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During the time I was doing my engine & tras swap I had my car outside covered up with plastic. Now the paint has spots where the plastic did somthing to it. I had the car to a restorer about a seperate fiberglass issue and he said that the spots would not buff out and this is common when you cover a vette with plasitc. Has anyone heard of this before?
I do not have any experience like this, but I can easily see how a plastic tarp could cause permanent surface scarring. However, I can't imagine anything that would absorbed INTO a 2k clear coat. I am not certain that buffing would remove all stains. I could imagine stains that wouldn't buff out. Remember, most buffing is not abrasive and uses heat to kind of melt and mold the outter surface, not remove it like sanding.
Do you know what type of paint is on the car? If it is a 2 stage (base coat + clear coat) you should be able to easily wet sand the stain area (2000 grit is probably enough) to remove a slight layer and then buff back the shine. If these stains are all over the car, it would be a lot work. I wet sanded and buffed my car after painting this winter.
Yep, isn't it basically a mildew problem Wayne? The same thing used to happen a lot when folks were using those black bras in the 80s and left them on after a rain. The whole front end would get those gray and black "mildew" spots.
Didn't think the guy was really BS ing cause the guys got 28 C-1 in all states of condition from a 53 with 23,000 miles to some basket cases but I also didn't want to commit to a $5000 2month paint job with out exploring options. As for the paint on the car Isure that it has clear coats. What type of sander do you us or do you do it by hand?
Didn't think the guy was really BS ing cause the guys got 28 C-1 in all states of condition from a 53 with 23,000 miles to some basket cases but I also didn't want to commit to a $5000 2month paint job with out exploring options. As for the paint on the car Isure that it has clear coats. What type of sander do you us or do you do it by hand?
Wet sand by hand. Then power buff.
Get some second opinions on if it can be sanded out or not.
If wetsanding and buffing is not something you have done before then bring the car to a professional detailing shop, get their opinion and have them do the job for you. This will be money well spent and probably save you a new paint job. If not done properly it is amazingly easy to cut right through the clear coat.
Last edited by dannyman; Jun 4, 2008 at 09:04 PM.
Reason: sp
since I have some problems that will at some point require a compleate repaint I have nothnig to lose by trying to wet sand. I will have to do it myself since I live in small town USA and have no pro detail shops available.
This is a common problem. A few years ago I was looking for a 78-9 Corvette. A dealer had an original 18K mile black 78 that had to be repainted. It was stored with a cover that left white marks. He believed them to be mineral stains from water that collected under the cover. That water wouldn't have minerals as it is like distilled. He said they wouldn't sand or buff out, so they needed to repaint the car. It was too bad, because it was perfect otherwise and would have made a great survivor car.
BTW...that 78 L48 fully optioned car sold for $19K for those who keep knocking the prices of late C-3 cars.
This is a common problem. A few years ago I was looking for a 78-9 Corvette. A dealer had an original 18K mile black 78 that had to be repainted. It was stored with a cover that left white marks. He believed them to be mineral stains from water that collected under the cover. That water wouldn't have minerals as it is like distilled. He said they wouldn't sand or buff out, so they needed to repaint the car. It was too bad, because it was perfect otherwise and would have made a great survivor car.
BTW...that 78 L48 fully optioned car sold for $19K for those who keep knocking the prices of late C-3 cars.
In that example, the paint would have likely been lacquer. I can see that happening in lacquer, as it doen't harden; only the liquid carrier evaporates. I don't see that kind of stain, even mold, penetraing much beyond the surface of a 2K clear coat. I would not give up that easy. Assuming it is a clear coat, go to the auto paint store and buy some 2000 grit sand paper and pick a spot that is hard to see. Sand until the shine is gone and see if your stain disappears.
It takes quite a bit of sandiing with 2000 grit to go through clear coat.
In that example, the paint would have likely been lacquer. I can see that happening in lacquer, as it doen't harden; only the liquid carrier evaporates. I don't see that kind of stain, even mold, penetraing much beyond the surface of a 2K clear coat. I would not give up that easy. Assuming it is a clear coat, go to the auto paint store and buy some 2000 grit sand paper and pick a spot that is hard to see. Sand until the shine is gone and see if your stain disappears.
It takes quite a bit of sandiing with 2000 grit to go through clear coat.
I agree, clear coat doesn't stain, fiberglass car or steel. It's a two part epoxy. Try compound first then go to 2000 grit if necessary. Factory clear coat is thin but a re-paint you just don't know.