polishing help needed

[werdy666]

I got some tamiya fine polish to clean up some windscreens that had some tape residue and scratches on them. it cleaned them up perfect. very happy.

I also tried polishing my car body with the same polish and it didn't turn out the way i expected. The paintjob is nice and clean, and you can see refections in it very nicely, but not quite a mirror. I tried polishing it and even adding some turtle wax afterwards but the paint appears dull, and has scratches in it. Is my cloth not soft enough? or will i also have to buy the finish polishing compound?

Read the How to it appears buy polishing attempt should have turned out alot better than it has!

Thanks for any help u can give..

Werdy666

[mickbench]

Polishing a model car is a tricky thing to get right, but I’ll try and help you. I take it the paint is gloss paint, and not a metallic or pearl finish. Also have you clear coated?

Tamiya compound is best used after sanding your paint, as it doesn’t remove orange peel too well. It also doesn’t remove dust too well, or it leaves a dust speck (it does for me anyhow). I find the best results are obtained by –

First sanding your paintwork with 3200 grit paper – VERY gently, rubbing up and down to dull the paint until all the shine is gone. Use it wet, and check your work regularly and check well. If you still see shinny spots, orange peel is still present, lightly sand some more. Be VERY careful around the corners and edges of the paint. If need be, apply masking tape to the raised edges. You do not want to sand too much, and remove too much paint, and go through to the primer. That's the worse then can happen, and it's a repaint job if this does.

Now with the paint flatted down, you can use Tamiya Fine Compound to bring the shine back. Fine compound will bring a nice shine, after a good rub. Best way is to apply on a cloth, old t-shirt for example and rub the compound on. Rub it evenly around the surface and then get another clean cloth and rub the compound off. Then get another clean SOFT cloth and polish up. You have to sometimes put a bit of elbow into your work, but don’t press so hard you bend the plastic. I tend to rub firmly on the final cloth polish.

Repeat the process on the same surface you used fine compound on with finish compound for the ultimate mirror finish. Then wax with wax. I prefer Tamiya, or some even use good old car WAX.

Take a look at my S2000 Progress – in my sig, this was sanded with 3200, then compounded with fine and finish. No wax yet, and this is a mirror finish. It shows my entire face, and what is behind me. It’s that shinny.

Oh - if I'm wrong let me know. I'm still a really starting out myself. And welcome to AF.com

[SteveK2003]

Right: If you don't sand with progressibely finer paper to level the paint, it will be MUCH harder to rub out the paint just using a polishing cloth and compound. The one guy I heard about doing it that way spent something like 24 hours rubbing the body, versus a couple of hours the normal way.

There are good instructions in the Novus Try-It pack from Micro Mark.

What kind of paint did you try and polish? Metallic paints don't polish well, and often just end up duller than normal.

[werdy666]

yeah i had not put on a clear coat, nor had i sanded the paint level. I got a feeling that is my problem! i got some finish polish today and will have to try and find some finer sand paper than 1500 grit! other than a hobby shop, where else can i find sandpaper higher than 1500?

Again, thanks for all your help guys!

Werdy666

[mickbench]

You need some micro mesh. Search using google for sites that sell a micro mesh polishing kit. These kits tend to come with 1800, 2400, 3200, 4000, 6000, 8000, 12000. Some also come with some fluid, but I just use water, with a VERY small amount of washing up liquid.

Beware, Micro Mesh is not cheap, but the cloths last a long time.

[sjelic]

Most auto paint shops have fine sanding papers, you don't need more then 2000 (paper) just be sure to use lot of water in the process. This is much cheaper then Micro mesh but you need to have patience and light hand

[klutz_100]

All very good advice above but I'll add my 2 cents worth about the micro-mesh.
It's damn expensive and having lived with it for a while, I've got to say that IMHO it's not really worth it -especially for car bodies. Fine sand paper, polishing/rubbing compound and wax give comparable (maybe even superior results).

I have, however, used my micromesh with excellent results for rescuing clear parts from scratches and glue but could probably have done it without the micromesh.

Micro mesh is not bad, I'm just not sure it represents real value for money.

I'm curious what others think 'cos I could just be using it badly and not helping it deliver the goods !

[freakmech]

I think Micro-mesh is a necessity to have as a tool for modelling. as you stated, when used properly it is the only think that will fix clear parts with great results and a few other choice things i use it for. for paint, no, its not essential. 3M 2000 grit wet/dry is all you need along with some polish and wax and you can get it in automotive stores and wall mart. though i do use Micro-mesh 8000 and 12000 for finishing my bodies but only because i have it and it last a long time.

