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My hood, only my hood, has a hazy film (?) on most of it. I waxed my car a while back, and honestly did notice this since, just never looked into any assistance in fixing it.
It's time. Is this something I can do with the Meguiar's Ultimate Compound I have in my garage? I really can't afford nor would know or trust where locally to get professional help. <br > <br >
That looks like normal wear and tear on the paint surface, maybe fade of the clear (it's the hottest surface) with fine surface scratches. Machine rubbing compound will take off a light layer of clear, along with the scratches and fade, which should be fine unless it's been done excessively prior, in which case you could get into the color coat. That's not normal, there's ample clear in a factory coat. Follow that up with swirl remover, that should bring it much better. If you don't have a gentle buffer, just try a small circle by hand, maybe 9-12 inches. Stay off the edges! If you have deep scratches or damage, you could wet sand it with a soft block and some 1500 wet or dry paper. All this is available at any auto paint supply store, along with good advice, and this is exactly what the so called "professionals" are going to do. I'm more persnickety than they can afford to be, so do ALL that myself.
I've done quite a bit of buffing and repair on our 04 medium spiral gray...got a nice variable speed buffer and a soft foam pad...used some fine cut compound...then buff and polish...worked great to get rid of ghost shadow after removing the rear emblem ... And repairing chips on hood
Last edited by 73Corvette; 06-03-2016 at 10:07 PM.
If I did any sanding on an unknown clearcoat, I wouldn't start with 1500 grit. I'd start with 4000 wet/dry. 'Roll' the paper in half so the abrasive side faces itself, and with two hands, make the sandpaper sand itself to knock off the sharpest peaks; brand new fresh sandpaper can still be very sharp, even at 4000 grit. Don't forget to knock down the grit in the middle where the paper 'rolls' at the half-way point. T
hen I'd use this "worn" paper wet and see how it does. You can always progress to courser grits--2000, 1500, 1000, but you shouldn't have to. Substitute elbow grease for speed and you'll probably have enough built-in 'caution' not to cut through the clearcoat to the color.
Push the paper across; keep the surface wet... don't sand the car. Let the paper do the work; pressure only leaves deep scratches. You want a uniformly sanded surface, not one with lines where the odd sharp grit or extra heavy pressure "scars" the clear.
Also, yours is a dark color. It's gonna show swirls and polishing marks with easy distinction and casual inspection. There are many brands of swirl removers available. Hand or machine versions will both do the job; machine is much faster and can be more convenient, but you'll have to have a little experience in order to learn how to let the (dual-action) buffer do all the work. Pressure isn't needed nor desired. Stay away from body lines and edges.
Don't use a single-action polisher unless you've had a LOT of experience with them. I think your photo shows that corn starch on a clean lamb's wool pad can take those marks out; it's an ancient trick requiring a little experience handling a buffer. Extremely light buffer pressure (not even the buffer's own total weight) is required for this to be effective. Glaze with a soft cloth when done, and wax after that.
My hood, only my hood, has a hazy film (?) on most of it. I waxed my car a while back, and honestly did notice this since, just never looked into any assistance in fixing it.
It's time. Is this something I can do with the Meguiar's Ultimate Compound I have in my garage? I really can't afford nor would know or trust where locally to get professional help. <br > <br >
i have the same problem on my black vert but what does help is the maguiars ultimate compound and the the cleaner wax. I stopped using the gold class wax, just too abrasive and leaves swirl marks.
those are the best to steps products to use. Do not rely on just the ultimate compound as I would consider it a cleaner/stripper
My hood, only my hood, has a hazy film (?) on most of it. I waxed my car a while back, and honestly did notice this since, just never looked into any assistance in fixing it.
