People seem to ask the very similar paint restoration/finishing questions all the time and the answers seem to be all over the place. In this tutorial I'll show everyone how to achieve a show quality, mirror finish with repeatable results. There is no guesswork to any of what I am showing you, just years of experience. Having said that, I realize there are many ways to finish a cars paint and many people do things different ways. If you've got constructive feedback then please add it. Refinishing is a tedious job that requires a lot of elbow grease. I'm always looking for techniques to make the job easier. So let's get started....
First there are a few terms I will define for this How-To:
Polisher- a single action(spinning only) machine for applying all of your compounds. Typically with speed setting from about 1000rpm to 3000rpm. This is NOT your Walmart or Auto Zone "buffer".
Waxer-This IS typically what you'll find at Wally world or Auto Zone for about $20. It is dual action/random orbit(vibrating ) and is labeled many times as a buffer or polisher. It is not. I use this tool for applying wax and then removing it.
D/A-Dual Action sander typically used in the auto refinish industry
DOI-"Distinctness Of Image". This is a system used by the auto industry to measure the quality of reflective image quality in a paint's finish. It ranges from 0-100. A perfect mirror image has a DOI of 100. Typically a car fresh from the factory will have a DOI of between 45-75 on the very high end.
Orange Peel-This is the "bumpiness" that looks like the skin of an orange that your cars finish has from the factory. Go ahead..take a look, it's there. Orange Peel ruins DOI. If you can eliminate the high spots of the orange peel, you dramatically improve your DOI. This is where sanding, buffing, polishing, etc. all come in to play......oh yeah, and lots of elbow grease.
Wax-Liquid car wax. Natural or synthetic. NOT cleaner/wax. Cleaner/wax is for someone who wants a quick fix to get good reflectivity without increasing your DOI a single point.
The test subject I am using is my new carbon fiber CSL hatch I recently received from Sergio at Carbonetics. The hatch is good quality, but it had a thumbprint in the resin coat over the carbon that needed to be filled in. I filled in the low area and coated the hatch with 7 more coats of clear. I like to have plenty of wiggle room when doing this much sanding. Notice in these images how the reflected images are not clear. You can not make out small details. I am painting in my garage and it's about 32 degrees outside so I used a fast hardener. A fast hardener will always leave you with a good amount of orange peel/haze. Weather permitting, you want to use the slowest hardener you can get away with.
First I'll start with 2000 grit wet/dry sheets. This is cuts down the high areas quickly and is aggressive enough for the amount of orange peel I have. Use a rigid sanding block for this. Constantly bathe your sandpaper in water to flush away the clearcoat sludge you are stripping away. If not, you will simply clog your sandpaper and be going in circles.
After you are done sanding every surface it will look like this
This is what it should look like after you wipe all of the sludge off.
Now I skip 2500 grit and go directly to 3000 grit. I use Meguiars UniGrit foam disk for this. 3M also has this and it's called Trizact. The pads work wonders because they are engineered abrasive that wears down evenly and reveals new abrasive as you use it. Unlike sandpaper, they last a long time and you use them with a D/A sander...so it saves a lot of work on your part. Keep this wet at all times as well while sanding.
This is what it looks like after the 3000 grit foam pad.
Now it's time for the polisher and compounds. I am using in this order-rubbing compound, polishing glaze and then Finesse-It II finishing material(liquid pixy dust). The white foam pad is more aggressive and I use it with the rubbing compound only. I use the softer dark pad for the polishing compound and Finesse-It. Use 2 different dark pads so you don't mix materials. They have different abrasive properties.
After rubbing compound.
After polishing glaze.
After Finesse-It Finishing Material.
Remember before.
After
Trying to take pictures of a reflected image is very hard, and is made harder by the 3D pattern of the carbon. My camera was going bonkers trying to focus. Notice the reflection of my attic door on the right. You can make out every detail including the pull string. I haven't even applied a wax yet. I would venture to say that I have a DOI of about 95 as it sits and will add a point or two with wax.
Use your walmart buffer to apply wax over your entire piece. Change bonnets and now remove the wax-You're done! Never use the foam pad that comes with the waxer for this.
