Hey guys! I'm pretty decent with a wrench but doing anything with the paint of my car scares the begeebies out of me. I have that Carbon Schwartz Metallic (dark metallic blue) color and I have a pretty good scuff on the drivers front bumper that I'd like to try and get rid of this weekend. I've read posts about using the different grit sandpapers and then polishing (I don't have a buffer, but a friend does). Does anyone have a relatively easy procedure that I could follow for this?


Thanks!

 

Get you a bottle of 3m compound. I attached a picture in the link below. You should see on the bottle where is clear coat safe and removes 800+ sanding marks. At the same place you get this, ask them for a swirl mark remover. First you need to access this scuff mark. Meaning, you don't want to sand unless you have to. If the scuff has scratches in it that you can detect by using your fingernail to slide perpendicular and feel the 'clicks' then it's possible you might not be able to get it removed. It just depends on how deep they are. Obviously, if you see that its through the paint there is no chance then.

I would start with a soft rag with a little compound and just rub back and forth finishing in a circular motion to see what you can remove. If you are still seeing a scuff, try a little more. If this does not seem to be helping, then you can lightly wet sand the area. I would use something around 2000-2500. Don't get crazy with it, but just enough to remove the scuff. Finish it off with 2500 or 3000 if you have it. Then go back over it with the compound. If you have a polisher, then use a new wool or foam pad but be careful as polisher cut a lot faster. Lastly, apply the swirl remover and a wax. I'll attach a DIY for chip repairs and it's similar to this in case you need to fill in with some paint.

http://3mcollision.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/9df78eab33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/m/m/mmm05973_1.jpg

 

tonyb635 - Thank you, this was just what I was looking for. I'll let you know how it goes. It's just a scuff, no paint lost or lines felt so I'm hoping it will be ok!

 

Rotary buffer... Compound.. I use presta ultra cutting creme along with a wool or white foam compound pad. Then use a 3m machine polish to deswirl with a black foam pad. And finally a orbital buffer with some nice paste wax. I use 3m show shine! Works amazing. Since it's black, it will take some time. De swirling a black car can be tough.

 

^^^can u do mine>?

 

Well, doing it by hand certainly helped it look better. The scuffs can still be seen though so I'm thinking I will need to go with the orbital buffer and spend some more time doing it. I used the 3M Rubbing Compound, 3m Swirl Remover and then Meguires Ice Polish. It does look better but just not where I want it to be.....

 

A machine polisher will give you a much better result and be less stressful on your arm. Porter Cable has a pretty good polisher and it's not too expensive. The orbital ones work well but are slower; however, in this case, slower is sometimes better especially for someone who is not doing this type of work for a living. Foam pads seem to also be safer, just make sure you get them from a body shop supplier store or at least be familiar with what you are purchasing. The color of the pad is not always correct so you need to make sure you look at the cell structure of the pad as to open and closed. Most of this info should be on the packaging as to what the pad should be used for. I would use a cutting pad and a polish pad, but to save a few bucks you could go with a polishing pad. Honestly, by the time you go out and purchase everything you need, it would have been much cheaper to stop by a detail guy and let them hit that area for you. Purchasing this stuff adds up quickly, but in the end, it’s nice having it around as you will probably need it again one day. Last thing, you need to be mindful of edges since the cutting is much faster and before you know it you might be seeing what looks like primer. Some place a piece of tape to help but this would be personal technique, so just remember to not hit it as hard and often as you do on the flat surfaces.

http://www.cpoworkshop.com/porter-ca...efault,sc.html