wow! that is great, but damn, like a couple said above, dont have the ***** to touch my baby with ANY kind of sandpaper - i know i would screw it up!

 

^^^same here...but i may try this on my bro's car first. (for practice) lol...but all in all amazing job.

 

dont be afraid.. you cant really mess this up, although I guess it could be disasterous if you clearly dont follow through with the directions..

good write up.. hpoefully this can save some people some money

and if anyone in jersey has scratches and is too afraid let me know and I can help you out and show you how its done...

 

Great write up, jetlounge. What clear coat compound u use? i cannot find any.

 

i don't have the bottle in front of me..can't remember the brand. but you basically are looking for something that is "safe for clear coat" or may be called "clear coat polishing compound"

i just did a google and found this, but i am sure there are others:
http://www.acehardware.com/sm-turtle...i-1420337.html

 

^^^Thanks, going to pick a bottle up today

 

good job!! but i am afraid to wet sand the body...

 

You make it look so easy jetlounge!!!

Thanks for making me save a lot of money! I'll try this and get the scratches off of my car!

Thanks again! :D

 

For the guy who asked about the clearcoat polish,
we used "Number 7 Clearcoat Polishing Compound"
Does not require a buffer, and is safe for clearcoat. Automotive store should have it.
This is a link for a picture of it:
http://www.shop.com/op/aprod-p43770518-k24-g1

 

Yowzas! I went to the pictures of the sanding part and my jaw dropped and my heart skipped a beat. My scratch ion the side of my car is identical to yours almost in it's deepness and length. My car is also the same color as yours thus i'm thinking about doing this but not me...oh no..ha! I think i'm getting my buddy that I work with at dealership/auto detailing place. My questions are...I got the basecoat and the clearcoat straight from Toyota at a dealership, does the clearcoat just get blobbed over the scratch or is it the same process with a toothpick? Also, is there any way other than wet sanding to try to get the same effect, such as using a buffer? I ask because at the place I work at, we have buffers and it'll ease my mind AND heart if wetsanding didn't need to be done.

 

a buffer handled improperly will leave you with terrible swirly scratch marks.

yes, you have to sand the blob down.

rubbing compound is basically liquid sandpaper. if you think that liquid is just polish, that would be incorrect. even that has a level of abrasiveness. it removes scratches made from 1500 grit sandpaper and above. dont believe me? or your skill level? go to an inconspicuous area, like the fold of metal inside your hatch..take the sandpaper to it and scuff up an area the size of a quarter. clean it, and then use the rubbing compound. scuffs will disappear.


i use paper all the time to remove deeeeeep clearcoat scratches too.

 

if you guys are going to be sanding near an edge, make sure you use a sanding block.

 

nice thread. This help me out alot

 

sanding block????

 

Well, my buddy from work worked out a scratch for me today...it was death seeing him sand my car. But when he buffed it with rubbing compound, it was a relief...Anyways, the scratch isn't as noticeable anymore, you have to look for it to notice it. Might try to work it better later on but I still have to get another "scratch" fixed but this time...its not exactly a scratch but a word etched into my car. I'm most afraid of how that one will turn out.

 

sorry to revive this... but did you remember how long it took for the paint to dry and how long the overall process took?

 

about 15-25 minutes per coating...climate and humidity depending, shouldn't take more than an hour or two. take your time and be patient.

 

WOOO HOOOO!!!

I did it.

Here are the scratches from my idiot sister's carelessness when she opened her door. We park in a garage and she parks next to me.





Here are the sanded out areas



When wet sanding, make sure you sand in a circular motion. If you don't you'll get marks like the following image


If you wet sand it in circular motion, the marks will blend out like the following image.


I didn't bother with the clear coat and just moved on to the rubbing compound. Again, rub the compound in a circular motion and it will takes time for the clear coats to blends. Just take your time. And Done!!!






My recommendation is just to do this once. If the same areas are scratched again, I would suggest that you repaint, which can be done on your own. Not that difficult once you get use to it.

 

^^ Nice Noodle! Did you still use paint on it? Or just wet sand it then apply rubbing compound? So what's with the last picture?

 

How about painting over touch-up paint blobs that are already dried in? Would this method clean up that mismatched touchup paint pretty easily?