the Porter Cable 7424, just wasn't sure if the pads/counterweights it comes with were sufficient or if I needed to buy extras of the same or different sizes/type.

Maybe I'll buy everything but the PC 7424 and do everything by hand the 1st time. I thought the PC 7424 was no-can-do-wrong, but if you think I need to wait a week, then I guess it's back to thread reading and posting.
 
You don't need to wait a week ... all I was saying is there is a lot of information here about the PC ...
Personally If you have the money to spend, you cannot go wrong buying a PC ...
(I might have exagerated just a little about the week) ... Sorry.
 
Understood....let me ask you....the link above that one of the posters gave me to buy the PC 7424. The price is GREAT (relative to other sites), but do I need special pads or weights? My car's a 2004 Honda Civic EX....I don't know which pads to buy (5" or 6") or what types, ditto the counterweights.
 
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