clay bar...polishing compound... tips

[81SPIDERMATT]

looking to revive dull paint.... someday body and paint but until then??????? 81 spider... it has been painted over original color... red but a different red... dull dirty orange peel paint job... never will it come back to a show quality paint job... but i believe there is still some shine in there somewhere.... i have a decent buffer... willing to spend some time and elbow grease.... looking for real world tips... thanks

edit ..got freind that says my paint is not oxidiized ..just dull and dirty

[4uall]

this was my result within a few minutes...................keep in mind my paint is sh*t


Before Clay Bar by itzebtze, on Flickr


After Clay Bar by itzebtze, on Flickr

there was an amazing post of a guy who spent 10 hrs with a porter cable

http://forum.fiatspider.com/f08/viewtop ... er#p127088

[wikkid]

When you say buffer, do you mean a DA buffer or a rotary buffer? Rotary buffers can inflict bad paint damage unless you are experienced.
You should stick to the DA (dual action) buffer, like the porter cable 7424xp. I would use the "latest and greatest" products: the Meguiars DA microfiber system, which consists of two microfiber pad types and two different compounds, the 300 for cutting and the 301 for polishing. They sell the pads, backing plate and compounds as aKIT.

Awesome review with how-to HERE.
And another reviewwith helpful info if you want/need to get more refined than just using the Meguiars full system:

Wash and clay first, of course, and follow the buffing with either wax or sealant of your choice.

We want to see before's and afters!!!

[divace73]

I love the clay bar, leaves my cars nice and smooth, wishh I'd have discovered them sooner...

[81SPIDERMATT]

ok got the clay bar kit..with a good car wash soap... ordered maguires kit as mentioned..looks like what i was looking for.. my decent polisher , after research , is a paint eating 10 inch spinning mess maker.... saving up for a good DA polisher with adjustable speeds..... thanks for the tips ... and i will definately keep you posted and do some before and after pics

do you think the maguires kit will affect my pin striping at all?

[wikkid]

I think the Porter Cable is a good buy for a DA machine.
Meguiars sells one, as does Griot's Garage. I get a lot of info from autogeek, from their forum.

As to the pinstriping, if you are really serious about it, then tape over it right to the edge, compound up to the tape, then tape over the pinstripes again, right up to the other side of the stripes and buff. Then remove the tape and hand-buff with compound carefully at the striping. You are probably right to be cautious with the stripes, especially with the first, more aggressive compound and pad.

[Raze]

Really any DA buffer with good pads will do. The critical part is cleaning/prep so clean, clean, clean, then claybar, then polish. I personally like Meguires ultimate compound as it seems to be less abrasive so I can really achieve exactly the level I want without worrying I'm going to start damaging things. Yes it will take several applications on heavily swirled/scratched paint, but you can manage the transitions much better. Also, taping your edges is key if you don't want to strip paint in thin areas. the narrow blue masking painter's tape is usually more than sufficient...

[FiatBen]

Read a long article online recently while researching using clay bars. The guy worked for Meguiars maybe? Or not, don't recall. I do know that he cleaned up old finishes as part of his livelyhood where he worked. He gave a great explanation about single layer paints on old cars versus the newer finishes and cleaning regular paint versus metal flake. I was really impressed with what he wrote about not using any abrasives on these old finishes because they are thin to begin with. He had a lot to say about Meguiar's #7 which rejuvenated the paint be restoring the oils that have dried out over the decades. He also included using a clay bar. The whole thing had great info on both products (he used several different brands depending on what stage of the process he was in) and techniques. I'll try to find it again. If I do, I'll edit this to include it.

[wikkid]

FiatBen, Here it is, from Autogeek forums. Really interesting read, and one I want to try out on my metallic blue, old/abused finish. Even though it needs a new paint job, I want to experiment on the old, original paint to see how it goes.

[81SPIDERMATT]

OK AND WE ARE BACK.... update.... sold the maguires kit that i had purchased to someone with a car that would benefit from it more than mine.... never got a polisher... lent my 10 inch mess maker to a friend and his dog ate it.... have made the decision... based on my current paint job (poor and incomplete.. scratches dings holidays ..its just bad) to go old school and do the whole thing by hand... under the premise that it cant look any worse...

clay bar.... polishing compound ... then wax ...



here are some before.... in some you can see scratches and dings.... not even gonna post the ones where after i removed my bumpers you can see the old original red under this color because they were to lazy to bend down and shoot behind the rubber ends.... pics are attempting to show dullness of the paint...









now i have spent most of the morning with the clay bar... and i have to report that while the "feeling of the paint" is considerably smoother to the touch... there was little to no difference in the shine or lack of it.... however i feel that it was a needed step none the less.....

and then came the polishing compound OMG ... now i have only done a small spot for testing how much ... how hard to push.. etc.... what a huge difference...i can already tell i need to go on a diet just by the reflection in that spot...winter weight has become a yearly thing.... gonna make you wait to see till it is all done but i am already kicking myself.... i waited till i thought i had to have all the best of the best ... tools and supplies... silly me... got a wild hair and dropped about 40 bucks at wally world.... baby girl is supplying old cloth diapers ... i supply sweat and grinning ...

[4uall]

GIVE IT TO US NOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!

[81SPIDERMATT]

teaser shot for ya ... trunk... took off the rack to make it easier .... this is just after the polishing compound.... money shot with wax and all will be a couple of days......



crappy orange peel paint job becomes more apparent the shinier it gets .... but compared to what i started with ... and how long i have been putting it off... i am one happy camper

[81SPIDERMATT]

ok wanting to share.... instructions on the polishing compound stated apply with terry towel or foam applicator pad.... while the pad seems to use less product it is difficult to push hard enough to be effective and wipe down after pad is hard... meaning a lot of pressure was required.... using the towel it was evident that more of the paint was being removed... more product required and smaller sections was the key for me.... also medium pressure (for my situation) required three applications to get the desired result....then i tried more product and rubbing longer...not the best as the towel would saturate with lifted paint and become useless... so i went ahead and tried a spot with pressure just short of denting the panels... viola ... so much better and wipe down was a lot easier.... gonna need another bottle ..... anxious to finish but still looking like a few days work

[sptcoupe]

I posted this tip some time ago, but a clay bar is also a great way to clean the glaze off of old window glass when nothing else works. Use the bar just as you would on paint.

[81SPIDERMATT]

yeah for me.....