What can be done about this?

D

Dzaccord

New member
I heard that this board was GREAT for cosmetic and detailing questions. I have one that I'd appreciate your help on. I plan on purchasing a carbon fiber hood for cheap that has oxidation and it looks like the clear coat is starting to peel off. I was told that 3M Marine Fiberglass Restorer and Wax would help or TR3 Resin Glaze would work. If those didn't work then the hood would need to be wetsanded and clear coated. What do you guys think should be done about this:

wMTE0MTA2NTZzNDEzZGZkMzF5NTQx.jpg




wMTE0MTA2NjZzNDEzZGZkMzF5NTQx.jpg




wMTE0MTA2NzZzNDEzZGZkMzF5NTQx.jpg




Thanks.
 
Uh that looks like an example of "that's what happens when you wait until it's too late". It looks to me like the clearcoat is shot. How old is the CF hood?



When you don't wax the paint, damage occurs. It's much easier/cheaper in the long run to maintain your paint rather than leaving it unprotected and fixing the damage later.



I don't know anything about wetsanding CF, so I won't offer any advice in that respect.
 
White95Max said:
Uh that looks like an example of "that's what happens when you wait until it's too late". It looks to me like the clearcoat is shot. How old is the CF hood?



When you don't wax the paint, damage occurs. It's much easier/cheaper in the long run to maintain your paint rather than leaving it unprotected and fixing the damage later.



I don't know anything about wetsanding CF, so I won't offer any advice in that respect.
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I am with White95Max, that looks like you are too late. sorry to be the bearer of bad news. on the bright side, once you get it repaired you will have all the knowledge to keep it that way a long time.
 
flatstick said:
I am with White95Max, that looks like you are too late. sorry to be the bearer of bad news. on the bright side, once you get it repaired you will have all the knowledge to keep it that way a long time.
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So does is look like the carbon is ok. I'm getting a pretty good deal on this hood. Should I just wetsand the remaining clear off and have it recleared or should I let a paint shop take care of it all? This isn't my hood, yet. I just would like to know how much work would need to be done before I agreed to buy the hood.



Thanks for your help.
 
IDK, that looks pretty nasty on the front and the passenger side. I guess you'd have to use a cleaner like Klasse AIO to see whether it could be restored to its original appearance. Since you'd be sanding down to the carbon weave, you should know what happens to the actual carbon fiber when sandpaper hits it. I have no idea, so maybe someone else can chime in about that.
 
aren't CF hoods normally gel coated rather than clear coated? Would putting a conventional clearcoat over the gel coating cause any problems or would you have to sand off all of the original coating before you clear coated it?
 
Dzaccord said:
So does is look like the carbon is ok. I'm getting a pretty good deal on this hood. Should I just wetsand the remaining clear off and have it recleared or should I let a paint shop take care of it all? This isn't my hood, yet. I just would like to know how much work would need to be done before I agreed to buy the hood.



Thanks for your help.
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To be honest I would take it to a reputable auto body shop and get a quote. looks like the protective coating is gone and the original paint may be compromised. this is just my take on it, I could be wrong. talk to a couple of body shops that do quality work and see what they say before buying it. would not want to see you get stuck with a huge repair bill after you buy it.
 
If any of the clear is completely worn off then you could have some problems. If any water gets into the CF that is not good. You got to be very careful when sanding CF as it puts off some very nasty dust. Looks like a few of the areas have already been repaired. They are never going to look good again when it cleared as you will see the repair. My advise is to walk away, unless its free of course. Maybe you can call some paint shops and see if they deal with CF, if so send them the pics and see what they say.
 
If you end up buying a new CF hood, be sure to maintain it so that you won't have one that looks like that in the future.



Prevention is easier than repair.
 
it's hard to tell whether or not that is the gelcoat or a clearcoat failing. carbon fiber has a resin coat on top of it already. the resin is what makes it rigid (like fiberglass). otherwise it would just be a black floppy cloth. that hood looks repairable as long as that peeling isn't going down to the fiber. it would just have to be sanded down and re-cleared. he might have had the hood clear-coated with lousy quality clear coat. hard to say without seeing it in person.



the other thing is, if you're really buying it for weight savings it can always be painted. unless you're really only buying it for the bling factor, it would make a fine hood to save a pretty significant bit of weight.
 
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