It's time. Is this something I can do with the Meguiar's Ultimate Compound I have in my garage? I really can't afford nor would know or trust where locally to get professional help. <br > <br >
btw as i mentionted with those 2 products, they can be done by hand and no need to sand or anything. Easy fix and if you lived close by then
i'd definitely would of done it for free
If I did any sanding on an unknown clearcoat, I wouldn't start with 1500 grit. I'd start with 4000 wet/dry. 'Roll' the paper in half so the abrasive side faces itself, and with two hands, make the sandpaper sand itself to knock off the sharpest peaks; brand new fresh sandpaper can still be very sharp, even at 4000 grit. Don't forget to knock down the grit in the middle where the paper 'rolls' at the half-way point. T
hen I'd use this "worn" paper wet and see how it does. You can always progress to courser grits--2000, 1500, 1000, but you shouldn't have to. Substitute elbow grease for speed and you'll probably have enough built-in 'caution' not to cut through the clearcoat to the color.
Push the paper across; keep the surface wet... don't sand the car. Let the paper do the work; pressure only leaves deep scratches. You want a uniformly sanded surface, not one with lines where the odd sharp grit or extra heavy pressure "scars" the clear.
4000 grit is paranoid conservative, and he's going to spend HOURS making no progress. OP, go to an auto paint store and ask the guys who sell product all day long, find an old timer. 1500 is VERY conservative, graduate to machine compound--which is finer because machines work much faster, then finally swirl remover. If you want to be extra conservative, skip wet sanding all together. Or, stop by a reputable body shop and ask EXACTLY how they would restore the finish. This isn't brain surgery. I've spent literally thousands of hours on painting/restoring Corvettes and am telling you what works. If the hood has never been re-sprayed there is plenty of clear to safely work with. I'm refinishing a racing hood for my son now, and the "professional" who painted it originally skimped so badly on the edges and vents that wet sanding IMMEDIATELY starts bleeding color. If that happens to you, stop and wait to do a repaint when the timing is right. Luckily, we are changing color so it doesn't matter, but it's very telling about how an $1,800 hood for a street Boss302 is treated by a body shop.
First, I would learn how to properly wash/wax your car. Whoever has been washing that for the life of the vehicle doesn't know what they are doing. If you don't properly wash/wax then the problem will just reappear down the road. Once that step is down just shell out the money for a pro to do it. It would be cheaper than buying all the products/tools to do it properly (buffing machine, compound, pads, etc.)
Sure you could use sandpaper but you have a chance of doing more damage if you don't know what you're doing and could easily go through your clear. Then you're into a new paint job. If you're just wanting your hood done I'm sure a detailer would only charge a hundred or two to do it. If you wanted to buy a porter cable, pads, and compound you're already up to $2-300.
4000 grit is paranoid conservative, and he's going to spend HOURS making no progress. OP, go to an auto paint store and ask the guys who sell product all day long, find an old timer. 1500 is VERY conservative, graduate to machine compound--which is finer because machines work much faster, then finally swirl remover. If you want to be extra conservative, skip wet sanding all together. Or, stop by a reputable body shop and ask EXACTLY how they would restore the finish. This isn't brain surgery. I've spent literally thousands of hours on painting/restoring Corvettes and am telling you what works. If the hood has never been re-sprayed there is plenty of clear to safely work with. I'm refinishing a racing hood for my son now, and the "professional" who painted it originally skimped so badly on the edges and vents that wet sanding IMMEDIATELY starts bleeding color. If that happens to you, stop and wait to do a repaint when the timing is right. Luckily, we are changing color so it doesn't matter, but it's very telling about how an $1,800 hood for a street Boss302 is treated by a body shop.
4000 grit IS paranoid conservative, but look at the OP's post...
Originally Posted by grantv
My hood, only my hood, has a hazy film (?) on most of it. I waxed my car a while back, and honestly did notice this since, just never looked into any assistance in fixing it.
It's time. Is this something I can do with the Meguiar's Ultimate Compound I have in my garage? I really can't afford nor would know or trust where locally to get professional help.
The nature of his questions shows he has no experience. In my opinion, guiding someone in an endeavor in which they're completely inexperienced should call for a 'firm' degree of paranoia, especially when we're not gonna be there to witness and coach his efforts live. As I implied, if he gets comfortable with the process at 4000 grit, he could move down to 2000, 1500, and even 1000 grit.
