DIY Paint Correction?

[OK-944]

Anyone here ever do a DIY paint correction? Sounds expensive to farm out...and sometimes iffy to find folks who truly know and/or care about this "craft" ("art?").

But there are a number of reasonably priced DIY kits floating around...and I'm tempted to give this a go.

Anybody? Hints? Tips? DIY kit recommendations? Thanks!

[GHEN]

I remember this video from a while back

https://youtu.be/AX7t1hC2g6k

I had Esoteric in New Albany, Ohio do mine at a very reasonable price.

Good luck,

GHEN

[Mike Goebel]

I have done this and its super fun. However you need to be ready to make some mistakes. Might sand thru or buff thru. How bad is your paint?

This is what I use
2000 grit wet/dry sandpaper and sanding sponge.
Rotary Buffer with a wool pad. You must use a rotary after sanding.
Menzerna Heavy Cut Compound 400. This stuff is the best. It's not as heavy as its name implies but it cuts fast stays wet for a long time and finishes like a BOSS. You wont need a finer polish after using this stuff. But I do go after with a finishing foam pad and the Menzerna on a orbital.
Then the final stuff is amazing. KLASSE All IN ONE.
After quick washes squirt on some Meguiars Quick Detailer (Gold Class) and wipe off with a Costco microfiber cloth. BOOM!

People at my work always ask me how I get my car so shinny.


Mike G.

[Gianni at Pelican Parts]

Good pointers from others here, you may want to avoid wet sanding if you're new to detailing.

The main tool you need to get started is a quality random orbital polisher, these are beginner friendly and make burning through the paint -nearly- impossible, and a quality compound, and some sort of sealant or wax to follow up.

You can get different levels of cutting pads and work your way from a heavy cut compound to a finishing polish. We sell Griots Garage polishers and compounds. They have extensive YouTube videos on all their products and walk you through polishing your paint. There is a plethora of other How-To videos out there and I definitely recommend people pick up a polisher and learn a new skill.

[Mike Goebel]

I've also heard good things about the long throw orbital from the might Harbor Freight. I might even get one as my Porter Cable is kinda wimpy. If your paint is not too bad and you don't have orange peal that makes you NUTZ (like it does to me) then just use a clay bar first before you buff. There's tons of vides out there but serious get the Menzerna. It does have a pretty strong odor tho.

Lets just say you're German you love being German and you only by German tools. You also have a key to Fort Knox. Get anything from FLEX. BTW Menzerna is from Germany!!! hehe haha

FLEX XC 3401 VRG DUAL ACTION ORBITAL POLISHER AND BUFFER

Mike G.

[Fast Freddy 944]

Color sanding? Your wording is hard to decipher. Is your paint faded and you are wanting to bring back the hue? Get some cutting compound, and a cheap orbital buffer and work the paint until its how you want it. Then Polishing compound for a shine. Then hit is with a good wax..

[Mike Goebel]

Originally Posted by Fast Freddy 944

Color sanding? Your wording is hard to decipher.

No its not! Must be a Texas thing . Most call it color sanding but what if you are sanding clear. Anyway I usually color sand all my vehicles as I can't stand orange peel. Funny thing is that when I point out orange peel to most they don't even notice it. I guess that's difference between a retired furniture finisher and the everyday shmo.

Mike G.

[jjeffries]

I’ve been polishing cars since I was a wee lad, or at least, a spotty teenager. There are many ways to make your paint look better, and not all need to be done with the bells and whistles demonstrated by the YouTube pro’s. I’d urge OK-944 to better define what he wants to achieve and maybe post some photos. Maybe a careful going-over with a clay bar, then hand polish and wax would suffice?

An old rule of any good detailer: start with the gentlest process, then work progressively more abrasive from there as is required to solve the problem at hand. In other words, many a good finish has been damaged by an over-zealous guy with a buffer in one hand and a big bottle of Heavy Duty Compound in the other.

Last point: a certain amount of orange peel/texture is normal and how it came from the factory. When you “smooth” that out for a mirror-finish, you’re removing material, and what’s left is by definition thinner and more easily scratched/grazed.

Top Tip: if you do want to dive into color-sanding and high-speed buffing, go practice on something more prosaic than your 944 ... Auntie Nellie’s 95 Chevy Lumina comes to mind.

John

[Mike Goebel]

Post a pic of your car. Make sure to get pix that demonstrate what the current condition of the paint is. Then do as I stated above. hahaha

Or you could be one of these guys that spends 80 hours with an orbital only to have a soso finish.

Mike G.

[Mike Goebel]

Originally Posted by jjeffries

Last point: a certain amount of orange peel/texture is normal and how it came from the factory. When you “smooth” that out for a mirror-finish, you’re removing material, and what’s left is by definition thinner and more easily scratched/grazed.

