Scratches in clearcoat- did a search but one more question.....

[ualdriver]

Hi guys-

I did a search on clearcoat scratches and came up with a few threads that talked about how to remove them. A couple of people wrote that if one isn't careful with a buffer or some of the compounds, one could damage the clearcoat.

So if I want to have some slight scratches taken out professionally, who do I take the car to? A bodyshop? A car detailing place like the Turtle Wax car washes or Fast Eddie's? Anyone know of a good place to take the car to in the Chicago northwest suburbs?

To describe the scratches futher, I'm not even sure you can call them scratches. You can only see them if you squat down and the light is just right. It looks like my kids dragged their jacket snaps or zipper across a section of a door or something like that. It didn't dig in, but there's a blemish there of some sort.

Thanks!
ualdriver

[The Tony Show]

The last person I gave this advice to did not heed it, and ended up with ruined paint as a result.

Do not let anyone, no matter what their qualifications, put a high speed buffer on your paint.

A good detailer who uses an Orbital buffer can remove it, but I'd recommend investing in an Orbital and some good chemicals and learning to do it yourself. Orbitals are idiot proof and can't burn paint, and there's tons of resources out there on the web where you can learn and buy chemicals. www.autotpoia.org is a great forum for detailers, and I buy all my chemicals and buffing equipment from www.griotsgarage.com

[Civardi]

www.autogeek.com has online videos.

[The Tony Show]

Ha ha- I misspelled my link. It's actually www.autopia.org. That's what typing fast will get ya.

[ualdriver]

I watched the video......I think I'm going to find a pro to do it.

[sherkv]

The best idea is the orbital machine my car is spot less.

[GMBOUND]

Just get used to living with those micro scratches, they're a pain to get out.
If you have an Infrared model, you can just about forget about it. You'll get a couple of mils of tinted clear coat off and that micro scratch will still be laughing at you.
I'm speaking from experience, I had a trained professional to help me after I tried. The micro scratch is still there.

[MauiV]

I too am a Griots whore. I was drying my car the other day after a hand wash and a guy approached me and asked how I keep out the swirl in the black paint. Of course I see all kinds of swirl since it only has 1 coat of wax on it currently. A good quality wax in a couple of layers will do wonders in filling in the clear coat in most cases.

If you want a professional job nothing is better than word of mouth. Ask around, guys that have flawless paint or even look on some of the local lots and see whos cars are meticulously detailed and ask who they use (most dealers farm that work out).

A highspeed buffer in the hands of a great paint guy can do wonders but it can also ROYALY f'ck your paint if the wrong person does it and I would never trust myself to do it. I have a low speed, low heat orbital and I still get nervous putting it on the V.

[ualdriver]

Yeah, as I read these other threads on the topic, it sounds like I just have to do my best with a good quality job and live with the results. It sounds like the guys with the black cars have the biggest problem.

[The Tony Show]

Yeah- I can't even look at my car in the garage under the florescent lights. It looks great in the sun after working it over with the Griot's Orbital, but under hard light it still looks like it was washed with damn sandpaper.

[MauiV]

Originally Posted by ualdriver

It sounds like the guys with the black cars have the biggest problem.

But when she is clean there is nothing else as fine.

[MSOsr]

AMEN, BROTHER!

Black is worth the extra effort.

Mike (has 2 Black caddies)