[Veyron]

Originally Posted by klutz_100

All very good advice above but I'll add my 2 cents worth about the micro-mesh.
It's damn expensive and having lived with it for a while, I've got to say that IMHO it's not really worth it -especially for car bodies. Fine sand paper, polishing/rubbing compound and wax give comparable (maybe even superior results).

I have, however, used my micromesh with excellent results for rescuing clear parts from scratches and glue but could probably have done it without the micromesh.

Micro mesh is not bad, I'm just not sure it represents real value for money.

I'm curious what others think 'cos I could just be using it badly and not helping it deliver the goods !

You can buy micro-mesh polishing cloths in larger sheets and cheaper from here:


Micro Surface

[klutz_100]

Originally Posted by Veyron

You can buy micro-mesh polishing cloths in larger sheets and cheaper from here:
Micro Surface

thansk for that it's MUCH cheaper than what I paid!!! I paid about 40$ for 4 scrappy little bits! whata sucker!!! oh well..


Werdy666 - sorry if I hijacked your thread for a bit there.

Back to your original polishing question...I read somewhere a bit of advice that stuck in my memory as one of those bits of "obvious once you think about" truths - untill then I hadn't

it was this: "you sand/level with your first grade of paper everything after that is just smothing and polishing" in other words if don't remove all of the blemish/orange peel at the first stage of sanding you probably won't get rid of it entirely as you progress up through further grades.

don't know if that's relevant o your problem but HTH

[werdy666]

yeah i think my main problem was not sanding the paint after letting it dry. Totally understand now about leveling the paint. The finish is very good. i am happy with it, but that mirror finish would be great too.

Thanks for the link, they have an aussie distributor so i should be able to get a good price with little postage costs.

I found some 2000 grit paper. Will buy it tomorrow. i have 1500 currently.


Is it my painting that is cause the edges of my body losing paint and going to the primer? only when i handle it, i guess i would have to put more paint on edges!

Thanks for all your help guys, and anyone else left reading......

Can I use any paint for my primer? i would only use flat paint, but would prefer to buy paint, thin it out and airbrush it on. any suggestions?

Werdy666

[klutz_100]

I use both Tamiya and regular auto primer in sprays. I think that they are beter than using thined paint - they give a good, smooth coverage and a good level base for the paint to key into. I think that if you use those you will find it much better

When you say that you can see the primer, is that after sanding or after painting?

If it's after sanding, it's probably because you rubbed through the paint. Edges are very sensisitve as paint "runs away" from edges and panel lines. The coating there very thin so you need to be very careful when rubbbing in these areas (cover them with masking tape while working on other areas).

If it's immediately after painting, then I'm guessing it's becase the paint "ran away" compounded by not having a good primer to key into. Take a look at the tutorials here and on spider360's site (italianhorses.net) for great ideas on how to prep and paint. A good primer will I am sure help you get a really good start to your painting.

HTH and I 'm sure there will be more useful help coming this way too

[werdy666]

Originally Posted by klutz_100

If it's after sanding, it's probably because you rubbed through the paint. Edges are very sensisitve as paint "runs away" from edges and panel lines. The coating there very thin so you need to be very careful when rubbbing in these areas (cover them with masking tape while working on other areas).

yeah its mainly happening when i am actually handling the body. not when i am sanding. I'll start masking the edges when i am handling pieces, and maybe even using a cloth to handle them.

[99civichic]

I just gave that whole wet-sanding thing a shot; I used 2000 grit 3M wet/dry sandpaper + Turtle Wax polishing compound ($5 for both at Wal-Mart, always got that eye on the budget) on my Viper....wow that thing glows. I did get down to the primer on an edge on the hood, that's what I get for trying to watch TV at the same time! I have about an hour in it and I think I'm happy with the results. I'm going to wax it tonight, glue the hood hinge back on, and try to get a new pic for my avatar.

[klutz_100]

Originally Posted by 99civichic

I just gave that whole wet-sanding thing a shot; I used 2000 grit 3M wet/dry sandpaper + Turtle Wax polishing compound ($5 for both at Wal-Mart, always got that eye on the budget) on my Viper....wow that thing glows. I did get down to the primer on an edge on the hood, that's what I get for trying to watch TV at the same time! I have about an hour in it and I think I'm happy with the results. I'm going to wax it tonight, glue the hood hinge back on, and try to get a new pic for my avatar.

hey that's great! always nice to see "happy success story" polishing and waxing posts LOL!