I, too, have "thousands of hours painting and restoring" paint finishes. My only qualifications are 12 years as a journeyman professional auto painter, and 4 years as a trade school instructor in auto painting. (I did surprise myself by computing that my own labor time as a journeyman came to almost 25,000 hours.) Supposedly, one of my restorations (which was my only [indirect] submission), a '65 Corvette, took 2nd place at the 1987 Oakland Roadster Show. At least, that's what the owner told me. The owner said we missed first place because he'd installed an aftermarket (reversed) emblem on the car and didn't notice his error.
1500 IS conservative, if one is standing there coaching someone who is working on an OEM finish of known quantity... that is to say, a completely virgin, untreated clearcoat. But we don't know the hood's history and the OP says he "can't afford" to get professional help, which precludes repairing any self-inflicted 'errors'. I never had to "knock off the nibs" on my clearcoats with anything courser than 2000 grit. In those days, 4000 didn't exist; even 1500 was rarely available. IF the OP's clearcoat is OEM, "used" 2000 grit should be as much as he needs; he's not trying to smooth out orange peel.
The clerks behind the counter at an auto paint store are generally completely without practical painting experience. I'm an "old-timer" with a slight experience guiding neophytes on their first endeavors priming, painting, and polishing. If I was an "old-timer" behind the counter, I'd suggest machine buffing with a light compound, a swirl remover, some corn starch, and then a glaze. But I'm thinkin... single-orbiting 2600rpm Chicago Pneumatic polisher, because I'm a pro. If I don't tell the customer that, there's no telling what he'd do with 20 seconds of "information". Same for a body shop. Talkin' him through it ain't doin'. Our own experiences come with a perspective of understanding about grit sharpness, pressure, lubricity, the desired finish, and maybe even cross-brand product knowledge. If we don't advise him, the OP could use a buffer/polisher that doesn't dual-orbit. I think there are too many 'unsupervised' unknowns to start him off with 1500 and/or advice to use a "machine polisher" without even instructing him that there are different (dual-orbiting) models (suitable for hobbyists) that a pro wouldn't need nor want to use.
As you said,
... the "professional" who painted it originally skimped so badly on the edges and vents that wet sanding IMMEDIATELY starts bleeding color. ...
I reactions would be "I wasn't there", but maybe the "professional" wet-sanded the edges before you did. In ANY case, I would wonder why anyone would wet sand the edges at any time as a matter of course. The only reason to get on the edge would be to knock off lint or dirt in spots; even the smoothest finish wouldn't require edge sanding. And of course, you had the luxury of 'going for it' because you intended to repaint; and could afford it.
Last edited by dork; 06-03-2016 at 09:37 AM.
Reason: correct a typo
[QUOTE=Nurburgring;1592346603]... Wet sanding is your absolute last resort.
Absolutely dead nuts on.
When tackling something like this (or any paint imperfection), one should start with the best polish (least abrasive) and graduate "in reverse" through the glazes, to the swirl removers to the compounds to be sure that the mildest treatment is tried first. Only when heavy duty rubbing compound fails should one resort to sanding, and then from finest wet sandpaper to courser versions in minimal steps just like the graduating process used with the polishes/glazes/compounds.
Maybe I should she'd some light on this, as in daylight (sorry for the pun).
First off, serious thanks to all replies thus far, particularly considering the poor garage pics. Here's one outside this morning. I'm noticing that those swirl marks extended on my 3M film as well. This makes me think I may have simply done a horrible wax job?? Perhaps those streaks are residual from my work. I do not recall seeing any streaks or swirl marks prior to waxing...
Thanks tons guys.
BTW, it's not nearly as bad in person, camera really exaggerates issue. <br >
It could be several things. Improper washing, improper drying, improper waxing, etc.
Ideally you want two (or three) buckets, a grit guard in each bucket, and three wash mitts. One bucket is for clean soap/water, the other is a rinse bucket. The grit guards allow the dirt from your car to drop to the bottom of the bucket but not come back up as you bring your mitt in and out of the bucket. One mitt is for the top half of the car, one for the bottom half, and one for the wheels. Do not reuse a mitt or water from the wheels on your paint.
