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Wet Sanding VS Pad on Drill

Luken10

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Luken10

Luken10

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Hey guys quick question for all of you. I am trying to remove some fine scratches on my vehicle and I was wondering what is the best way to do it. Is it safer to use a pad on a drill, or just get out some super fine sand paper? Figured the PC isn't enough to get the job done, so I need a little extra OOMPH. The car has a quality aftermarket paint job so I know that i have a tiny bit of wiggle room. Just looking for some opinions!

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mc2hill

mc2hill

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Not to be rude, but if you are asking this question you are not ready to wetsand. At best wetsanding removes lots of clearcoat and at worst, paint too.

Try many, many passes with the PC, and if they are still there move to the 4" Focus pads on a drill.

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Luken10

Luken10

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I will get some pictures up tomorrow when the sun comes out. I just have a bunch of different scratches from DD use that I would like to remove, or at least improve. Some of them snag on my fingernail when I pass over them, so those I will just have to leave alone. But other more minor scratches do not, so I know I can improve on them.

 

I have been doing tons of research and it seems like many people are successful with wet sanding, and it seems like the drill is also very effective too. I have also seen tons of screw ups with both. So which way is technically safer? To me it seems like i could be much more accurate with sand paper, be more in control, and affect a smaller area.

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Luken10

Luken10

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Sand away!

 

No, but really, sanding isn't THAT big a deal. Just go slow and be careful, and make sure to follow a set of instructions (like the junkman's) well.

 

Have you tried removing a scratch using a drill and the focus pads? If you have which way do you think is better?

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ChargerMatt

ChargerMatt

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Have you tried removing a scratch using a drill and the focus pads? If you have which way do you think is better?

 

I've done 2 corrections and used my drill with the focus pads twice... it's not that big of a deal. Just keep it moving and watch for when it starts to get warm, let it cool off and give it a hit of detail spray

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Luken10

Luken10

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Some kid ran their bike into the side of the car for this one. Left a dent too :( Sorry for the bad focus, cameras tend to freak out after you get a car adamized.

20111114_142235.jpg?t=1321319299

 

Yes i know the car is dirty!

20111114_142152.jpg

 

Hard to get a good shot of this one.

20111114_142229.jpg

 

I was thinking about applying brilliant glaze 50 times to get rid of this one. True test of its "filling properties" :jester:

20111114_144916.jpg

 

All of these are pretty shallow,(well except the last one) but definitely detract from the car. The plan is to remove them when i do my next big detail on it next month.

Edited by Luken10
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rpomeroy

rpomeroy

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The first one can probably be buffed out with SHR, I'd also take a crack at the second one with it. The one looks deep and an easy wet sand (2000 and above) followed by SHR should do the trick. The last one, you probably should find a body shop.

 

Also, I agree with the Junkman, if you can feel any of it with your fingernail, follow my last comment.

 

I've done wetsanding in the past, and am not afraid to jump in, but if you never done it, it's probably best to take the finger nail test and if you can feel it, call the body shop.

 

Hope that helps

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Luken10

Luken10

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None of the ones posted can be felt with my fingernail. Which is why I want to give it an attempt! And obviously the last one is definitely going to need some professional work done. The car was used when I got it, so i have been trying to repair most of it to make it look as close to new without a new paint job.

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MikeS

MikeS

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If you use the focus pads on a drill, don't do like I did.

 

I'm not saying "don't go that route".....just don't go gung-ho like me.

http://www.adamsforums.com/forums/machine-polishing/14165.htm

 

FYI for anybody who was watching my thread.....I've been swamped and haven't made any progress whatsoever yet.

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Luken10

Luken10

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If you don't have a good paint thickness gauge, I wouldn't even TRY messing with it if I were you OP. You don't learn how to do this on a car you actually CARE about.

I've got a buddies car I am going to try it out on this weekend. It's a decent looking 2003 corolla and now matter how hard I try to have him take care of it he simply just does not care AT ALL. So I always try stuff out on it first, and in return his car gets to look better!

 

But my plan is to still be super careful on it, but if I make any mistakes I will know for next time. Plus he has original paint vs my aftermarket job. So as long as I don't do any more to my car than I did to his car I should be fine right?

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Junkman2008

Junkman2008

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In theory, what you say makes sense. But there's one thing that comes into play that you lack.

 

Experience.

 

That big mouth bass can sneak up on you, eat all of your bait, spit the hook and be upstream in time for snuggling with momma bass. That leaves you sitting there with no bait, and no dinner to take home to the family. Don't be that fisherman. Practice on anything you want but don't touch your car with sandpaper until you know what you're doing, have a paint thickness gauge or have been shown personally how to do this by someone who knows.

 

Trust me, it looks easier than it is and if you are successful one time and get a false sense of security, that's when the OMG factor rears its ugly head and you're looking at a paint job. I always error on the side of giving out enough warning so that no one looks at me and thinks I'm to blame for them screwing up their car.

 

My rule of the advice that I give is to NEVER tell someone to do something to THEIR car that I wouldn't allow them to do to MINE.

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Luken10

Luken10

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Thanks for all of the input guys! A.J. I watched your wet sanding videos, they are a great way to clarify everything, thanks for taking the time to do that. :thumbsup: A couple questions though. On the one scratch you were saying that your fingernail "barely" caught it. In words (I know it's kind of hard) how would you describe "barely" for that scratch. I probably won't attempt anything that I can physically feel, but it is still good to know. Also how much clear coat do you think you removed with the process you used? I can definitely see how fast it works, and how quickly it could go wrong. :willy:

 

I am going to try it on my buddies car tomorrow so wish me luck! I'll take some pictures and post them when I'm done. If I mess up the story is I was doing it for educational purposes on how NOT to do it. :D

Edited by Luken10
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Luken10

Luken10

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Hey guys here is the wet sanding trial I did. Started with 2500 and then 3000 grit. It's quite painful to see the car so dull after sanding it. :willy: My buddies who were watching though his car was a goner once they saw the sandpaper damage. However SSHR and the green focus pad did an amazing job of making everything look good again. I didn't follow up with SHR and MP because of time, but I think it still came out pretty great!

 

sidebysiden.jpg

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ChargerMatt

ChargerMatt

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Hey guys here is the wet sanding trial I did. Started with 2500 and then 3000 grit. It's quite painful to see the car so dull after sanding it. :willy: My buddies who were watching though his car was a goner once they saw the sandpaper damage. However SSHR and the green focus pad did an amazing job of making everything look good again. I didn't follow up with SHR and MP because of time, but I think it still came out pretty great!

 

sidebysiden.jpg

 

That looks fantastic man, great work

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Kingsford

Kingsford

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Not to be rude, but if you are asking this question you are not ready to wetsand. At best wetsanding removes lots of clearcoat and at worst, paint too.

Try many, many passes with the PC, and if they are still there move to the 4" Focus pads on a drill.

 

I'm going to agree with this.

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