John

Orange peel = Scheisse finish.

Mike G.

[jmitro]

my $65000 BMW X5 has orange peel; that's the way it came from the factory. very slight orange peel is normal but probably not acceptable for the concours crowd. heavy orange peel from poor painting (like what I do in my garage) has to be wet sanded out ('color' sanding is old fashioned because paint jobs are now covered with clear coat )

[Mike Goebel]

Originally Posted by jmitro

('color' sanding is old fashioned because paint jobs are now covered with clear coat )

Uh NO! Any nice paint job is color sanded clear or not. I'd also color sand that POS BMW

Mike G.

[SilverLined]

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

I guess that's difference between a retired furniture finisher and the everyday shmo.

Mike G.

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

Orange peel = Scheisse finish.

Mike G.

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

Uh NO! Any nice paint job is color sanded clear or not. I'd also color sand that POS BMW

Mike G.

We get your point.

Seems a little optimistic to expect that your experience shellacking pine tables equates to understanding finish on a vehicle driven at highway speeds, exposed to all manner of weather, UV rays, and impacts. But, I'm not one to throw stones. I prefer to avoid chips, however, so I'll be keeping my peel.

Back on topic, to the OP: OK, I'm sure you're no stranger to YT. There are so many great detailers out there. My favorites are AMMO NYC for technique/content, and OCD Garage for gear, accessories, and geek-out level info.

[jmitro]

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

Uh NO! Any nice paint job is color sanded clear or not. I'd also color sand that POS BMW

Mike G.

you misunderstood; "color" sanding is an old fashioned term. It's wet sanding, get with the times

OK-944 - what type of paint correction are you specifically trying to accomplish? that will ultimately determine what you do.

[Mike Goebel]

Originally Posted by SilverLined

We get your point.

Seems a little optimistic to expect that your experience shellacking pine tables equates to understanding finish on a vehicle

Piano finisher numnutz! It’s all the same just different paint. 😉

Mike G.
This is FUN!

[SilverLined]

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

Piano finisher numnutz! It’s all the same just different paint. 😉

Mike G.
This is FUN!

So no relevant experience then; noted.

Unless you painted her piano:



This IS fun!

Seriously, Mike, while you may want a mirror finish on your Steinway, you don't want one on your car. Unless it's a show car, it just doesn't make sense.

For a driven car, a little bit of peel is advisable. You've got protection against the sun, washing/detailing the car, bugs, pebbles, etc. A surface with some peel will look better for longer, without having to constantly polish it (taking away more material). As John mentioned, it's also how the (every OEM) factory does it. Usually lower painted surfaces (closer to the ground, and road debris), will get heavy peel for the sake of protection.

[Mike Goebel]

Auto paint finisher too! And I have no idea who that chick is! But seriously when you plan ahead and finish your car for color sanding you put the right amount of paint on it. I know the factory stuff is probably a little bit thin and you can get one of those whizbang gauges to check it. But just take care of your paint.

This is the least level you should shoot for

https://youtu.be/LhvgGvVWQDQ

Mike G.

[Fast Freddy 944]

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

No its not! Must be a Texas thing . Most call it color sanding but what if you are sanding clear. Anyway I usually color sand all my vehicles as I can't stand orange peel. Funny thing is that when I point out orange peel to most they don't even notice it. I guess that's difference between a retired furniture finisher and the everyday shmo.

Mike G.

Shmo, lol. Yeup I have heard of the clear coat method. You get a really fine finish, and the orange peeling does come up. I remember back in the day, when I was guarding a auto sales parking lot in Denton, I had a mechanic talk about the Orange peeling issue with factory spray jobs, I never really noticed it until he pointed it out. You like that deep down shine. Pretty darn cool bro!

[Mike Goebel]

Originally Posted by SilverLined

Usually lower painted surfaces (closer to the ground, and road debris), will get heavy peel for the sake of protection.

They don’t put it down there on purpose! It gets down there because they don’t give a crap about it what it looks down there. And it certainly isn’t orange peel for protection! It’s orange peel from the result that they lay the paint down heavier in that area.

Mike G.

[SilverLined]

Originally Posted by Mike Goebel

They don’t put it down there on purpose! It gets down there because they don’t give a crap about it what it looks down there. And it certainly isn’t orange peel for protection! It’s orange peel from the result that they lay the paint down heavier in that area.

Mike G.

Well, you're right. The robots definitely don't give a crap about what it looks like down there. I don't think they can crap, or have opinions, or feelings... they just do what they're programmed to do.

So why would an auto manufacturer, making hundreds of thousands of vehicles every year, program their painting robots to waste material? This stuff is expensive! Seems like your revelation could save them a lot of money, no? Or maybe, if they don't put peely goodness on their products, the paint jobs don't hold up, and they don't sell as many cars.