Okay, I've tried my first touch-ups with the help of this great website. I've been happy with the results, with one glaring problem: HAZE!! After leveling my touch-ups, polishing, etc., I still have haze (and some scratches) that I just can't get rid of! It's irritating as hell, and I'm hoping someone has some tips for me.

First off, the details: after touching up (and waiting >=48 hrs for the paint to dry), I took the following steps as recommended from the website (unless I missed something ):
1) Leveled out touch-up with Meguiar's 1500-grit "Unigrit" paper, being careful to always sand 1 direction, rinsing off, etc. Yes, paper soaked at least 15 mins before use
2) Buffed off by hand, parallel with sand direction, with 3M Microfinishing Compound (051131-06011)
3) Polished with Meguiar's "Deep Crystal System" Polish, again polishing in parallel to sanding.

The problem seems to be the 1500-Grit scratches - they fade, but I can't get them to go away. I tried a NUMBER of things, including:
* buffing, polishing perpendicular to sand direction
* Eagle One scratch remover, Meguiar's Scratch-X
...and permutations thereof, with no success.

I've now reached the end of my inventory! Is there something I'm doing wrong? Is there a product I didn't get right in there? Has anyone had these sort of results before? Please advise!

(I'll post pictures when I can... but it's just micro-scratch-induced haze from what I can tell).

Thanks in advance!!

 

Did you use a rubbing compound step? Then, you need polishing compound and/or scratch and swirl remover as the final buffing step BUT hand buffing won't do it for you. You need a power buffer. I did a 3X4 patch on a black car once and when I was done, you couldn't see where the flaw was.

 

xviper - yes, the 3M microfinishing compound is a rubbing compound, and I did it by hand. Problem is, I don't have a power buffer . From the sound of it, I'm going to need to get one, eh? Don't suppose you know of a rubbing compound that would work by hand do you?

Thanks!

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by akadonrico
[B]xviper - yes, the 3M microfinishing compound is a rubbing compound, and I did it by hand.

 

the old buffers could burn or damage paint- the newer random orbitals are pretty safe. just use one on the lowest setting until you get comfortable with that setting (several uses).
i would agree that the final stages should be done with a random orbital... chances are you can borrow one from a member of this board in your community if you cant buy one.
btw, good description of the entire process here:
http://properautocare.com/witporcabpol.html
that site also has discussions of removal by hand.
good luck, you will get the right look eventually!

 

Mr. Wanabe and I have been using Porter Cable random orbital polishers for a while and it's really hard to beat them. They will not harm your paint like and old high speed buffer will. It is not necessary to heat the paint up to remove scratches, swirl marks or haze. I like to use 3M Swirl Mark Remover for dark colored cars. They key using this product is to use the polisher until there is no residue left. The very fine abrasive is designed to break up under use and it gets a finer and finer grit as you use it. This will allow you to get a mirror shine on your finish.

I bought my polisher at Lowe's hardware for $109 and it is sold as a sander/polisher. It is the same product as the polisher only, but you get two big benefits from buying it at Lowe's: 1) it's much less expensive than buying it at a car detailing site and 2) you get to use it as a sander as well as a polisher.

I was using my Porter Cable to remove some scratches on my aluminum billet front frame cover before installation and I just can't get over how much easier it is to use than doing it by hand.

Buy one and you will love it,
Bob

 

I agree with boiler -- 3M Swirl Mark Remover

This stuff is unbelieveable. I just use it this morning to finish a chip repair I filled in last week. I used 1500 followed by 2000 grit sandpaper to level the fill-in paint, then hand applied 3M Swirl Mark Remover until it was dry, and wiped up the residue with a clean towel. Absolutely mirror smooth underneath.

It's a damn shame the touch-up paint is a little off in color, but that's a topic for another thread.

 

Jeffbrig, you must be using the Honda touch up paint. It isn't even close to matching the paint on my red car. Get one of the AutoSharp pens and you will be much happier. It's the correct color, it's easier to use and it's pretty expensive, but worth it. The paint is applied with a felt tip pen, so the paint is much thinner, is easier to apply without making a big mess and looks much better when you are finished. It's thin enough that you may have to apply more than one coat.

Autovisuals is the place to but these pens and they are a site sponsor here.

Bob

 

All - Thank you so much for the recommendations. I can afford a sander/polisher at $110, I just don't WANT to afford one. Also, the 3M Swirl Remover for dark cars has been recommended to me before - I had trouble finding it in my area. I'll see if I can find it online since it seems to be the way to go.

jeffbrig & boiler - I have a black 2000, and my paint matches great - from what I can tell so far. I can't wait to get these scratches off, I'm pretty pumped about this turning out really nice. Is it only the red factory touch-up that doesn't match well? I certainly hope I'm not going to be surprised with a shoddy touch-up job after I buff this stuff out!

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by akadonrico
[B]All - Thank you so much for the recommendations.