I have to slip this in. I've got this paint nub remover tool I purchased years ago in Germany and it's seen better days. Never seen one here in the States. If you know where I can get this, please PM me.
First there are a few terms I will define for this How-To:
Polisher- a single action(spinning only) machine for applying all of your compounds. Typically with speed setting from about 1000rpm to 3000rpm. This is NOT your Walmart or Auto Zone "buffer".
Waxer-This IS typically what you'll find at Wally world or Auto Zone for about $20. It is dual action/random orbit(vibrating ) and is labeled many times as a buffer or polisher. It is not. I use this tool for applying wax and then removing it.
D/A-Dual Action sander typically used in the auto refinish industry
DOI-"Distinctness Of Image". This is a system used by the auto industry to measure the quality of reflective image quality in a paint's finish. It ranges from 0-100. A perfect mirror image has a DOI of 100. Typically a car fresh from the factory will have a DOI of between 45-75 on the very high end.
Orange Peel-This is the "bumpiness" that looks like the skin of an orange that your cars finish has from the factory. Go ahead..take a look, it's there. Orange Peel ruins DOI. If you can eliminate the high spots of the orange peel, you dramatically improve your DOI. This is where sanding, buffing, polishing, etc. all come in to play......oh yeah, and lots of elbow grease.
Wax-Liquid car wax. Natural or synthetic. NOT cleaner/wax. Cleaner/wax is for someone who wants a quick fix to get good reflectivity without increasing your DOI a single point.
The test subject I am using is my new carbon fiber CSL hatch I recently received from Sergio at Carbonetics. The hatch is good quality, but it had a thumbprint in the resin coat over the carbon that needed to be filled in. I filled in the low area and coated the hatch with 7 more coats of clear. I like to have plenty of wiggle room when doing this much sanding. Notice in these images how the reflected images are not clear. You can not make out small details. I am painting in my garage and it's about 32 degrees outside so I used a fast hardener. A fast hardener will always leave you with a good amount of orange peel/haze. Weather permitting, you want to use the slowest hardener you can get away with.
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First I'll start with 2000 grit wet/dry sheets. This is cuts down the high areas quickly and is aggressive enough for the amount of orange peel I have. Use a rigid sanding block for this. Constantly bathe your sandpaper in water to flush away the clearcoat sludge you are stripping away. If not, you will simply clog your sandpaper and be going in circles.
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After you are done sanding every surface it will look like this
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This is what it should look like after you wipe all of the sludge off.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Now I skip 2500 grit and go directly to 3000 grit. I use Meguiars UniGrit foam disk for this. 3M also has this and it's called Trizact. The pads work wonders because they are engineered abrasive that wears down evenly and reveals new abrasive as you use it. Unlike sandpaper, they last a long time and you use them with a D/A sander...so it saves a lot of work on your part. Keep this wet at all times as well while sanding.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
This is what it looks like after the 3000 grit foam pad.
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Now it's time for the polisher and compounds. I am using in this order-rubbing compound, polishing glaze and then Finesse-It II finishing material(liquid pixy dust). The white foam pad is more aggressive and I use it with the rubbing compound only. I use the softer dark pad for the polishing compound and Finesse-It. Use 2 different dark pads so you don't mix materials. They have different abrasive properties.
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After rubbing compound.
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After polishing glaze.
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After Finesse-It Finishing Material.
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Remember before.
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After
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Trying to take pictures of a reflected image is very hard, and is made harder by the 3D pattern of the carbon. My camera was going bonkers trying to focus. Notice the reflection of my attic door on the right. You can make out every detail including the pull string. I haven't even applied a wax yet. I would venture to say that I have a DOI of about 95 as it sits and will add a point or two with wax.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
Use your walmart buffer to apply wax over your entire piece. Change bonnets and now remove the wax-You're done! Never use the foam pad that comes with the waxer for this.
I have to slip this in. I've got this paint nub remover tool I purchased years ago in Germany and it's seen better days. Never seen one here in the States. If you know where I can get this, please PM me.
You must be logged in to view this image or video.
