Paint repair tips, please.

[Clinton]

I posted this in the 2nd Gen forum and didn't get much response, so I'm copying it over here. I'd like to do this pretty soon before the Tennessee Valley gets bogged down in it's summertime 95% humidity haze. Thanks for any tips.



I've been searching the forums for a couple of days and I've got a couple of remaining questions on paint repair.



Okay, for the small chips (size of a coarse sand grain): I've heard of using a syringe with a needle to fill the chip then polishing the fill spot. 1. What kind of product would be best for the polishing? 2. When should the polishing take place? Just before full cure, or after the fill spot is hard?



Now for the big chips; I've got two of them. One has the surface area of a quarter and the other about like a dime. The big one has an island on paint in the middle. 3. Should I sand down the paint island? The smaller one is through the primer and down to metal. 4. Do I need to apply something like a primer before going with the touch-up paint? For both of these bigger chips I'm planning on using touch-up paint with a soft brush and building up layers to match the surronding paint. 5. When I get to the right level, do I have to use a clear coat on top of the touch-up or do I polish the touch-up paint to match? Thanks for the help.

 

[illflem]

I've found the touch-up paint that Dodge sells to have excellent instructions on how to do it right. Too bad their paint doesn't match my truck.

 

[Champane Flight]

All

The paint on our trucks is actually three step, you have your primer, your base coat (color) and your clear coat. For a few years the auto companys really scrimped on paint. My 95 has hunks of paint coming off the roof right now. You cannot get a color match if you don't use the last two steps color and clear. The clear coat brings the color out on this type of paint. Even the primer has some effect on the newer paints.



I was going to just repaint my roof, but size, and cleanliness of my shop changed my mind. It took me two weeks to clean my shop, cover all my tools, mask, and paint my old car. I still ended up with some dirt in my paint. A good paint booth is an essential.

 

[Todd T]

your advise you were given for the smaller spots is sound and you should use it.



the larger spots are going to be tough to match to a perfect finish and color. the best you could do is try to build up the repair higher than the surrounding area and file then sand it back flat. then polish it to a shine again. the trouble is you will probably wind up sanding through the clear and or the color around the repair. this will be a temporary fix at best. the proper way would be to feather the spot out. prime fill if needed and blend the color to into the old color. then clear the entire panel melting it into other panels if needed.



you need to wait until the paint is fully cured before attemping to sand or polish in any event.



CF was right, the primer coat is considered a tint coat. and you have to match the tint coat before restoring the base (color). either in the primer or the sealer.



we fix "mangey" cars daily at my dads shop. the automotive industry is deplorable at taking care of these kind of problems. the worst car on the road to date for this, has to be the plymouth and Dodge Neons. their paint comes of in sheets with a little compressed air applied.