Bob3700

All you body shop guru's:

With older but good condition lacquer paint, how can you improve the shine.

Buffing compounds? If so, what brand and type of application?

Wet sanding? If so, what grade paper and what type of follow-up buffing?

Put a coat of clear lacquer on the car?

Come on, give me your best ideas.

Thanks

Bob
1970 coupe

Kensmith

Be careful with older paint. You can use a little polishing compound but depending on how much paint you have left. I am a big fan of hand rubbing lacquer and staying away from buffing/polishing machines on older paint. They work great on 2 stage with lots of clear. Also with lacquer be careful it was not spotted in because you will end up with halos. Have the paint checked by a good paint shop if you don't know the condition. Stay away from high areas such as crowns and edges. There are a ton of products out there to restore the shine without removing much paint. It may only need a light buffing to take the oxidation off and then apply wax.

murvette

Great question , the answers also apply to most automotive finishes in need of help. The first step is to use a solvent wax and grease remover so you are able to determine the actual condition of the bare paint film.This step is non agressive to your paint . I would work my way up the the ladder of treatments non agressive to most agressive. I will just cover the basics . (1) clean then wax with a good carnuba. (2) clean, use a hand polish (swirl) remover then wax. (3) clean, use rubbing compound by hand ,then use swirl remover then wax. Now if this dosent work Its time to get the big guns out. Try an orbital they are becoming very popular (I dont like them) but alot of people use them with a polish and wax ,orbital is nothing like a buffer. Now its time to get the buffer out This is where you can cause damage if used wrong ,after cleaning try polish with a foam pad (fine) then wax . If that does not work ,clean then use a wool pad with buffing compound then polish with a foam pad then wax. last option is to wet sand after cleaning followed by the buffing,polish then wax. If none of the above works it's time for a paint job and you can say you tried to save it. best of luck,murray

Seaside63

First thing I would do, after a good wash, would be to Clay the whole car and get the surface contaminants off. The clay is non abrasive and with a good detail spray for a lubricant you will be amazed how clean it gets the car in only minutes.

Then I would try just a glaze, like Meguiar's #7. It's an oil based polish that will bring out a lot of depth and shine. Then a good carnauba wax on top of that.

None of the above will remove any paint.

If the paint is still dull after the clay then I would carefully use a light polish like Meguiar's #81 or #83. You want to use the least agressive product possible to avoid removing too much paint. Kind of like an exfoliant on dry skin, it can help the appearance if you rub out the paint.

I like the Porter-Cable Dual Action polisher with a soft white foam pad. If the paint's too dull you can try the yellow pad but don't go stiffer than that. Don't dry buff the paint. Make sure there's enough compound to keep moisture on the surface.

This method will not burn through any paint unless there's just nothing left of it.

The Porter-Cable will also not burn through the edges and creases but you can be safe and tape all the hood and door gaps and high points like fender peaks for insurance.

Don't go above speed #5 on the Porter-Cable. Speed 6 will destroy your foam pads.

With Meguiar's #7, #81 and #83 polishes do not allow them to dry or haze over as they will be very hard to wipe off. Do a small section and wipe with a clean micro fiber cloth. Don't use T-shirts or diapers, they will scratch your paint.

redjetty

i have a 78 pace car with only 8 miles on it, yes its a garage queen, but when i bought it off the original owner the paint was dull and needed some tlc,, i used zaino's product made for lacquer paint,, put about 10 coats on it and boy does it shine like a new penny,, good luck, later rj

0TH0001@properautocare.com

The first product I would try would be Meguiars DC1 (Deep Crystal System step 1) paint cleaner. It is very very mildly abbrasive and features chemical cleaners that will remove the oxidation while maintaining the clean paint underneath. It is very gentle on the paint.

This will give you a good idea what you working with.