Urgent! help needed!

B

BlkEscapeMike

New member
Hey everyone,



I tried fixing a chip/scratch in my paint and ran into some trouble. First, I went at it with Langka...it's crap I hate it. As of now I believe it was a waste of my money, but I will give it another shot at some other time.



On to my problem...I painted with touch up paint, and decided to go after it with 2000 grit sandpaper. This seemed to be doing the trick. I kept sanding, and sanding... finally it seemed even but when I polished the paint looked lumpy yet glossy. So I went to some more sanding....I eventually got what appears to be an island around the area needing repair. The area is definitely not even, but the more I sand the larger it gets.



I don't think I've gone through the clear since the paint doesn't come onto the buffing towel or pad when i tried it out. Any suggestions how to get this area even.



I tried taking pictures but my car is like a mirror thanks to you guys and you can't really see anything except a reflection of my house!



My biggest fear is that I went through the clear but I really doubt it....maybe I need finer sandpaper?
 
EEEK!! You used 1500 grit??? Kinda abrasive for touch up work, don't ya think? I wouldn't use anything harsher than 2000 grit for that, but I'm an amature. Maybe 1500 is the grit you are supposed to use. I would think that it would take off too much clear too fast. With something like 2500 or 2000 grit you can work it down much slower and check your work. 1500 would probably have done the job in 2 strokes and then left you some nice marks to try and polish out.
 
Ok so do you think I should go over it with some 2500, 2000? Maybe that will even out the clear....it honestly seems like the clear is uneven...it's wierd. I just don't want to make it worse than it already is (I guess thats a given)...
 
Is it on a flat area of the hood or a curved part? I've screwed up touch up jobs badly enough in the past that it was easier to just break out the knife and cut it all out and start over with a bigger area. I've gotten better at it as I learned that patience is the key. Working on flat areas is sometimes harder for me than working on a curved area like on the bumper or something. Are you using a sanding block behind the paper? I'm just probing to see if I can figure out what the damage looks like.
 
I think the problem might be that you're not using a stiff sanding block of some kind. I think this is why Meguiar's invented those Unigrit block things. If you just use your fingers with the paper you'll be sanding everything down, and not just the blob... I think. :p
 
Hey!



Brian (4DSC) is right, you should be using a block, like Meguiar's Unigrit Sanding Block in a 2500 or even 3000 grit. I personally use the 3000 grit block and love it! By hand, you are sanding way too much area and are risking sanding down the clear (it does not take much to do that either!!:shocked ).





Can you post some pics of the damage in question? Place a towel or another object beside the damage so the camera has something to focus on. Maybe try it with the Macro setting and the flash set to -1.5.



Good Luck!



Tim
 
Where can i locally find a unigrit block? NAPA?



How can I make sure I didn't go straight through my clear? This is what worries me the most...because if I didn't I know it can pretty much be fixed.



I'm working on the pictures...batteries died and are recharging...should be up in half an hour.
 
10947scratch_repair.jpg
 
Let me guess, the more you sand, the larger the circle gets?



I am afraid to tell you this and I hope that I am wrong, but I think you have gone through the clear coat. The clear coat is only 1.5 mils thick and you are not suppose to go below .3 mils of the 1.5.

Wet sanding can very very dangerous. I only use 2500 or 3000 grit on modern clear coats with only 10 - 15 passes with the paper and block.



I hope that others will chime in on this one. But sorry to say, I think you have gone through.



Sorry Bud!:(



Tim
 
The more I sand the larger it gets...correct. When i polish the area color does not come off onto the towel/pad though.



Ouch...could i perhaps paint over where I went through the clear coat and even it out with the proper grit?



Is there such a thing as touch up clear coat?
 
I guess no one here can really provide much help at this point...I will go to a pro body shop tomorrow and see what they tell me.



Hopefully I didn't go through the clear and need a finer grit sandpaper to even out the area...
 
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