Wet sanding ? - ( Not safe for those of a feeble nature)

[sevenfourate]

My Boss has his car keyed Saturday. Its not great at all.

I've done a very small amount of wet-sanding on a couple of cars of my own [Once around the lock where a key had clearly hit the paint numerous times......and once on a scratch on the boot]. Both very successfully i might add !!!

HOWEVER - both these were single scratches / small areas.

But.....i also figure the Nissan Navara is so bad - if i do make a huge faux-pas.....its really no big loss as its so bad anyway. Plus its not my car...........DILLIGAF !!!

I've got detailing tape to mask off. Then:

*****1500 and 2000 grit wet and dry, Cutting compound, T-Cut, AutoGlym SRP and Poorboys Black Hole and plenty of waxes to seal.......Which i'll use in that order.

I'll be going at it by hand so i have some feel whats going on.

Suggestions, tips anyone ???

 

[Sean197]

I have a few of this guy's videos saved:

It 'looks' straightforward, but not sure I'd have the balls to take sandpaper to my car. Good job it's not your car, and good on your boss for letting you practice on his car!

 

[Tiggy Rascal]

I'm addicted to Larry @nyc, would love to try his products. All his videos are brilliant. Good luck, I've wet sanded quite a bit but only with da. By hand must be hard work ;-)

 

[Chris]

Wouldn't be something I'd ever personally touch my car - let alone someone else's - what if you make a bodge of it (not doubting you but...) what would you do in that scenario?

 

[sevenfourate]

Wouldn't be something I'd ever personally touch my car - let alone someone else's - what if you make a bodge of it (not doubting you but...) what would you do in that scenario?

'Bodge'.......

How am i possibly going to make what's there worse ! He's facing a £500 bill for re-painting minimum at this stage. Goes without saying i'll start on a very small area [Like the arch trim] and go at it very slowly. Am going to borrow a paint depth gauge too. My boss will be with me and over my shoulder. His car - and he'll decide how far we push the envelope.

Im not scared..........................

 

[Chris]

Well good point to be fair... If he's willing to pay for a re spray in that event - you may as well get some practice.

I just meant if it were my black car - and I wasn't fussy about it, id probably go all in with a DA and some aggressive pad/polish combo then accept the line thats going to be there after, but a bad job with wet sand, and its 100% re spray time! (albeit it you'd have same the prep shop some time)...

 

[sevenfourate]

Well good point to be fair... If he's willing to pay for a re spray in that event - you may as well get some practice.

I just meant if it were my black car - and I wasn't fussy about it, id probably go all in with a DA and some aggressive pad/polish combo then accept the line thats going to be there after, but a bad job with wet sand, and its 100% re spray time! (albeit it you'd have same the prep shop some time)...

I'm not sure i'll ever get the marks out completely - its pretty deep.

As per the vid's kindly posted above. If i can reduce the depth, round the sharp edges so dirt / dust etc doesnt look so obvious in the 'crack' and then seal with a coating of wax etc - i'll feel plenty pleased.

Do you really think doing by hand with a cork block etc is a recipe for disaster ?

 

[Chris]

I'm not sure i'll ever get the marks out completely - its pretty deep.

As per the vid's kindly posted above. If i can reduce the depth, round the sharp edges so dirt / dust etc doesnt look so obvious in the 'crack' and then seal with a coating of wax etc - i'll feel plenty pleased.

Do you really think doing by hand with a cork block etc is a recipe for disaster ?

Well the only 'experience' I'm going by here - is when I used to regularly frequent detailing world - it was... how can I put it... a practice reserved for professional detailers - as in top level sort of things.


Obviously times changed and perhaps its a more used practice now.. and if you have had success in the past then why not. And as you said, its only going to need respraying anyway if you can't do anything with it.

I eagerly await updates

 

[sevenfourate]

Well the only 'experience' I'm going by here - is when I used to regularly frequent detailing world - it was... how can I put it... a practice reserved for professional detailers - as in top level sort of things.


Obviously times changed and perhaps its a more used practice now.. and if you have had success in the past then why not. And as you said, its only going to need respraying anyway if you can't do anything with it.

I eagerly await updates

If you never hear from me again; You've got your answer

 

[Greg0986]

I've wet sanded my 200 before as someone scraped the rear bumper. I just got 2500 wet n dry from halfords, soaked it for 20 mins, rubbed the area of the scratch while constantly dipping the sandpaper in water. Use something like ultimate compound and buff and see where its got you. Rinse and repeat until you are happy with the results.

When you are happy, you might want to use a DA or polish by hand for a little longer to remove the very fine and near invisible sanding lines.

Just take it slow and don't rush.

 

[sevenfourate]

I've wet sanded my 200 before as someone scraped the rear bumper. I just got 2500 wet n dry from halfords, soaked it for 20 mins, rubbed the area of the scratch while constantly dipping the sandpaper in water. Use something like ultimate compound and buff and see where its got you. Rinse and repeat until you are happy with the results.

When you are happy, you might want to use a DA or polish by hand for a little longer to remove the very fine and near invisible sanding lines.

Just take it slow and don't rush.

Thanks Greg.

As i said - not a complete Virgin. But no experience on anything this big !!

I think the arch trim is removeable. So i'll start there and see how it goes before attacking a panel 'proper'.

There will be no rushing. If it takes a few nights after work - that's what it takes........

 

[Pav]

if you are confident enough Syer then go ahead..maybe try a small bit and see how it goes..good luck sorting it..

 

[Big Ben]

Thanks Greg.



There will be no rushing. If it takes a few nights after work - that's what it takes

A few nights after work sounds to me like it'd be cheaper to have it resprayed. Double bubble after hours lol

 

[LOCKE]

Is the scratch down to the primer? If so is that not too deep for wet sanding?

 

[sevenfourate]

Is the scratch down to the primer?

I'm genuinely not sure.

It looks white / grey in the scratch itself. But don't they always however minor, on whatever colour car.

 

[sevenfourate]

45 minutes in - and one 6" gash to the arch wet-sanded / repaired to looking 95% of perfect. One tiny mark near the crease i didnt want to attack too much for fear of paint being thin in that area.....but reckon i can improve further.

Boss was amazed. (So was i) lol.

Reckon 3-4 hours tops will kill the lot. Feeling pretty chuffed with myself. So far.......

BEFORE: (Doesn't look as bad as it was in reality in this picture):

***Actually i didnt have a pic of the bit i attacked. But was pretty much like any of these pictured.



AFTER:

 

[///M]

Bloody hell Shuv!

Very very impressed with the results here. And hats off to you for taking it on.

More before and after pics if poss please mate. Love seeing things like this.

 

[Jimmy]

That is a great result Shuv, top work! As above, kudos to you for doing it in the first place, mucho admiration!

 

[Chris]

Bravo sir!

I like being wrong in instances like this! Admire your efforts

 

[Pav]

hats off to you Syer..that looks amazing..
are we still on for our little detailing date??