ComponY

Alright... I've seen a ton of people asking about scratches, so here is my thread on how to remove scratches.

First of all, you want to identify what kind of scratch you are looking at. Depending on how deep the scratch is, you'll either be able to fix it, or wont. Slide your non-dominate hand (you can feel better with it) over the scratch. If you can feel it, you have a low chance of fixing it, but not impossible.

- If the scratches are fine (usually from brushes, or rags), you can either buff them out, or even wax them out. This usually happens to darker colors.

- If the scratch is a pretty decent one, that you can't feel, or can and want to minimize it or sometimes even get it out, you'll need to sand it, then buff your sand scratches.

I use a very expensive 6" Finishing DA from Snap-On. Well worth the money, and air powered. It costed about $310. I can do anything with it... From sanding paint, primer, body work, anything...




I like to start with 1500 Grit Sand Paper. I use the 3M sand paper at my work. I always wet sand, and use wet sand paper. I sand the area with 1500, for about two seconds, moving a little quickly so it doesn't burn the clear. Being wet, I use a rag to dry the sand spot and blow on it. That way I can see what's happening (when it's wet, you won't be able to tell). If you still see the scratch, sand some more. Again, for a couple or few seconds, moving sort of quickly with the DA. Burning through the clear coat while sanding and buffing is very easy, so you need to be careful. Every time you dry the area you sanded, you'll see the scratch slowly dissapearing. This is because you're sanding it out and making it flush with everything. Eventually, you'll sand it well enough, when you dry the spot, there will be no more scratch.





Now that the scratches are out, you'll want to go over those 1500 scratches, with 3000 grit sand paper. Again, I use the wet 3M paper. I never sand dry. With this sand paper, you'll want to go over all the spots you sanded earlier. Again, just go a little quick, and make sure you get all the areas (this makes buffing way easier). You're wanting to get a matte finish after using the 3000 on the 1500 scratches.



After you've sanded it out, you'll need to buff those scratches. I use all 3M at work. Start with compound and a pad. 3M makes pads. You can use wool pads as well. Go over them quickly, and thoroughly. After buffing them out, polish and remove the swirls. The buffing part, is more of a different tutorial. If you're sanding, you should probably know how to buff as well. If not, I would suggest not trying it, you'll probably burn through.

Here's the finished product: