Rubbing out Paint: Big Change

[West Peterson]

I've spent a little time rubbing out the paint, polishing it, and waxing. It's quite a change.

[Orin]

Congrats.

What products did you use? I recently purchased a '35 Packard with a 30 year-old very worn out lacquer paint job, and that's one of the projects I have ahead of me. I bought a book on the topic, and it said to start with a good wax job, see if it works; if not, then try a deoxidizer, see if it works; if not, then rubbing compound.

[mrpushbutton]

Don't use Wax! use 3-M Imperial hand glaze!

[Steve_Mack_CT]

No need to clean whitewalls - you will save half an afternoon!

[West Peterson]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Orin</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Congrats.

What products did you use? I recently purchased a '35 Packard with a 30 year-old very worn out lacquer paint job, and that's one of the projects I have ahead of me. I bought a book on the topic, and it said to start with a good wax job, see if it works; if not, then try a deoxidizer, see if it works; if not, then rubbing compound. </div></div>

A 30-year-old lacquer paint job is exactly what I started with. I'd definately skip the idea of starting with wax. At the very minimum, you'll need to start with a polish.

What you start with will depend on how the paint job was rubbed out to begin with. I suggest you start with either a 3M medium cut or heavy cut if you've got some fairly good scratches (l had some claw scratches on my hood, and the heavy cut took them right out). If you start with the heavy cut, your next step will need to be the medium cut. Follow with a good polishing compound, then wax.

I heartily suggest you get an electric buffer (BE CAREFUL ON THE EDGES -- TAPE THEM OFF. I have a dual-action (D.A.) buffer that is much more forgiving on the edges.)

[mrpushbutton]

West, when you say wax, are you talking ....Wax?

like Simonize? (or equivalent)

[West Peterson]

I'm talking about wax... the protective layer you put on last. I'm not sure what other kind of wax there is. If one is trying to remove oxidation or scratches, wax, or even polish, won't touch it (polish, to some degree, will, but it won't bring the full color back out... you end up with sort of a hazy shine). You need to have some grit in the compound to get down to the good paint. Wax and polish do not have any grit. If your scratches are really deep, you may have to go to some wet sanding using 600-1500 grit.

I've been using the 3M heavy cut and medium cut on my car, followed with a Meguiar's #2 polish, followed with a Meguiar's #3 wax. It's not perfect, but then, neither is the car. It looks 100 percent better than when I got it.

There is, of course, more than one way to skin a cat.

[Orin]

Thanks, West! I don't have a lot in the way of scratches, but there's a lot of oxidation, especially on the hood. There are also a bunch of chips, ranging from tiny gnat-sized ones to quarter-sized ones, but I was figuring that the easiest thing to do was go to to an auto detailing shop that does chips and paint touch up and have them do it after I have polished up what I can. Do you think that makes sense?

[West Peterson]

Yes.

You could also touch up those chips yourself. With some correct color and some time, you can slowly build up those chip craters, filling them slightly higher than the final finish. Carefully knock down the repaired area with some 600-grit wet/dry sand paper, moving up to 1000, 1500 and 2000 grit, followed by a fine-cut polishing compound, polish and wax.

You can save yourself a lot of money, but if you don't have the time, you may be better off having it done.

If, however, you're talking about a whole bunch of chips, such as sand-blasted front fenders, it would be better to respray the area and blend into your old paint, or paint the whole fender (or grille, or whatever). It may be hard to "blend" if you've got an odd (read special mix) color.

[mrpushbutton]

OK-thanks for the clarification. I don't personally like to use wax on collector cars due to the fact that can yellow and dull with time and require stripping. I use it on everyday cars beacuse the sun and rain take it back off gradually. I'm a glaze man. I can see where the wax treatment would be great for older paint.

[tbirdman]

One recommendation is to start with the less aggressive compound vs starting at a very aggressive compound. Remember these compounds remove paint and the less you remove the better.

I also have found that for quick detailing, Adams detailing works great. Mequires leaves a film. Plus Adam's smells like bubble gum

I probably wax/polish my car maybe twice a year, and just use detailing in between. I have not found the waxes that I'm using yellow at all. I'm using Satin creme wax now.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

I just bought a new product, mainly for the lower doors on my two newer Ford Explorers - "compound for clear coats" by Dupont, cheap enough from the local NAPA store. I may try that on my "A" after trying it on the trucks. I generally use Macquire's cleaner wax which helps a lot on the 30+ year old paint but this may do even more. I figure it may be less aggressive than other abrasive cleaners.

[West Peterson]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: tbirdman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Remember these compounds remove paint and the less you remove the better.

</div></div>

Ken

I agree. But if you've got a lot of oxidized paint, plain polish (and certainly not wax) is not going to give you the deep luster you're wanting. And if it's just oxidation (no scratches), use a fine-cut compound. Don't get confused about the differences between compound, polish and wax (or glazes).

Again, be careful when buffing around peaks and edges, even if you're working by hand. Compounds can take paint off very fast in those areas.

[tbirdman]

[quote name=West Peterson Don't get confused about the differences between compound' date=' polish and wax (or glazes).

Again, be careful when buffing around peaks and edges, even if you're working by hand. Compounds can take paint off very fast in those areas.

West,

I agree that polish won't help oxidation as it just fills in the paint suface to provide a smoother surface for the light to reflect off of it while waxes protect. However my point was to start off with the least aggressive compound to remove the least ammount of paint.

[Orin]

Thanks for the tips, everyone. I'll let you know how it turns out.