The rinse bucket is just that, for rinsing your mitt after each section. You scrape the mitt on the grit guard to get any stubborn dirt off.
When drying make sure you're using a good quality microfiber towel that is clean or a 100% cotton white towel. You will want several of these. I use 4 good sized microfiber towels for my Vette. If one is getting too wet I get a dry one. This helps prevent you from using too much pressure to dry off your vehicle, thus inhibiting scratches.
When it comes to the waxing (which it does look like that's what caused your scratches based on the pattern) again, make sure you're using a clean and not ratty microfiber or 100% cotton applicator. You also need to make sure you're working in a garage so that dust, pollen, etc. can't get on the surface as easy as you're waxing. Also make sure the wax you're using doesn't contain abrasives.
That's just a basic run down without knowing all the different variables it's hard to pinpoint one thing but based on what I can see it looks like the car was dusty and wax was applied spreading the dust around and causing all those marks. I'm sure others will chime in with their ideas/suggestions. Good luck!
Edit: Also, if a mitt, towel, or applicator touches the ground it goes in the garbage immediately.
Maybe I should she'd some light on this, as in daylight (sorry for the pun).
First off, serious thanks to all replies thus far, particularly considering the poor garage pics. Here's one outside this morning. I'm noticing that those swirl marks extended on my 3M film as well. This makes me think I may have simply done a horrible wax job?? Perhaps those streaks are residual from my work. I do not recall seeing any streaks or swirl marks prior to waxing...
Thanks tons guys.
BTW, it's not nearly as bad in person, camera really exaggerates issue. <br >
May as well dump the film on the hood and leave it on the bumper. Idk if you need any special cleaner on the film but I wouldn't wax it, definitely will have a major wax build up once you take the 3m off.
Look like you have major swirl marks. if you do it all by hand, it will take a couple of washes and compound / wax treatment to fix it.
I wish you lived closed by so I can do it for you.
May as well dump the film on the hood and leave it on the bumper. Idk if you need any special cleaner on the film but I wouldn't wax it, definitely will have a major wax build up once you take the 3m off.
Look like you have major swirl marks. if you do it all by hand, it will take a couple of washes and compound / wax treatment to fix it.
I wish you lived closed by so I can do it for you.
Just an FYI for those with 3M bras who want to remove..
After my lunch time 15 minute walk, I thought I'd try a small piece of film removal from the nose corner of the front. Damn, unsure if it's the temp (it's currently bang-on 90.0F today in Kelowna, supposed to hit 97), or maybe it's always that way, but it came off with ease. Only stuff left is outer perimeter wax build-up, no glue remnant at all.
The entire 3M bra will be removed afternoon coffees and lunches this week.
Always hated that thing. Any dust when car is clean, and that thing sticks out like, well, like a dusty 3M bra... Kelowna is a pretty dry, dusty city. So pretty much every time I wash the car, boom, next day it looks like crap (the bra, the dust mostly blows off the rest of the car).
Edit; and now it's 92F and some gooey stuff left behind. Seems to be an ideal temp of around 90 or so. Will try more tomorrow morning...
There are quite a few good responses here, but anything involving a job with sandpaper isn't necessary unless if the swirl marks are very bad. When I say very bad I mean they're noticeable from far away, and your paint is very dull at that point.
Start off with what I've linked to you above. It's the Medium to Heavy Turtle Wax Rubbing Compound. It's the stuff I use that brings out the shine in all of our cars at home. Do not over-use it. It has minor amounts of abrasives (less than sandpaper), but enough to get to your color coat if you sit and rub it into your paint all day long. Grab a microfiber cloth, or a buffer if you've got one. Pour some of it on the cloth, and simply rub it into the paint. Rub it out and away from the center where you've initially applied it, and keep going at it until you see it no more.
PS: Wash the car, and then try this out. After trying this out, wax the car and you will see some good looking paint! Mark my words.
Last edited by GeekTheGecko; 06-09-2016 at 06:36 AM.
06-02-2016, 12:52 PM
Paint help...
